Top trends in UX patterns and methods in 2020

With the drastic evolution of technology every year, the design trends get updated too. The professional designers need to be aware of both the upcoming and existing design trends. This will help in constantly improving and expanding their horizon of creative designs. At present, 95% of the first impressions are design-related. Even an outstanding content is rendered useless if it is integrated into a poor design. With the digital touchpoints changing every year, it could be a challenging task to keep up with the pace.

The one factor that remains constant in the User Experience Design is the “User” itself. Thus, the key to real success is to be adaptable to change — the change to get it designed according to the varying user requirements and expectations. To get you ahead, we have compiled a list of the top trends in UX patterns and methods in 2020 that represents the right blend of the latest technology available and human-centered design.

Micro-interactions.

Micro-interactions exist in almost every single application these days. You will see them every time you open your favorite app. For instance, if you open the Facebook application, you will see the “like” feature that comes with multiple expressions including, angry, sad, haha, and wow. Sometimes the end-users are not aware of the existence because they are too obvious and blended within the user-interfaces.

The food delivery applications or the cab transportation applications that ask to rate their services, drivers and food quality is also a way of micro-interaction with the end-user. Generally speaking, within the UI/UX design, even a really subtle change might make a huge impact. Micro-interactions are the best example that attention to details can help in improving the overall user experience. Every year new devices bring new opportunities for creating innovative micro-interactions. Thus, 2020 will not be an exception.

Password-less login.

Commonly, users forget their passwords after a few days. According to a survey of Cyclonic Password Security, almost 28% of the users forget their password more than 10 times a year. If you are thinking that forgetting the password is an issue for the end-users, then you are wrong. The real problem is the password-setting protocols that force a user to include special characters, numbers and upper/lower case characters.

These add more complications, thus, users reset their passwords frequently. Password-less login is a simple solution that is growing gradually and it is forecasted to take over the “passwords” as the primary way of login. Microsoft is already working on removing the passwords from Windows 10 for quite a long period. In July 2019, they already announced that the next major update in Windows 10 will include a password-less sign-in feature for all Microsoft accounts on Windows 10 devices.

UX Writing.

Creative words or intentionally decorated flowery words do not work anymore. People want to hear to the point information that is going to bring them value. This, in turn, leads to more customer engagement and conversions. The UX writing or a “microcopy” is about enticing an end-user with the offerings during an interactive journey. For instance, Google analyzed its users who looked out for hotel rooms, are not always planning to book instantly. Thus, they changed the copy of “book a room” to “check availability”. This is an apt example of Microcopy for the specific intent at that time. It increased the engagement by 17%. To make a unique microcopy:

• Stick to the point,
• Try and directly address the user,
• Use “present tense” and “active voice”,
• Offer an objective to the end-user.

Air gesture.

Gesture control is one of the most important trends in mobile UX design. With the invention of touch screens, a lot of features have changed. The change is evident from the increasing touch screen aspect ratios present within the mobile interfaces. Increased aspect ratio means less bezels in the front. Thus, it offers a better gesture experience. Apple initially introduced the gesture control technology in iOS, the air gesture technology is going to take things to a whole new level.

The users will be able to wave their hand or pinch their fingers in the air to make things happen on the phone without touching the screens. Google unveiled the Pixel 4 that comes with a radar sensor that enables the users to use air gestures. It is their latest invention that is grabbing eyeballs. The primary advantage of gestures is their intuitiveness and sensitivity to touch. The easy gestures will always have their part irrespective of how far the “gesture trend” goes.

Inclusive designs.

Designing for all is the real essence of inclusive designs. The user experience design trend is a much-required design practice that poses a promising change in the millennium. Inclusive design is a compilation of ideas and expectations of people from different walks of society that have different perspectives. When a designer solves a problem from his perception, it will work for some but not for everybody. Now, how to change that? The simple answer is to work on a design that is physically, emotionally and cognitively suitable for everyone.

There are three major principles of inclusive design. The first is to recognize exclusion which is about understanding whose perspective is included within the UX design. The next is to solve for one and extend to many. This includes designing for accessibility for people who deal with one disability or other. The third principle is learning from diversity. Design-thinking plays an important role while including diversity. Keep your target audience in mind from the beginning so that the end-product strikes the right chord.

Augmented Reality.

In 2020, the web design trends will involve outside the box thinking. Forget about the UI fixed screens, instead, the focus should be on emphasizing the interactions that feel like they take place in the real world. Google and Apple have already introduced their AR platforms, AE Kit, AR Core that will blend the physical and digital worlds. AR UI can have different approaches.

The object-oriented approach where the real-world objects have tethered interaction, the fixed to screen space approach where the user needs to position the camera in a specific way and finally the real-world approach surrounding the physical world. Being professional designers, it is important to prepare and start learning about the new tools. The ability to create augmented reality interfaces and 3D elements will come in handy in the upcoming years.

Virtual Reality.

When it comes to virtual reality, 2019 has been an extremely progressive year. We can call it the internet of experiences because of the effect it had on users. Yes, the VR headsets indeed bring the most excitement to the gaming audience, for now, the VR experts have predicted that with the launch of Oculus Quest, a lot of opportunities have opened up for many industries.

For instance, the healthcare industry can benefit by helping to cure phobias. The education process can be made easier and much more interactive. Designers need to be prepared to look out for the opportunity of creating virtual spaces that leads to collaboration. Then again, not all the users will have a VR headset. Thus, 2020 is going to see a plethora of opportunities and design trends where designers will come up with mixed platform solutions.