Elevating user experience with design
Websites are forever changing. Remember the old retro sites of the 90s: bright colours, animated GIFs, tiled backgrounds? And that’s just the start of the atrocities we used to feast our eyes upon while “surfing the net.” Web design has indeed come a long way since then.
With the evolution of technology, web design has turned towards functionality and user-friendliness. The days of overwhelming flashing images and a riot of colours are behind us. Today, we prioritize clean, easily navigable websites, ensuring a seamless user experience.
However, this didn’t happen all in one day. No, these changes have come to us in waves, slowly transforming the future for us all. That is why it is important to keep on top of the latest web design trends to ensure you are not lagging behind in last place.
Today, we will explore the latest trends to help you keep on top of your game!
Design Features
Keeping your users occupied and thrilled to use your site doesn’t have to be achieved using big, out-there concepts. Sometimes, it’s the little things that count toward a grand overall experience.
Scrolling Animations
Scrolling animations are a design element that, as you can guess, is triggered when a user scrolls through a website. This type of animation can be applied to virtually anything on the site. Let’s explore some creative ways to add them to your website.
Fade-In Animations
Have you ever been scrolling through a website, and as you scroll down the page, the elements start to fade into view nicely? Well, this is a fade-in animation. While a very subtle addition to a website, it really helps make the overall user experience as pleasant as possible. In web design, a little goes a long way.
Slide-in Animations
A slide-in is a bit more dynamic than a fade. Having elements slide into view from the bottom or side of the page will help draw attention to the things you really want your user to see. But take care not to overload your page with these. Save them for the most important parts of your story.
Parallax Scrolling
When you visit a site, have you noticed that the page’s background is a picture instead of a solid colour? Then, as you scroll down the page, it seems as though the background isn’t moving at the same speed as the content. This is called parallax scrolling; it is often used on landing pages or to give that extra sense of depth so you feel immersed during a storytelling experience. This particular animation rarely goes unnoticed, so if you are trying to make an experience that people remember, this may be the way to go. However, just like any aspect of web design, applying such features is indeed an art form, so do it wisely.
Sticky Elements
Sometimes, when I come across a webpage that has a lot of content, I really wish that I could have a menu bar or some other kind of navigation accessible to me so that I don’t have to scroll all the way back up to the top of the page allowing you to quickly navigate the rest of the site. Well, here is where sticky elements come into play. Sticky elements allow the user to see an aspect of the design, usually in some form of navigation, the whole time they scroll the page, making the rest of the site easily accessible. Sometimes, it’s a whole menu; other times, it’s a “jump to top” style button. Either way, it adds a quality-of-life improvement to your user experience when delivering a lot of content at once.
How are these implemented?
Scrolling animations are generally implemented through the combined effort of CSS, which controls the page design, and JavaScript, which powers the animations.
Should you use scrolling animations on your website?
Scrolling animations can make the user experience more pleasant, fun, and immersive and enhance user engagement if implemented correctly. Just remember to ask yourself a few key questions before implementing these:
Will it enhance the user experience? Will it make content on the page more noticeable without being too distracting? Will it fit in with the design of the page? If this is a yes, then go ahead.
Will it achieve a goal I have for my content? There is no point in adding animation effects for no real reason, so make sure it is part of your overall plan for your content.
Will it be a quality-of-life improvement? Are you aware of issues when it comes to viewing your content? If you are and you think the addition will improve the experience for the user, then by all means, go ahead.
And by far, the most important question to ask is:
Will it affect the performance of my site? Lots of JavaScript running on a site can slow loading times and harm your SEO rating. Be sure that your hosting package will allow for these additions and that you are not overloading your page with animations.
Micro-Interactions
Next up, we come to micro-interactions; micro-interactions are, as the name implies, small things that lead to an overall better experience for your users. Micro-interactions can be used for functional purposes. They make using a website more like an interaction with a person – responsive. That’s one thing about technology: reading a website isn’t the same as giving a presentation during a Q+A session. Micro-interactions help to guide and enhance your journey as you navigate a site. There are many different examples of micro-interactions; here are just a few examples:
Hover Effects
We all should know about hover effects. One we are all familiar with is viewing a link’s destination. Hover effects can also provide additional options, such as menu items.
Button Animations
Buttons are a regular addition to any website, so using them to guide the user is more than logical. Buttons can be set to change size or shape if you hover over them or click on them.
Progress Indicators
Indeed, nothing is worse than being in the middle of a task, awaiting a response from another party to let you know how things are progressing. It’s the same principle for websites. If I am filling out a survey that seems to be going on forever, I would generally like some kind of indicator as to where I am in the process. The same thing can be applied to loading screens. If you are taking an internet speed test that has to test a few factors, the presence of a loading animation is always a welcome addition.
