Ease of navigation is of the utmost importance, yet some sites are missing the mark. A recent study found that one big culprit for navigation issues is unclear or vague labels.
A bad user experience usually leads to a business losing customers, and that’s the last thing any budding business wants after spending so much time and effort jump starting an online business.
Why are Labels Confusing?
As just mentioned, many businesses use vague words to describe a navigation option. For example, some businesses use words like ‘solutions,’ ‘services,’ and ‘products’ to describe a navigational path, yet some folks won’t know what that means. They’ll have a vague idea of what they might find in these selections but won’t know for sure. That confusion could lead online users to choose a path and not find what they’re looking for.
People may use these sorts of words because they have a professional feel to them. While there may be truth to that, the reality is that online users want simplicity and clear direction.
Businesses planning to build a website need to keep this in mind. The words used to describe navigational options have to be as direct as possible. Before a business moves forward with their WordPress site builder, they need to make sure the words are direct, so it would be a good idea to work with a group of testers.
These folks will help ensure that the words used are descriptive enough to not confuse an online guest. Clear language is needed for more than just navigational labels but also on a company’s forms, such as WordPress forms.
If a business offers dairy products online and in stores, navigational options should be direct. Maybe one could say, ‘stores’ and the other could say ‘online orders.’ Figuring this out may take some time, but ensuring a good customer experience is vital for any business that wants a good conversion rate.
Addressing the Mobile Navigation Problem
Ninety-four percent of online users say that navigation is vital. If a company’s site isn’t able to provide that, then that site is in trouble. Clear language is one thing online businesses need to work on, but it’s not the only thing.
The reality is that many online users say that viewing sites on their phones is annoying. Thirty-seven percent of online users say that mobile navigation is too challenging.
Every entrepreneur that does business online knows that most online research is done on a smartphone. Making sure that navigation through mobile devices is as simple as possible is critical for companies that want growth and good conversion rates.
Improving mobile navigational experience is possible. For one, online businesses can try to create the kind of mobile experience that users will enjoy. One thing businesses can do is improve their content-to-chrome ratio. This means eliminating extra navigational tools and focusing on informational content. That’s the stuff a business needs to communicate.
This doesn’t mean companies can eliminate all navigational elements, but they need to be reduced. For example, instead of listing all navigational options on every page, navigational options can be condensed into a hamburger menu.
Businesses should make navigational buttons bigger for mobile users. Big buttons may not be necessary, but it makes it easier on the user and a little more fun to interact with. Ease of navigation will make sites more enjoyable, and that’s important.
Companies should also use techniques like srcset to modify the way images are seen by users.
When a user is using a regular desktop or laptop, images can load as they would normally and as large as they need to be. This isn’t the case with mobile devices. This particular technique allows a site to switch from large images to smaller images that are easier to load on a mobile device. Speediness is of the utmost importance because online users don’t have the patience to wait too long. Plus, large images are hard to see on a smartphone.
Ensuring that a site is easy to navigate is the key. Hopefully, up-and-coming online businesses invest in the user experience or UX, especially if they want to stay competitive in the UK.
