UX Myths

Perception is often very different than actual behavior. We see this a lot, especially when we’re talking about user experience. Here are four user experience myths we’d like to debunk.

[quote align=”left”]”People don’t scroll anymore.”[/quote] 

Are you hanging onto this old adage or bias that someone won’t scroll on your website? The feeling for many is that you must keep all important items “above the fold” and that you only have one shot to grab people, but it’s simply not true. In today’s age, it’s natural for people to want to scroll. With a well designed site, users will want to keep scrolling to seek the information they’re looking for.

[quote align=”left”]”White space is wasted space.”[/quote] 

This is one that we hear often from clients who are worried that not every half inch of their site contains design or content. In reality, it’s good to give your users’ eyes a rest. Hick’s Law and The Paradox of Choice remind us that rates of frustration and abandonment can go up when you have an overwhelming amount of choices to choose from or look at.

[quote align=”left”]“You must be able to find what you’re looking for in three clicks.”[/quote] 

The worry here is that someone will abandon your site if they can’t find what they’re looking for within three clicks. While this is something to take into account, it’s more important to design the site with simple, intuitive navigation. If the navigation is easy, a user won’t concern themselves with the number of clicks they have to go through to get somewhere.

[quote align=”left”]“If it works for Amazon, it will work for you.” [/quote]

This myth pertains to the so called “right” way to do e-commerce. The heart of this myth lies within audience personas, and the truth that one size does not fit all. Take your Sam’s Club or Costco shopping experience versus a local store, for example. The style and overall feel of the experience is different, because each is tailored to a separate, unique audience. Why do you need the warehouse feel of Costco when you have a specialized, niche service or product to offer?

For a great list of other UX myths, visit http://uxmyths.com/.

Want to debunk even more user experience myths? Let’s chat!