Designing a website is not only about visual appearance but also about creating an easy-to-use experience. A good user experience (UX) is one of the most important aspects of web design, because it can determine whether or not visitors find your site useful and return to it again. In this article, we’ll go over some common UX mistakes that website owners make and how to avoid them so you can create an enjoyable online experience for your visitors!
Not enough whitespace between sections and elements.
Use whitespace to separate sections of content.
In web design, whitespace is the space between the elements of a website—the parts that make up what you see on your screen. Whitespace is used to divide content into chunks and separate one section from another. For example, on a blog page with 20 articles listed in reverse chronological order, it makes sense to use whitespace between post titles so that they’re easy to read and scan through.
The amount of whitespace used should be proportional to the amount of content being displayed in that section; more text requires more spacing between lines and paragraphs than less text does.
Overuse of parallax scrolling.
Parallax scrolling is a great effect that can be used sparingly to draw attention to important content, but it can also be distracting when used too much. For example, if you’ve ever tried to use Google Maps with parallax scrolling turned on, you know how annoying it can be when the map keeps moving around even as you try to focus on reading the text. It’s a cool effect but not always appropriate for every website or application. Use it sparingly!
Using images that are too big.
You might think that the larger your images are, the better they will look. But when you’re designing a website, it’s important to remember that bigger isn’t always better. In fact, sometimes having smaller images can actually be beneficial for your UX as well as your SEO. More specifically, you should make sure that each image on your site is under 100kb in size because Google has stated that websites with smaller page sizes perform better than those with larger page sizes. Additionally, large pictures can slow down load times and increase latency issues which can negatively impact user experience.
To avoid this mistake and make sure everyone gets an excellent experience when visiting your site:
Too many typefaces.
When it comes to typography, “less is more.” You want to use a few different typefaces on your website, but you don’t want to go overboard. Make sure that you have the perfect combination of font styles and sizes for the purpose of each page on your site.
For example: If a visitor’s goal is to find a product or service, they will likely be looking at larger typefaces with a lot of information on them. On the other hand, if they are browsing through blog posts or social media feeds (which typically require less attention), then smaller fonts may suit their needs better.
When choosing your font family, consider how easy it will be for visitors’ eyes to move across the page without getting lost in all that text! Once again: less is more here too!
Autoplay audio or video.
Autoplay audio or video.
This is a big one, and it’s become a UX faux pas over the last few years. Autoplay can be annoying and distracting for users, especially if they’re not expecting it (for example, when they arrive at your site). This means that any autoplay content should always be preceded with an indication that content will start playing automatically—for instance, an icon or text warning signifying that there is sound on the page.
Conclusion
Don’t be afraid to get your hands dirty in UX. You can do it! The most important thing: keep up with your users and always ask them what they think. Your customers will love you for it.