4 web design principles to make your UI more engaging for customers

Is your website’s User Interface (UI) engaging enough to make visitors stay?

Once the customers come to your website, their experience will determine the success of your business. According to the Formstack infographic, almost 57% of users say they will not recommend a company that has a poorly designed website. Your user interface communicates with the customers on your behalf, so it should be highly usable. Ideally, the customer should be able to navigate through it effortlessly. The goal of UI designers is to make it easy for the target audience to view your products.

What qualifies as good user interface?

A user interface that is clear, simple, aesthetic, and easy to navigate can be termed as the right one. Moreover, a vital aspect of a useful UI is “rhythm.” The content on the website should be scannable as well as highly readable. All the above attributes combine to make a perfect website that is loved by the users. So, while you are aiming to create an engaging UI, keep in mind the following principles:

1. Visual Hierarchy

Creating a visual hierarchy in the user interface makes it look appealing and organized. According to the Toptal, judgments on website credibility are 75% based on its overall aesthetics. It’s all about arranging the elements of the interface in order of importance. It allows visitors to navigate smoothly. If the contents are placed in proper order, there is no confusion for customers while they shop for a product or generally browse your website.

You can adjust the size, color, font, graphics, and contrast in the UI to put the focus where you want. Let us further dive into how playing with these elements impacts visual hierarchy:

Size

The essential things deserve more space on the user interface. Therefore you can enlarge specific headings and images to convey their significance.

Color

Colors have a significant impact on the human mind. You should use them in the best way possible to engage customers on your website.

Choosing the right color will spark the user’s interest. Use bright colors to emphasize critical elements like relevant text and CTA buttons.

For contents that are logically related (like pricing plans), you can use color gradients to help the user scan quickly.

Imagery

The CXL blog suggests that larger, high-quality, and relevant images draw more user attention. Compelling, suitable graphics can be used wherever deemed necessary. Take it as an opportunity to convey the message of your brand visually. However, make sure the images don’t take much time to load; otherwise, it will shove the customer away from your site.

Contrast

Carefully balanced contrast can make the visual hierarchy even more pleasing for the viewers. If you wish an element to stand out, place it in a color that strikingly contrasts with the background color.

2. Seamlessly integrated branding attributes

A web design that reflects the brand image most appealingly can be highly successful. The logo of your brand is the most important attribute. You should pay particular attention. It serves the purpose of conveying what your company does and helps people remember your brand easily.

To get an impactful logo, it is advised to use the services of a reputed logo design company that has a name for crafting brand-defining logos in the past. A well-designed logo makes your brand distinguishable. If integrated creatively in your user interface, it will establish the visual perception of your company in the mind of the customer. One more crucial aspect is the brand voice, which should be used consistently throughout the content. A uniform tone instills brand recognition in customers’ minds and increases the credibility of the business.

3. Well-structured layout

As per the findings of Adobe UK, 40% of users stop engaging with a website due to ill-kempt web design. Your UI should have a clear and coherent layout, as it is an inevitable feature of professional web design. This principle of web-design is critical to engage the customers and reduce the bounce rate of the website. A lower bounce rate translates into better ranking for your website on Google’s SERP. It inevitably leads to more business.

A similar layout for all pages makes the visitor familiarize with the website quickly. They get an idea where they could find the desired information. You can plan out a practical grid layout to divide visual elements in an organized manner, like a multicolumn grid to insert several essential elements simultaneously. For higher readability, UI designers place similar products side by side to ensure clarity for the customer. Align the text, buttons, or the images on the webpage to make it more visually appealing for the user. Speaking of buttons, make sure you place the buttons without violating the layout of the interface. The text on the buttons, toggles, and checkboxes should be clear and easy to comprehend.

Don’t ignore the importance of designing a responsive interface for mobile and tablet. As the number of smartphone users reaches 3.5 billion in 2020, according to Statista, mobile browsing has outpaced desktop browsing. You must design a mobile responsive website if you want to reach your target audience.

4. Efficient user interaction

Interaction is a crucial part of the user experience of a website. Instant feedback in case of incorrect input, easily interpreted directional cues, and easy user input are vital aspects to engage the customers. For this reason, the chat boxes and the notifications should be clearly mentioned on the webpage.

If your website has forms to be filled by users, make sure that they are not very tedious or lengthy to fill. According to socPub, if a form takes too long to fill, visitors will leave it. Integrate social autofill to save your visitors time and sanity.

Parting thoughts

If you wish to give a boost to your UI, follow the tips mentioned above. One final tip: avoid unnecessary elements in the design to retain its usability. Assemble these ideas in your plan to unveil a truly remarkable and highly engaging user interface.