The Website With No Navigation
I remember the first time I landed on a webpage that was lacking a navigation menu. It was a Tina Eisenberg’s interview. I got carried away in reading and at first didn’t even notice that something was missing at the top of the page. But the style of writing was good, the photos were nice, so I though to myself, “Let’s see what else this website has to offer”. So, naturally, I looked up at the classical always on top menu to navigate my way to more content. And guess what, there was nothing more for me there than the logo and the article title.
Now, that there was a new experience. I had to find my own way through the website. Instead of feeling guided by the menu sections, I had to explore the content myself. However don’t be mistaken, there was a user journey crafted for me from there on. At the end of the article, some related content popped up, also the UX designers have provided me with some recommended reading, as well. But it all appeared after I have finished reading the article I came in for and it was such a tempting, easy and logical next step for me. No need to scroll, no need to browse, nothing was there to distract me from their curated tour of the website.
Ten minutes later I was still consuming lovely content from the website, having actually no idea if this was a digital magazine, an event website or a product website selling Tina’s temporary tattoos. But I was hooked. I already trusted the website, as they have provided me with content I can relate to, they have curated it so professionally and most importantly, no one has tried to sell me anything at that point yet. There were no call to check their services, no contact forms, no pricing links. In fact, they were playing very nicely.
At some point, I got really curious to see who’s behind this great idea of ditching off the menu from the top of the page. It was only at that moment, when I intentionally chose to click on the logo and get to the homepage to see what this website is actually all about. My desire to explore has led me to actually wanting to subscribe to their magazine, or attend their event, or buy their products. It didn’t actually matter, I was happy to have found myself what the website seemed to have been hiding from me all this time. I have earned it.
These days, this amazing experience seems to have spread across a few great websites. So, I just want to say huge thanks to FvF and First Round Review for adding some intrigue to the UX, for welcoming us — both your random visitors and old-time users — to unobtrusively explore your content and for trusting us that we’ll get to the core of your website. We have not only done this, but we admire you even more today for being such an open-minded salesmen and innovators.
Yours faithfully,
Nadya
