Here at Pumpkin Web Design Manchester, we are Manchester’s leading web design professionals. We work with companies in a range of industries, across Manchester and the surrounding region, including Wigan and Southport, to deliver high quality web design solutions that really get results. As a result, we have produced this guide to everything you should know about the most common interactive web design mistakes, that can frustrate your audience and negatively influence your sales and sign ups.
What are the most common interactive web design mistakes?
There are several web design mistakes that can be irritating or annoying for your users, including image placement issues and text size. But these are usually just visual design problems that your users can overlook. One thing they cannot overlook though, are issues with the interactive design. When users spend time and energy reading and interacting with your website, they expect to make progress. So, interactive web design mistakes, could lead to your company losing out on sales and sign ups. To avoid this fate, here are a list of interactive web design mistakes you should avoid:
- Misleading links
- Cramming the navigation bar
- Over-complicating forms
Misleading links
One of the worst thing any company or business can do in terms of interactive web design, is create links that don’t quite go where the user thinks they will. This is dishonest, and slightly unethical, and when your website users realise they haven’t landed on the right page, they will probably just bounce and visit the website of your next competitor. As a result, you should always make sure that your users know where the link is taking them, through the language and text you use.
Cramming the navigation bar
The more options you provide for someone, the harder it becomes to make a choice. This is what happens to website users when they come to a navigation bar that is laden with options. As a result, you should think about simplifying your navigation bar and making sure you use enough whitespace to separate links from one another. This will make it easier for your users, leading to a more positive user experience.
Over-complicating forms
Forms are one part of your website that you really want users to fill in. It usually means they are booking a service, signing up to your mailing list or even purchasing a product. But too many companies make forms over long and complicated. This can cause potential customers or clients to simply leave yur website, and look for another, giving their money and support to another business instead. There are a number of things you can do to make sure your forms are not overly complicated, including:
- asking only for relevant and important information
- allowing people to check out as a guest and make an account at the end
- using a one or two question per screen system
- showing a progress bar and providing visual feedback
For help creating forms that are user friendly, check out our guide.
For more information about professional web design, or for professional web design support, get in touch with us here at Pumpkin Web Design Manchester, today.