User experience is a very complex subject where designers have to be able to switch their focus from small details to the bird view of a project. Therefore, when we are talking about improvements of usability usually there is no quick solution as fixing one feature without considering the rest can lead to new problems and then we end up in a loop.
Next there are six examples of bad UX. Fixing them won’t be a magic wand for the big picture, but they can definitely be a little step towards a better experience and customer satisfaction.
01. Web browser request to allow push notifications.
The one which pops-up in your face two seconds after you have opened the page. I’m not going to give any examples of the pages which do that as there is a plethora of them. And designers/developers/managers get a D- (or whatever bad mark is in your country) for putting this feature just because they can. It took me less than two minutes to google a great article on a subject.
And the article says that you shall not ask for notifications permission if the user showed no intention for that or if it gives no value to the user. Usually it pops up way too early without giving users time to explore the content. How am I supposed to know if I want to be notified in the future if I don’t even know what this page is about?
However, there are some cases when this feature is actually useful. When it adds value to the user. The classics. For example, I’m looking for a flight to Rome, but the prices are too high so I never click the ’buy’ button. This is an interested, but hesitating user, great chance to suggest to notify them once the prices drop. Win-win.
If you are still not convinced, let’s take an example and imagine how this would look like in a real shoe shop? You just entered the shop, haven’t even touched a single shoe yet and the assistant runs to you and asks, if you would like to get promotions in the future? Kind of intrusive, isn’t it? However, if you approach them and ask if they have a different size of shoes it’s a great opportunity for them to suggest if you would like to be notified once they have them in the shop.
It’s digital space and you don’t get embarrassed in the face asking strange stuff, therefore, it’s tempting to cross the boundaries, but remember that the customer in the other side of the screen is still human who wants their needs to be understood.
02. Disabled backwards button on the web browser.
It’s funny, but there are still sites which are doing that. Crazy! You know when you are googling something and then jumping back and forth through the results and then... stuck. You stay here, person. You are not leaving our site! Stay here and buy something. It’s like blocking the door when you were a kid so that someone you like would not leave the room. Blocking the way frustrates users. They will surely find a way out, but will be left with a bad experience and probably won’t return.
03. Subscribe, discount pop-up box.
This is another popular one. We are not talking enough about how annoying those pop-ups are as the internet is still overloaded with this bad experience. Let me be specific here, the fact about collecting emails or offering discounts is great and indeed necessary, but the problem here is again timing. Why on earth would you load that pop-up together with a page? Give me at least a few moments or clicks and then go ahead with your offer. I feel a huge respect for websites which follow what am I doing on the site and then look for a moment to offer me something valuable. Another example from life, is it okay to ask someone their phone number after two minutes in the conversation? What are the chances a person will say ‘yes’ and will be happy to reply to you later? Quite low, weirdo.
04. Automatically playing videos.
How many times you almost got a heart attack because the page you opened just started playing a random video and your speakers were on the max? Count me in. However, it shouldn’t be like that as it’s just completely unexpected and people usually don’t like that, they prefer being in charge themselves. Actually, Youtube is doing that when you open a channel. I always find it so frustrating and just run to hit the pause button before it starts playing. And there is a simple solution for that — just leave a message ‘Video will start playing in 10s’ and if someone wants to watch it immediately will click the button and the ones who are not interested will have time to cancel it.
05. Hidden ‘unsubscribe’ button.
InVision recently wrote a great blog post about it. I must agree that companies who have a visible unsubscribe button in their email get extra karma points. This actually says a lot about the company. They are confident in what they are doing, mindful about users and they don’t need unhappy customers just for the number.
This issue is especially frustrating on mobile. On web this active text can be somehow oooookayish, but on mobile it usually gets super small and lost between other links in the footer and then it’s a pure hassle to tap it with a finger. I always feel like it’s a lottery okay it’s here, let’s see if I can tap it. Let’s try with pinkie… Damn!…
Also, make sure it clearly says ‘unsubscribe’ and is a clickable link. Not like ‘If you with to unsubscribe click here and we’ll remove you’. I am scanning for quick ‘unsubscribe’ button and I’m certainly not reading anything what is written in your footer, so don’t hide it inside of a useless sentences.
Again back to reality. It’s like having a bar and not really telling people where the exit is. They don’t like the bar and want to leave, but you want to keep them for the number and maybe in the end, as they can’t exit, they will finally buy something… Unacceptable, isn’t it? However, this is exactly what is happening when you are hiding the unsubscribe button.
06. Mean copywriting.
’No, I don’t want this good deal’, ’No, I don’t want to learn’. I guess everyone has seen those words when companies are offering you something and try to get a ‘yes’ by making you feel uncomfortable pressing ‘no’. This pure psychological manipulation is not acceptable in real life why it feels okay to use it online? What does it say about your brand? What kind tone of voice that is?
In conclusion, there is a reasoning behind all of those bad UX examples. It is a temptation for a short-term success. Here, now, give me numbers, subscribers, growth etc. However, if you focus on a long-term, loyal customers and trustful relationships with them, you realise that respect and mindfulness about their needs are more important than clicks.
