User Experience Design – Don’t Skimp on UX!
If User Experience Design is not at the center of all your marketing efforts, call it a day.
Ask the experts; search Google—A/B test for yourself—User Experience (UX) ultimately determines your marketing and sales success.
Here’s what you need to know about UX and what you should apply immediately!
Your Guide to User Experience (UX) In Web Design and Digital Marketing
Just about anything you read these days (from blogs, opinion pieces, and advice columns to cheat sheets, checklists and how-tos) will mention the importance of User Experience.
Sometimes this content may refer to the customer journey and how consumers relate to your brand as a whole. However, most often, the content focuses on User Experience (UX) Design in website design, social media and email marketing.
Good to know! Though rare, you may read UE instead of UX for User Experience.
Why UX Matters SO Much
The customer is always right. Your sales and marketing success lies at the hand of the consumer’s experience more than ever before.
We live online. Whether you want to find it, learn more about it or buy it—you’ll do it all online. 80% of US consumers research products online before heading to physical stores, and 68% of South Africans are shopping online according to Mastercard.
We are used to instant gratification. If your website takes long to load, is hard to navigate or is flooded with pop-ups, users will bounce. They’ll leave without even you giving your brand a second thought, gone forever.
Google is placing growing emphasis on UX. User experience matters to Google. They are updating Page Experience requirements that will influence your SEO.
Relationship is paramount. Customer loyalty depends on relationship, relationship on trust, trust on one’s consistent experience. If I don’t feel close to you, I’ll go to another brand that cares more about ME.
How to Up Your UX Game
This is a non-exhaustive list of crucial User Experience design elements to consider when building (or improving) your website.
1. Use High-Quality Content
Content remains the most significant factor in UX. All other work on your website will be for nought if your content is not relevant and engaging.
Your content must deliver value. What you say is just as important as how you say it and show it. Invest time in creating well-crafted copy (words), captivating images, videos and helpful infographics.
2. Be User Obsessed
True, user-centricity is essential to creating killer content. So, it feels a little counter-intuitive placing this second on the list—but we can’t overstate the importance of content.
When developing your site (and placing your incredible content), keep your user front-and-centre. Sites built around theme or platform’s limitations perform poorly. Users shouldn’t need to expend energy to find what they need or buy!
3. Take Page Experience Signal Seriously
In essence, Google’s Page Experience signal boils down to:
3.1. Core Web Vitals, which focuses on “loading, interactivity, and visual stability”.
3.2. Mobile-friendly or responsiveness.
3.3. HTTPS (security).
3.4. No intrusive interstitials (pop up ads, specifically those that cover the page and block content).
4. Ensure Lightspeed Loading
While loading speed is covered in core web vitals, it’s worth mentioning again. It is said that you have less than 59 seconds to grab a user’s attention. You have less for every extra second your page takes to load.
Approximately 40 % of people exit websites that load slowly. – creative.com
5. Simplify Usability (and Navigation)
This goes hand-in-hand with point number two. You want to make your site as easy to use and navigate as possible.
Put menus in logical places, name menu options descriptively, keep important information above the fold, use clear CTAs. That’s just the beginning. You’ll need to scrutinise every facet of your site’s build.
6. Build Trust
Credible sites gain a higher ranking in people’s hearts and search engine results. Building trust starts with security, like HTTPS or two-factor authentication for logins. Fewer to no annoying pop-ups or sleazy adverts go a long way to making a user feel like you want them there for more than their email address or money. A site that consistently works well (buttons, links, stability) will communicate the same about your brand.
7. Exercise Personalisation
Personalisation is a topic on its own—that’s why we’ve covered it at large! It’s the benchmark for marketing in the 21st century. Read more:
- Why Marketing Personalisation Matters
- Customer Segmentation: The Secret to Powerful Marketing Personalisation
- An Introduction to Conversational Marketing
8. Automate
Automated responses and chatbots are becoming increasingly popular. Users expect faster answers and appreciate the immediate feedback offered by automation. It’s a win-win because chatbots and virtual assistants also bolster your lead conversions and support. Read more about Chatbots for Marketing
There’s a ton more on this weighty topic. Let us enlighten you about User Experience and Google’s ranking factors. You might also like these related articles.
Planning your Digital Marketing Strategy for 2021
Why Customer Relationship Management Software is the Best Gift for Your Business