You’re designing a new website. How do you know if it’s user-friendly?

Understanding users is a deeper exploration than any artifacts you might produce. A few things to consider is that what users say about their experience using a product or service is often a bit different than what you see when you observe users first-hand. Sometimes deeper insight comes from just watching people using your product or service. Ideally but not always necessary is to try to come to them vs them to you. Sometimes seeing the users environment, understanding their context, and more is more insightful than simply multi-variant testing or even remote interviews.

First, you'll need to design your website around user needs gathered directly through user research. You should also apply design standards and patterns that will increase the usability of the user interfaces you design. Having an expert heuristic review will identify noticeable or significant usability issues. However, the only way to be completely confident about the usability of a new website is to conduct usability testing with a representative sample of users. I suggest testing 2 or 3 common tasks with 10+ users to catch the majority of issues. If you want to test more tasks, recruit more users! Retest any refined designs to check their usability. After which, you can be confident that you have a usable site.

Personas, scenarios and user journeys are not research methods. They are project artefacts that typically are created to store insight from user research. Gaining insight into your users needs is paramount. Not wants. To gain that insight, it is often better to observe people rather than listening to them, but usually a combination is needed. Before you design anything, understand your intended user's needs and pain points in context because it will inform most of your decisions.

Understanding your users is key to creating a successful website. Through methods like surveys and interviews, you can gather insights into their needs and behaviors. These insights shape your website's content and design, ensuring it meets users' expectations and drives engagement.

Testing should be number one on this list. Don't pretend to know the user, find 5-7 actual users if possible or representatives that fit the persona. Even if you know the user and their persona, "You aren't the user". Don't guess what they do, SEE what they do. See where the prototype fails (let the user fail) and start fixing. Does this solution meet and exceed their expectations? Do they even want this solution? Would they use it if is was free? What if they had to pay for it? These are base questions you should be asking.

Validate your design assumptions through usability testing. Gather feedback from real users to assess the effectiveness and efficiency of your website. Identify pain points and areas for improvement based on user interactions.

Don't just guess what users want—try out your design with real people. Get feedback on how they navigate, understand, and interact with your site. This hands-on testing helps you identify potential issues and make adjustments based on actual user experiences, ensuring your website is genuinely user-friendly.

One thing from my personal experience 🤔Usual users reading copies and evaluate the design by text they are writing more than general experience 🤭 Maybe only advanced users really can read abstract mocks. Also from my personal experience low fidelity is not very clear for usual users in typical validation. Better to work with them during workshops or any other interactive activities

Firstly, we designers need to understand that we are not actual users but we can assume what can be done for a better user experience and need to validate it. To design a more user-friendly website, it's crucial to integrate user centered design (UCD) principles with robust usability testing. Start by creating detailed user personas to understand the target audience. Utilize wireframes and prototypes to visualize design concepts. Implement iterative testing methods such as A/B testing and usability testing with real users to validate assumptions. Use analytics to gather data on user behavior, and ensure responsive design for optimal performance across devices. Prioritize accessibility, clear navigation, and intuitive interface design.

After gathering feedback and data from users, you'll pinpoint what works and what needs improvement in your prototypes. Utilize the HEART framework to assess user experience across dimensions like happiness and task success. A/B testing lets you compare variations of your website elements to determine which resonates best with users.

Embrace an iterative design process. Use feedback from usability testing and user engagement metrics to make continuous improvements. Iterate on your design solutions, addressing issues and refining features to enhance user satisfaction.

Designing user-friendly websites is like crafting a recipe. Iteration is adding the right ingredients, testing flavors, and adjusting to taste—based on user feedback. Continuous improvement is refining the recipe over time, adapting to changing preferences. It ensures that your website stays functional, meets user needs and stays ahead in the competitive market.

Adopt an iterative design process. Use feedback from testing to iterate on your designs. Continuous improvement is key to refining the user experience and addressing any issues that arise during the development process. Embrace a mindset of ongoing refinement.

I think the most important thing is to have the prototype be tested by as many people as possible. It is better to also include people outside of the target audience, than to have a very small number of testing subjects. Different people see the same thing very differently, this way you can gather some truely valuable opinions.

Apart from testing and refining your website's design, implementing some general best practices can significantly improve its user-friendliness. Consider using clear and consistent labels, headings, and buttons, incorporating white space and contrast for visual hierarchy and balance, adopting responsive design for seamless adaptation to various devices, implementing intuitive navigation and search features, and adhering to accessibility guidelines to ensure inclusivity for all users.

