The 7 Key Qualities That Make a UI Design Successful
The global market for UI design stood at 2.43 billion USD in 2024, estimated to rise to 7.43 billion USD by 2032, a predicted CAGR of 15.01%. For 94% of users, the impression a website makes on them is design-related.
Thus, to make a website successful, the UI Design implemented needs to match up to the standards of the audience.
A Brief Intro to UI Design
User experience can make or break a website. If your website is designed well, visitors will use it without complaint. However, as important aesthetics are, functionality is what truly interests users.
Herein comes UI Design. A whole process designed to make a software both useful and visually appealing, applying UI Design principles to your website gives it an edge over others.
During its lifetime, UI design goes through the following cycle:
- Analysis of the existing website.
- Conception and design.
- Development and testing.
- Evaluation of the website with the help of user feedback.
- Iterative action to fine-tune the website.
The Whys and Hows of UI Design
For 94% of users, navigation is one of the biggest factors influencing them to use a website. Further, as per Forbes, effective UI design can lead to a 200% boost in client conversion.
Applying UI Design principles to a website results in the following:
- Makes the website efficient and user-friendly.
- Guides users toward particular pages.
- Decreases the cognitive load on the users.
- Creates the brand perception that you want.
When creating a UI Design for any website, it is important to keep the following in mind:
- Know your audience.
- Remove what is unnecessary.
- Make website navigation easy.
- Carefully plan the content you want to upload.
- Test the website properly to remove glitches and bugs before making it live.
- Update as and when required.
7 Traits that Make a UI Design Fruitful
While the basics are known to all designers, certain design aspects can make your website stand out among the others. Though UI Design is implemented by all websites to some extent, having the below makes applying UI Design worth the effort:
1. Make the Website’s Design Intuitive and Responsive
Some of us are just more technologically challenged than others and this is true when it comes to the users of any website. However, websites are designed for all and not just a select few. Having an intuitive design ensures that the visitors to your website do not feel lost and are able to seek out the web page they need.
Further, many access websites through mobiles while others use a computer. 39% leave a website if the images take too long to load. The UI design needs to be compatible and responsive irrespective of devices. This helps users navigate the site easily and in turn makes the website rank higher on search indexes.
2. Introduce Familiarity to the Interface
Being intuitive is not all that a website needs to be. If people are completely unfamiliar with the icons, indexes, and even the layout of a website, an intuitive website will not result in much. If users are unable to find the right webpage or product, they will leave the site, increasing your bounce rate.
Having an element of familiarity in the design makes the website easy to understand and navigate. In turn, this reduces cognitive strain on the users.
3. Maintain a Clear and Consistent Outline and Content
A uniform design makes the user’s experience on any website pleasant. The interface needs to have a clear and consistent design across pages, making it easy to navigate. Further, it makes the multiple design aspects work together like a single unit. 38% stop interacting with a website if the content is not appealing. It also makes the different pages predictable to users once they are familiar with the website, giving a boost to user comfort.
To add, clarity in the design makes the website well organized. Using a legible font and the same font across pages, icons that can be easily identified and located, and a design that does not overwhelm the users will result in a more concise and functional website. Implement this to save time, increase engagement, boost credibility, and enhance your brand image.
4. Less can be More if Done Right
Too many pictures, pop-ups, or text, can overwhelm a person when they look at a website. When a website is overcrowded with CTAs or text, it comes across as too commercial and pushy, immediately losing visitors.
Opting for a minimalist UI Design will help clean up your website of unnecessary content and thus reduce clutter. This will also result in a streamlined website that has clear CTAs and redirect links to relevant pages.
If you look at the top brands, you will find that the homepage has only a few lines of relevant text and images along with a well-organized CTA. This reflects a minimalist outlook resulting in a clean, sleek design.
5. Guide Users with Visual Hierarchy
When designing a website, you can choose to push a certain product or service. However, this is best done with subtlety, guiding them toward the product as they navigate the website.
Here, visual hierarchy comes into play and the UI design can be used effectively. Some aspects of this include making some elements larger than others to draw attention (such as CTAs), using bright colors as well as muted tones, and adjusting the spacing and layout.
86% would rather look at the product pages than the homepage. Guide your users across the page by putting the more important elements on top and making them stand out. Try clean lines and defined elements to make your website look appealing and organized.
6. Make the UI Design Accessible and Inclusive
Websites, though they are targeted towards a certain part of the population, need to be inclusive of all. This includes people who have different levels of technological ability and those who are differently abled. Not everyone can be expected to navigate the website with the same amount of ease.
Impacting 8-10% of the adult male population, color blindness can be a hindrance when accessing a website. Furthermore, 253 million people suffer from some level of blindness.
Contrast between headers, tabs, and icons, using alt image text, interactive links, and keyboard tabs (for handheld devices), can be a good option to make your website more accessible. Use a font as well as a color scheme that is visible, interpretable, and appealing. You can also try using prompts beside the entry fields to make them easier for people.
Following the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines help ensure that the website you design is accessible to a broad group of people.
7. Be Ready for an Iterative Process
UI Design is not a one-and-done activity. While you need to test the website extensively before making it live, user feedback also needs to be collected once it is live. This helps developers and designers reevaluate the design implemented.
Making small tweaks such as a few changes to the checkout page or the service pages, or a few changes in the layout of the menu tabs can make a big difference. This can be done over time from the various inputs that you get from the users.
Some Pro Tips for UI Design
To make a website that is perfect for your target audience, you can try the below:
- View the website from the perspective of the users.
- Make using the website so effortless that the UI does not seem like a separate entity.
- Streamline the workflow when you get started on the design.
- Test the site repeatedly before deploying.
Though it seems repetitive, these are tried and tested methods adopted by the experts for the best results.
Improving UI Design for a better user experience
While a number of factors work in tandem to ensure that a website is aesthetically pleasing and easy to navigate, UI Design is a core aspect. A successful UI design is targeted towards the audience, intuitive, accessible, and concise.
For a seamless experience that ensures visitor retention, use UI Design to create a user-centric website.
Sources :
http://wwwimages.adobe.com/content/dam/Adobe/en/max/2015/pdfs/state-of-content-oct.pdf
http://www.komarketingassociates.com/files/b2b-web-usability-report-2015.pdf
https://www.inclusivecitymaker.com/disabled-people-in-the-world-in-2021-facts-and-figures/
https://www.businessresearchinsights.com/market-reports/user-interface-ui-design-market-102500
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