Design // November 19, 2019
Website and mobile app designs go beyond what’s “pretty” for audiences; they’re about how you engage your users, so it’s important to manage expectations through the smooth delivery of information and call-to-action prompts. If you’re strategising your brand’s web and app presence for the coming year, you may be wondering how to address your end-users’ anxieties and uncertainties.
Here are some tips on how you can encourage confidence in your customers through powerful and effective UI/UX designs!
1. Personalisation
Personalisation has gotten even more niche in 2019, going beyond just catering to your general target market. Disruptors in the market have been increasingly prioritising end-user personalisation. Take Spotify for example. Once Spotify recognises songs you’ve been listening to, a curated playlist is created just for you, i.e. On Repeat, Repeat Rewind, Daily Mixes, etc. This creates an intimate user experience for end-users, giving them a personal sense of ownership. It’s not about “Let’s play this song on Spotify” anymore, now it’s “Let’s play songs from my Spotify”.
What we can learn from their example is that curating unique content to the individual level will encourage users to increase their interactions with your product.
Photo Source: Spotify
2. Voice Interaction
Even though voice search exists on many apps and software programs improving voice user experiences and interfaces should not be overlooked.
Since voice search is outpacing text search with 5G coming soon, brands should start working on voice user interfaces (VUI) to bring their platforms up to par in anticipation of voice query collaborations. However, when designing for UI/UX that involves vocal interactions, not overwhelming your users is just as important as being visually interactive and responsive. Audio is a slower medium so if there’s auditory feedback involved, keep in mind that your users may not be able to digest audio as fast, compared to reading.
3. Compelling and Mindful Storytelling Designs
Sometimes, designers may get carried away with aesthetics and neglect the practical side of the digital experience. To achieve mindful design that also tells compelling stories, ask yourself: what satisfies end-users besides creative visuals?
We understand that it’s important for design to be all about the customer journey. But apart from creating good content that fits, brands are expected to understand the relationships their end-users have with the people, objects, products, and services that surround them.
So how do we combine compelling storytelling with design? Stories can be highly persuasive, so find ways to visually navigate users with stories and plots they can resonate with.
Be mindful of your users’ experience, as this encourages them to empathise with your brand communication. Brands should take advantage of the design stage to be very clear with their intentions as all digital experiences should be designed with meaning and purpose.
Photo Source: Stumptown Coffee Roasters
Stumptown Coffee Roasters from the US used the intimate perspective shared via their ‘Our Story’ page to connect their audience to the values they believe in. By taking their users on a compelling ‘perfect sip of coffee’ journey, starting from the first inhale all the way to how their coffee beans are sourced and roasted, they created a vivid experience for the user, sparking their desire for a call-to-action response.
4. Good Web and App Copy for UI
Copy may seem like the logical last step of your user interface design, but your copywriter should be involved from the start, at the brainstorming and design stages! Writing good web copy differs from offline or social media platforms because it needs to be concise and benefit-driven. It’s all about knowing where you want your users to go and charting a clear conversion pathway for them.
People want content that’s interesting and engaging, so make sure it has a logical flow in a digestible visual format. As of 2019, 45.78% of web traffic in Malaysia (49.07% worldwide) is mobile. If your business doesn’t run on apps, that’s okay, but your website should be designed LIKE an app to be mobile optimised.
Photo Source: Artifact Uprising
Artifact Uprising’s website is a beautiful example of strategically crafted copy. Their product category presentations and call-to-action prompts are minimal, concise, and inspiring, making it irresistible for users to want to ‘Learn More’, but at the same time leaving no room for ambiguity.
Animation & Microinteractions
When designing an unforgettable experience and interface, don’t neglect the little details like animations and microinteractions. Microinteractions are tiny, single-functioned events that induce user satisfaction. These can range from heart shapes throbbing out of a liked Instagram post, a downward scroll to refresh a Twitter mobile feed, an arrow cheekily jumping in place prompting you to take action, to the paper crumpling sound your MacBook makes when you hit ‘empty trash’.
According to Dan Saffer, effective microinteractions follows this 4-step process:
A good microinteraction provides instant feedback and gratification, so your end-users realise their love for your product instead of their tolerance for other competitors as it provides affirmation that their actions have a direct impact.
For instance, the cryptocurrency trading site Crypton, got us excited scrolling back and forth.
Photo Source: Crypton
You can see how microinteractions on the site delight users by creating engaging, welcoming, and human moments for despite the heavy financial topic. So have fun with creating delightful elements along your user’s journey!
One Thing at a Time
Planning in the last quarter of 2019 may fill you with excitement and dread, but remember to keep things simple. Don’t try to cram too much into a single screen, or you’ll confuse your end-users and create a stressful experience.
Need to revamp or create your website or mobile app? Contact us HERE. We’ll make sure to design a streamlined user experience and interface for your website or app to ensure your customers fall in love with your brand.