Following best practices in web design is crucial. Users have been conditioned to certain digital behaviors, so adhering to established standards helps ensure a seamless experience. Reducing cognitive load and guiding users efficiently from point A to point B is easier when following these norms. As your site grows in complexity and becomes more unique, document your design with style guides and design systems. This ensures consistency and ease of use. Adhering to accessibility guidelines elevates your design and benefits all users, including those with disabilities. Lastly, share your designs with the community to enrich global knowledge.

Adhere to established UX and web design best practices. Ensure intuitive navigation, consistent visual elements, responsive design for various devices, and clear communication of information. Consistency with widely accepted design principles contributes to user-friendliness.

Following best practices in web design is crucial for creating user-friendly websites. It involves implementing industry-recognized standards and proven methods. By following these established practices, websites can deliver a positive and reliable user experience, meeting the expectations of a diverse audience. It is like using a trusted recipe and these best practices act as the secret ingredients!

While creating a website/ web app first understand the target users whom you are designing for & then based on that create your typography styles, for ex - when designing app senior citizen your typography should pass the accessibility guidelines & also at the same time adhere to the mental model of users. Apart from that your page hieracry should starts with H1 followed by H2 for the next sections.

Here you can conduct a competitive audit that is helping you: - to make better design that your competitors did not do - to solve usability problems your competitors may have missed. - to meet user needs your competitors did not address - to gather credible proof about the market, the business, and the users - to manage well the resources of your company

Learn from others - I believe the best way to learn is not from books but from right people and right medium. I prefer having a fresh perspective from an expert advice or a fellow colleague(not working on the same project). They help me see through the flaws in the design which i sidestepped. As all the designers are attached to their creation, we get blinded my the fact of having flaws in our design. Having a fresh perspective could help you improve you design by 2x

Study and analyze successful websites with user-friendly interfaces. Identify patterns, trends, and design elements that contribute to positive user experiences. Learning from industry leaders and competitors can inspire effective design strategies.

To design a user-friendly website, leveraging insights from design teams and experts is crucial. Implementing best practices such as intuitive navigation, responsive design, and accessible content enhances user experience. Collaborating with experts can provide valuable feedback on usability and aesthetics, ensuring the site is not only visually appealing but also functional. Conducting user testing and incorporating data-driven adjustments further refines the design, leading to a seamless and engaging user experience.

Look at websites you enjoy using and analyze why they work well. Maybe it’s their clean layout, intuitive navigation, or engaging content. Learn from the successes and mistakes of others in your industry. There are also plenty of resources, like blogs and forums, where designers share tips and insights. Don’t be afraid to borrow good ideas and make them your own.

Prioritize accessibility in your design. Ensure that your website is usable by people of all abilities, incorporating features like alt text for images, keyboard navigation, and readable text. Also Optimize your website's performance to provide a seamless user experience. Faster loading times, efficient interactions, and smooth transitions contribute to user satisfaction.

Include your cross-functional partners; don’t design in a silo. Ensure proposed solutions meet requirements: - Make sure everyone understands the problem statement and has a solid hypothesis. Indecisions and misunderstandings will reflect in the final design. - Involve engineering and tech teams early to ensure designs are feasible and scalable. UX must be built in the right frameworks to avoid user friction. - Embed success measures in the design, advocating for user KPIs alongside business ones. Implement a multi-touchpoint system to gather rich data on site performance. - Establish and adhere to a user testing plan for valuable insights.

Things to consider are: 1. Making templates of page types by identifying complexity of pages. Such as high, medium and low. 2. Without ux pattern library and design system team should not move ahead. This avoids rework, avoids person dependency which is the most common problem. 3. Reviewing the design proposals internally to avoid showdowns with customers and avoiding rework.

The only way to know if something is user friendly is by testing with real users (not synthetic ones). Book one on one sessions. Interview, test prototypes and iterate until they have no problems doing tasks they need to do in your product. Boom 💥 that’s the best way.

Consider incorporating accessibility principles into your design to ensure inclusivity for all users. Additionally, monitor website analytics to track user behavior and gather insights for ongoing improvements. Regularly seek feedback from users and stakeholders to maintain a user-centric focus throughout the website's lifecycle.