UI/UX Articles And Interesting Tidbits Of The Week
April//24//2020
Here are some interesting finds on UI/UX of the week!
1.
Accessibility. This is a topic I’ve highlighted quite a few times in this newsletter and one always worth revisiting. Building products that are inclusive and accessible, is now more than ever of paramount importance. When so many of us are isolated, and depending on the internet to reach out, keep informed, and generally reach out for assistance and for contact, it is essential that the digital products that everyone uses are clearly accessible (contemplating issues such as: using proper tagging, writing descriptive code, contrasting colors, big text, keyboard accessibility/compatibility, ultra clear forms, adding supportive text, abundant white space, orientation cues, to name but a few). Highlight of the article includes:
“Nearly one in five Americans has some form of disability. Globally, the number is higher than 1 billion. Although equal access to community spaces — both in the physical and virtual world — is a clear human right, for millions of Americans, the web is broken. It’s a place packed with frustrating stumbling blocks and disorienting design, and it’s in dire need of a UX overhaul.This is evidenced in the WebAIM Million study conducted last year. The Center for Persons with Disabilities at Utah State University conducted an evaluation of the top million webpages focusing on the automatically detectable issues. Not surprisingly, the results are dire. The study found an average of nearly 60 accessibility errors on each of the site’s homepages, which was virtually the same amount of errors detected when the same evaluations were run, six months prior. The WebAIM Alexa 100 study didn’t fare much better. Across the top 100 homepages of the most trafficked websites, the study found an average of approximately 56 errors per page (including highly pervasive color contrast errors).”
2.
Creativity. Another highlight to file under “Not something I typically showcase in this newsletter”. This article hailing from the creative penmanship of Ward Andrews, focuses solely on the topic of creativity. More specifically, how to make creativity flow more seamlessly through a professional, using tactics such as Asking Questions, Observation, Using Affirmations, among a few others. It’s an interesting article, on a topic that at times may feel too elusive and somewhat difficult to quantify and measure, but one that nonetheless is associated with Design professionals. Creativity can and should flourish, but in order for that to happen, much like any skill, it has to be given enough time to be nurtured, cared for and allowed to fortify itself. Well worth a read. Highlight of the article includes:
“Environment is important when it comes to fostering creativity. If you’re too distracted, too overwhelmed, or too uncomfortable, you’re probably going to be less likely to think creative thoughts. Being able to carefully observe your environment, so you can point to what’s working and what isn’t, is a powerful tool when it comes to becoming more creative.The same is true with your thoughts. Observe the environment you’re in when you have your most creative thoughts. This includes your mental environment as well. Which of the techniques we’ve mentioned above work for you? When do you feel your most creative? How do you capture your creative thoughts, and could you improve on it? Observing yourself in the creative process, and analyzing this data, can help direct your thinking in more productively creative ways later.”
3.
Designing for Conversions. Another week, another article on the topic of e-commerce, this one hailing from Dribbble’s stories. The author, Renee Fleck, details good practices to focus on when attaining for enhanced stickiness and retention for clients/users, while going on their digital shopping experience (which is now, more than ever, a startling reality and necessity). She focuses on topics such as Data (as I’ve mentioned, when starting user research, Analytics/Data is one of the 5 main sources of information, the others being Customer Support, Market Research, Usability Testing and Reviews), Performance, Omnichannel experiences, Simplicity, Timeliness, among others worth focusing on. It’s an article that revisits some topics previously discussed on other publications/blogs, but nonetheless, an article worth attention and a read through. Highlight of the article includes:
“In online shopping, the customer is king. You need to understand how your customer thinks, scrolls, reads, reacts or browses. You need to make it as easy as possible for your target customers to buy your products. If you are redesigning an existing store, you’re in luck because you already have a wealth of information and existing customers that you can learn from. You have data from Google Analytics, which can help you with creating a buyer persona, understanding store audience, traffic sources, customer behavior, successful products, pain points, and conversion rates.”
