Exceptional UX design creates unforgettable customer experiences

19 Oct, 20215 min read

You only get one chance to make a first impression, as they say. And in the online world?

You have about 50 milliseconds. In the blink of an eye, a first glance at your website or online service can either pull in or push away a potential customer.

In a fiercely crowded online world, it’s getting harder to stand out. A website doesn’t need the most products, or even the lowest prices to beat the competition, but it does need to be easy on the eye and simple to use.

xpate has become incredibly successful in just two short years, and a large part of that is our focus on UX design and the user experience. We place a huge emphasis on making our products and solutions exceptional with feature-rich functionality, but also with an amazing look that’s aesthetically pleasing.

We have a strong vision for beautiful, dynamic design, and we practice what we preach. So, here are some UX design tips to help you give your customers amazing online experiences and boost your sales conversion opportunities.

Make UX design visually powerful, but not overwhelming

Too often, website designers forget about the user and focus on the design, trying to cram as many digital banners, icons and flashing images as possible onto the page. If you overdo it, the only thing your website visitor will get from you is a migraine.

Less is more - you don’t need all the virtual bells and whistles to pull people in. What you need is an easy-to-navigate site, with clearly sign-posted steps that take your visitors where you want them to go (ideally the pay button).

Before you get to the look of your site, make sure it feels easy to use for your visitors. Organise, label and structure your site or service information in a way that helps customers quickly locate what they’re looking for. Connecting content with functionality in a clear, simplified way makes it easier to navigate, and will encourage users to explore and interact with you.

Once your structure is clearly defined, then you can get to the fun part - making your website look super-sharp so that visitors can’t resist coming back for more. Play around with different interactive elements like images, sound, video, icons and buttons and put yourself in your customer’s shoes. Understand the emotions those interactions generate and use them to inspire your customers in a positive way.

The must-have elements of optimal UX design? They’re based on customer actions. Minimalism, gradients and bigger bolder fonts. The words, images or logos used in your call-to-action buttons should be simple and clear to see. If they don’t prompt the user to click, they’re not working.

It’s a no-brainer that you need to design with different display touchpoints in mind, like an app, desktop website or tablet. Great UX design adapts to every channel and device.

Make your metrics work for you in a meaningful way

If you’re tracking your website visitor views as any online business should be doing, you’ll know which pages are drawing people in, which page elements your visitors are clicking on and how often they stay there.

If you can’t accurately measure your site activity, you won’t be able to anticipate what your customers are looking for. Click-through rates and conversion tracking should be your cornerstone metrics to analyse. Once you’re tracking a range of metrics, you’ll be able to gauge how users are navigating your site, and fine-tune your UX design in response to give an even more engaging experience.

For example, at xpate, we measure the amount of conversions, page view depth, retention and button clicks. We want to be as creative as possible in every aspect of our business, and that includes our own website, which was refreshed just two short years after the business started, to align the look and feel with how customers most often interacted with it.

We wanted to create a solution that would better fit our potential merchants and enhance the way we showcase our products. Our redesign allowed us to significantly increase the amount of page views, thanks to the amendments in page layouts. We have also witnessed conversions skyrocket by 90%.

The results speak for themselves, and show the importance of continually innovating, creating and seamlessly delivering inspired solutions.

A positive user experiences leaves a lasting impression

Great user experiences don’t stop when customers leave your site, because they will remember you long afterwards. Creating an unforgettable experience is a gateway into new customer acquisition and revenue opportunities further down the line.

At xpate, the proof of that comes in the feedback from our clients and partners who love our unusual visuals, including 3D elements. It’s also common for us to have people visit our stands at exhibitions and conferences, see our name and then come up to us and say: “Oh, I know your website!” That’s a fantastic conversation opener that often turns into sales.

So, if you want a cool example of how to make a positive first impression online, check out xpate’s website here and get inspired!