UI/UX Articles And Interesting Tidbits Of The Week
June//5//2020
Here are some interesting finds on UI/UX of the week!
1.
Designing Landing Pages that Convert. From the Next Web comes an article outlining effective strategies in building Landing Pages which produce conversions. The article sheds light on strategies such as succinctly defining the pitch of the Page, Social Proof (which is a topic worthy of some attention, since it’s also a dark pattern in UX), Reducing friction (namely with forms, which the author highlights, since there’s always the perception of complexity and interaction cost to be considered), to mention but a few. Worth a read. Highlight of the article includes:
“Many considerations can make or break a signup form; avoiding friction is one of them. Friction is anything that stops people in their tracks, creates confusion, and requires too much cognitive work. The design may also be error-prone. The best forms contain helpful messages and clear labels, and they make it easy for people to digest information quickly. People regularly make formatting errors with inline validation; it’s the designer’s job to make the process as simple as possible. Is it vital for people to confirm their email and password with additional entry fields? It would be better to give people the option to see a masked password.”
2.
From Data Visualization to Data Simulation. Very interesting article from the Fast Company on the evolution of Data Visualization to Data Simulation. It’s a topic well worth a read, essentially due to the fact that interactive infographics, and infographics in general, as powerful as they are, still have a series of limitations on the narrative they’re showcasing. Data simulation allows for a closer tie with the user inputing information/data, though as the article correctly points out, the onus on the narrative being created lies in not associating simulations with prognostication. Very pertinent and powerful read, not only for the evolution of visual storytelling, compelling interactive experiences, but also how these instruments can be used and in which context. Highlight of the article includes:
“Designers must carefully balance the realism of what they create and the impression that the simulation is creating real predictions, with the constraints of using a simple model for the world. “We as individuals (especially if we’re not as versed in data) tend to conflate forecasts and simulations,” Wu says. “That’s one of the biggest reasons why we decided to [create] a game — so that there’d be no mistaking the simulation as a forecast, so that no one would think we were trying to forecast into their local community’s futures.””
3.
Research Studies. Very interesting article from Smashing Magazine, focused entirely on Research, and what types of tactics to deploy during the Design Thinking process. It’s an in-depth look at different types of research, including ethnographic studies, remote usability testing, to name but a few, essentially bringing the users & clients, nearer to the process itself and the problem being solved. Well worth a read. Highlight of the article includes:
“The most effective way of understanding the problem is to get true first-hand experience of users performing real tasks in context. This is best done by applying ethnographic and observational methods to identify the range of problems that exist, then prioritizing them using methods such as surveys.
The final stage of the double diamond describes refining the final solution, which can require a lot of small iterative tests. A shortcut to the deep insight from moderated testing is remote unmoderated research. This includes tools like usertesting.com which allow teams to put their software in front of users with little effort. By sending a website URL to their panel of users, they send back videos of their participants using the website and commenting on their experience.”
