Expandable list of names. Want link to open page. Should the link be the name or something like "Go to profile"?

Question

Name__________Go to profile

Name__________Go to profile

Name__________Go to profile

I have a list that if you click on a row it will expand. I also want to be able to go to the profile page from there. How should I go about placing and naming the links? I don't want to make the Name field on the left the link, because I believe that will lead to many accidental clicks.

I'm not too fond of the Go to profile link because it looks redundant. But having a link that is the name is even worse.

I'm considering putting the link inside of the expanded section. Which still makes me wonder how to word the link.

Any insight in to this would be helpful.

I have seen the use of an ellipsis for a more info menu. But I don't think that applies because I won't want other options. I've also seen "Go to" link with a right pointing arrow next to them. Also, sites like dropbox and google drive has a method of clicking the field to show some info, but clicking on the first cell (Name) to open it. This would not work for me because this list view is shows something very specific. It's a cross-section of all the profiles for one metric. For a file manager like google drive, looking at a preview of a file and opening the file are similar enough.

Answer 1

So just to be clear, this is a web application and you want to have the ability to view a full profile from your list of profiles (with a sort of "mini" profile that expands below the name when clicked)?

I would recommend showing an icon, either with text displayed on the screen or as a tooltip. The text (or tooltip) could say something like "View profile" or "Go to full profile". It should probably be worded with an action/verb ("go to", "view", etc).

Here's an example of an icon that may serve your purpose (note, I think adding a bold right facing arrow to this icon could help reinforce the fact that they're going to be taken elsewhere).

Maybe it's just because I come from a Windows background, but when I see an ellipsis, I tend to think it's going to be a popup. I think the hyperlink itself makes it obvious that they're going to be directed somewhere else. I agree that you shouldn't hyperlink the name, though.

If you are going to be putting this into a popup, one graphical element I've grown fond of has an arrow pointing (usually) to the upper-right corner - typically with a window shape. In this case, I would recommend the ellipsis.

A few examples: