7 Forbidden Web Design Techniques for UI Designers
No matter the niche or industry your website serves to operate in, the user interface (UI) side of the equation matters more than you may think. According to recent stats, 79% of internet users will seek a different website if the one they are currently on lacks proper UI optimization. This is a staggering percentage, one that indicates that UI optimization plays a pivotal role in web design and subsequent customer conversion rates.
With that in mind, let’s take a look at several web design techniques which should be left on the cutting room floor when it comes to UI optimization. Avoid these techniques actively and your site will be more engaging as a result.
1. Inconsistent Visuals
You don’t need an extensive brand image in order to be consistent in your site’s visuals. Being inconsistent in your site’s presentation speaks volumes about the care and attention (or lack thereof) you put into your branding.
Choose several colors, fonts and element layout presents which will appear throughout the website. This will paint a much more professional and organized picture of your business to potential stakeholders who will come in contact with your UI for the first time.
2. Cluttered Page Layouts
Just as it’s important to be consistent, it’s also important to control your urges when it comes to adding elements to a single page. It’s pivotal that each page on your website represents a whole and can be read top to bottom without any difficulty. According to published data, 38% of visitors will disengage a website if the content and layout appear unattractive or poorly thought out.
Don’t add banner ads, flashing graphics or elements which can deteriorate your visitors’ attention on your website. Instead, opt for a more controlled, single-digit number of elements on your pages. A clean UI with easily accessible information and interactive elements will do a lot for your brand recognition and conversion rates going forward.
3. Misbalance of Hyperlinks
If your site features too few hyperlinks to other sources, your visitors will think that you are being paranoid or self-promotion centric. Too many hyperlinks however, and your site will quickly be seen as spam content by both actual visitors and SERP algorithms.
Strike a healthy balance of external and internal links in your content and UI elements. Offer additional resources, trustworthy service providers and research articles from across the web. Additionally, point your visitors to other, potentially useful or interesting links on your website. A good mix of both will do wonders for the overall user experience (UX) of your site and the impression your UI leaves to the naked eye.
4. Too Many CTAs
Calls to action are an important part of online sales. However, using them correctly and in an organic fashion plays a large role in their overall efficiency. CTAs are best used in landing pages, footers and email marketing content. They can also be placed in the conclusions of your blog’s articles, final lines of product descriptions and similar unobtrusive places. Their presence should be limited to one or two per page and no more than that however.
Platforms such as TrustMyPaper can help you craft effective, unique calls to action which can be used to deliver convincing sales pitches without them appearing out of place. Too many CTAs can give your visitors the impression that you are desperately looking for new customers to convert. This can have the opposite effect and drive your visitors away instead of persuading them to take action.
5. Lack of Localization
Given the nature of your website and the current digital landscape, you are bound to attract an international audience. However, not everyone speaks English sufficiently to make a purchase without additional assistance or site optimization. In that regard, you should consider localizing your site into several popular languages such as Spanish, French, German and Chinese.
You can do so in-house, by hiring freelancers or by contacting a third-party localization platform online. It’s important to note that DIY translation rarely works despite your best efforts to cater to your audience. Your UI should be localized so that it takes cultural and lifestyle habits of your visitors into consideration — something which can only be done by professional translators.
6. Scrolling & Parallax
Potential customers are interested in becoming full-blown customers and are not there to gaze at smooth page transitions or navigation effects. Fancy animations and parallax scrolling effects won’t save your website if the content is lacking. The user interface of your site should be optimized for mobile viewing with very limited scrolling required.
While there are exceptions to be made (such as in ecommerce stores or blogs), you should limit the need to scroll up or down to the minimum. That way, all of the important information will always be available to your visitors for additional information or further browsing. Don’t make the mistake of placing background textures or images into your website and hoping that the parallax effect will be “cool enough” to engage the visitors.
7. Overreliance on Popups
No one likes popups, especially if they appear once or more on each subsequent page. Popups are an archaic method of digital advertisement, one that should be approached with extra care. They are very robust and problematic on mobile browsing, even more so if they appear frequently and are difficult to close.
Instead of popups, you can integrate native advertisement into your site’s UI to avoid driving away traffic. You can carefully place ads in between paragraphs or articles on your pages, or even in your header or footer.
Don’t bombard your visitors with popups, especially those that take up the entire screen and are centered on guilt-tripping the reader into converting. An example of this tactic can be seen in the following available options: “Subscribe now” and “I don’t want professional advice”.
Your visitors more than likely do want your advice and insight, but not at the expense of opting into email subscription or something else they really don’t want to be a part of. Strive towards a healthy, professional UI methodology and it will be reflected in your traffic and SERP rankings respectively.
In Conclusion
If you avoid these web design techniques in your commissions, your clients and/or employer will be more than happy with the results you provide. The more inclusive and baseline your UI is, the more people it will manage to attract and retain for that specific website. Don’t chase short-term gain and think about the long-term benefits of smart UI design. Build on that foundation and your web design solutions will be much better for it.
