Streamlining User Experience: The Art of Simplifying Choices

This week, I was investigating how to improve the user experience of website visitors. The first thing that might come to mind is choosing the right font, finding a great color contrast between elements, calculating margins and padding, and focusing on every aesthetic aspect to make the website pleasing to the eye. However, the reality is that it’s more than just pixels. It's important that the website is designed to make the user’s life easier: Can users easily find the information they need? Can they find the button they need to press? Can they easily understand what the website is about?

It’s critical to think and design with these factors in mind, but we often forget something important: Will the visitor press the button we want them to press? Will the visitor read what we want them to read? Will they understand the site structure? There is more to be done than just designing with a great color balance and well-written text. The user has to be guided.

Streamlining User Experience: The Art of Simplifying Choices

I found a conclusion from a study that caught my attention: If people have too many options to choose from, they won't choose any at all. The study, led by Sheena Iyengar, PhD, in 2000, investigated whether the number of options people can choose from affects their decision and buying process. In a market, she placed two tables: one with just 6 jars of different flavors of jelly and the other table with 24 jars. She measured how many people approached the tables and how many bought any of them. The results were surprising: 30% of the people who approached the table with 6 jars bought jelly, versus just 3% of the people who approached the other table. The video of her TED presentation is linked at the bottom if you want to watch it.

If you ask anyone if they want several options, they will always say they want them, but too many options will freeze them. So, how can we apply this knowledge to the sites we design? Here’s a quick example: pricing tables.

I'll show you just 3 quick examples:

1. Notable: Although there are 5 options, the 3rd option carries all the emphasis: a white background, a thick orange border, and a slight shadow draw the visitor's attention.
2. Typepad: The color, shadows, and the fact that it says "Our Most Popular Plan" right on top are guides enough to catch the visitor’s attention.
3. Formstack: The contrast and colors of the "Professional" plan stand out at plain sight.

These tips aren't limited to a price table; they can be used and adapted all over the website in situations where the visitor has to make a decision: registration buttons, social media links, newsletter subscriptions, etc.

I hope this article is helpful. Leave any comments if you have a question or want to discuss this further.

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