Notifications
Well, since the age of smart phones began, we have all been very well versed in the art of notifications. Notifications don’t just tell us when we have an email or there is a sale on one of our apps. Notifications can also improve the user experience by letting you know an action you have taken was successful, such as when you add an item to a basket or have made a successful payment.
All in all, micro-interactions are a good way to go; they serve a functional purpose and help to guide a user and satisfy their curiosity. You can really improve the user experience by implementing some on your website.
Gamified Design
Do you ever feel that a website is missing something? Do you feel that there could be ways to incentivize you to interact with it? Well, that is where gamified design comes into play. Gamified design appeals to us on a psychological level. It harnesses our need for achievement or satisfies our natural want for competition. The gamified design does not intend to turn a website into a game. Instead, it aims to apply gaming elements to the website to make you want to interact with it more. Here are some of the ways this can be done:
Points and Challenges/Quests
Aren’t points great? Don’t you just love earning points? Well, we must do so because almost every retail store implements some sort of points system. We get points for purchases we make, and then we are rewarded with a prize of monetary value. Retail and survey websites are the most common types of websites that implement this strategy. After all, would you sit and fill out surveys all day for no reason? However, points can also be rewarded for completing tasks such as finding content on a website that, in turn, helps you to get to know a brand better, making it a win-win for both parties involved.
Levels/ Achievements
Doesn’t a stage 10 Digital marketer sound better than a stage 2 digital marketer? Of course, it does. We all like achievement, and increasing your level is a great way of achieving this. This is just the bigger picture for points: points accumulate, and x amount of points equals a new level until you get to level 10 and get a snazzy title such as “Brand ambassador” or “Mega fan.”
Leaderboards
To further enhance the user experience, we can satisfy the urge for competition with leaderboards. Leaderboards transform your experience from a solo experience into a community event. People can compete to be named number one or work cooperatively to achieve better outcomes for each other. Either way, it encourages interaction with your site and fosters a sense of community.
Gamified design is a great way to enhance the user experience. However, it should always be well thought out, with set goals in place for implementation. If executed correctly, it can be a very positive experience for all. If executed badly, it can be a bit lacklustre or even a deterrent to your users. So, ensure you have a well-structured game plan before starting the race.
3D Content and Interactive Models
Yes, the age of technology is well and truly upon us. We are no longer satisfied by 2D content alone. We are now able to create content in 3 dimensions, so why not use it for our websites? We come into contact with 3D features quite often nowadays when “surfing the net” from retail to real estate; here a few examples:
Virtual Tours
This is probably the most noticeable and common example of applying 3D features to a website. Real Estate loves using this particular feature, and why not? It truly is a great way to help a potential buyer get the full experience of viewing a house without actually being there. This trend started gaining popularity during COVID-19 when we couldn’t get out to see a house due to restrictions, but it hasn’t lost its appeal. It can also be used to show displays around museums or perhaps inside a sports facility. This is a great way to make your website more interactive and let your users walk away with a high-end experience.
Product Showcases
What better way to let your consumers know exactly what they are buying than by making a 3d model of the item in question? This type of content helps the product become real in the users’ eyes instead of just a picture of an item. 3D models of cars are popular, as are other products such as furniture. Some websites even go one step further by implementing augmented reality to show you what the product would look like in your home.
3D content is a great way to enhance user experience; however, it is always best to keep in mind your budget for content such as this, as having someone generate 3d models for you is rather more expensive than taking pictures. Showing a house via a 3D tour is definitely worth the money invested, but a 3D model of a food item may be a bit expensive. Remember, just as with anything you implement, make sure that well thought through strategy is at the heart of your efforts.
Key Takeaways
Implementing design features such as scrolling animations can create a better user experience, from pleasant to dynamic and eye-catching.
Micro-interactions such as hover effects, button animations, progress indicators, and notifications can help to guide your users along the customer journey and make them feel more secure and satisfied with their interactions with your website.
Gamified design, such as points, levels, achievements, and rewards, satisfies the human need for achievement and competition and can really help enhance user experience, foster a sense of community, and familiarize users with your brand.
3D content, such as virtual tours and product showcases, can help your consumers visualize the product you are trying to sell and secure that purchase.
Web design is forever improving, and it is important to keep up with trends and technological advances, but always consider your budget, website performance and end goals when implementing anything new to your site. Everything you do should be part of a well-thought-out overall strategy.