You know that feeling you get when you find a company (while searching for them on Google no less) that seems to “get you.” That feeling that you trust them already, and you know choosing them for the service or product you’re looking for will be all around a great experience? Yeah, that feeling.
And yes, it’s the same feeling you get when you read our blogs or interact with us. It’s that warm fuzzy feeling that keeps you coming back for more.
That, our friends, is what we call “user experience,” or UX Experience.
What is User Experience
User experience, to be formal and accurate, is the feeling someone gets with interacting with a system, website, program, cat, new Ford Raptor, person, or overall company. It’s a big deal, and it’s vital to the success of your business, or your clients’ business.
Why is User Experience Important
To put it simply, the user experience is essential precisely for the reason you think it would be. If your business’s customers or clients don’t feel good when interacting with you or your website, they won’t interact with you. Plain and simple.
You will not pass go; you will not collect 200 dollars. Game over.
The underlying reason for this is because you did not establish brand trust from the get-go– you did not make the user feel like they could trust you to solve this problem they have. You didn’t show them that you relate to them and “get” them, and you didn’t make that interaction with you a positive one. You missed the mark.
And if you missed the mark on knowing your audience, how in the world will you be able to serve them and solve the problems they have? The cold hard truth is you won’t be solving anything.
So, how do you provide a positive UX on your website? Well get ready because we’re about to show you six steps you can take now to improve user experience, even if you don’t know much about websites or the interwebs.
1. Content is Still King
What’s the first thing your user will be doing when they land on your page? Yes, read. Looking. But reading. The user will be reading the words on your website and decide in a matter of three seconds if they are going to stay on your page or not.
3 seconds to make them feel understood, happy, safe, and like they can trust you.
No pressure, right? Well, actually, correct.
Since time is of the essence, you need to identify the problem the users have and move them to how you and your business will solve that problem. The best way to do this is to use the content on your site strategically and intentionally.
One of the perfect examples of this is, though we hate to say it, infomercials. They identify the problem and notoriously over exaggerate it too. They get you emotionally vested in the horrible problem, and rub it in and drive it home. It proves to the viewer that they get it. They understand, and this product will solve all their Tupperware lid needs.
Likewise, your content needs to drive.it.home. Give examples of the problem, or tell a story of how you came to invent this noteworthy product.
2. Let Color Psychology Work for You
Did you know that the colors you choose on your website can deter people from converting or help them convert into a buy? Yep, it’s called “color psychology,” and it’s the science of how colors can affect human behavior, right down to the colors on your website and your visitors.
This is why you want to make sure you’re not picking so many random colors that it’s like some acid trip at the disco. Nobody wants to get on your website and be blinded by the array of colors you have, and indeed, nobody wants to read neon content.
However, if you choose your colors right, you could improve your conversions. Here are some things to keep in mind when picking colors:
- Use colors everyone can read, even those that are color blind
- The color blue cultivates trust. Don’t believe us? Look at the color of Facebook, Paypal, Capital One, and the like
- Orange is a color that is more fun and impulsive, hence why sites that don’t want you thinking about the purchase (they want you to buy now) use orange
- Black is luxurious and exclusive, for the higher-end type service or product
- Do not be afraid of white or extra white spaces. It can be a brilliant design feature and cause peace and calmness for the reader.
3. Choose The Right Headings
Let’s face it. We all skim through most of this and look for a heading we like. It helps those of us with a lack of focus **oh look a squirrel!** Anyhoo, here are some heading tips:
- Make sure they are clear and straightforward
- Make sure they are related to the content under the heading.
- And for the love that is all thing holy, make sure they are in order of whatever they should be. Example: if you’re making a number list, make sure the numbers add up.
4. Use White Space, as we Said Earlier, to Your Advantage
See what we did there?
Imagine if this blog was in APA style formatting. Longer paragraphs, no pictures, no white space.
Right, your brain would hurt, and your eyes would twitch.
Same for your readers. They don’t want to get on your website and read a novel. They want to get information, be slightly entertained, look at pictures, and make a choice to choose you. So don’t feel like breaks between content and photographs is terrible. Use it and become friends.
5. Let the Professionals Handle the Rest
While all those things are easy changes you can make on your own, there are backend development changes that need to be made for the overall experience to become perfect. We’re not going to get into those because they are too technical if we’re honest, but you need a team behind you to help take that next step with your website.
We’re not really into name dropping, but we’re industry experts for a reason, we have an incredible in-house content team, and our development team is hands down amazing.
We look forward to talking with you about making your website’s user experience a positive one.
