How to forge an unforgettable
user experience

Obey the laws of UX

When you arrived at this page, and kindly decided to scroll, something inclined you to do so. But have you ever wondered "why" you scroll?

The truth is, most users bounce from a page or app the moment they aren't stimulated. Google claims over half of website visitors will leave if a page doesn't load within 3 seconds.

So how do you get users to stay?

The average human attention span is now 8.25 seconds (Ambitionsaba). Users have limited patience and a tendency to quickly lose interest if their needs aren't met instantly.

So your job as a user experience designer is to wow them. Either with instantly-digestible or entertaining information.

Trying to compete with the insta-gratification of Tik Tok, Instagram reels as an app or blog website is difficult for everyone. Social media and now short-form content has a death grip on my generation. It has a death grip on me.

So apps and bloggers are feeling the pressure. Short form content is starting to monopolize and invade the majority of the time people spend on their phones.

Let's queue in on the hook, or first and only moment you have to make a first impression.

The Hook: Your Split-Second Chance to Make a First Impression

Whether your creating content on social media or for an app, your first second is everything. Here are 4 ways to sink that hook deeper:

1. Be original and unique.
2. Address your specific target viewer.
3. Tease your target's dream result.
4. Provide a solution to achieve their dream result.

Here's an example of a powerful hook by Brian Dean:

Technical Function: Is it Everything?

Great content works properly and loads quickly. Technical function of your website is a factor in bounce rate and other metrics. If a visitor arrives at your site and leaves before performing any interaction, the session expires, and their visit is classed as a bounce (Ahrefs).

With users so inclined to scroll and bounce from site-to-site, your website better load fast. On the flip side, though, technical function isn't everything.

Some studies point out that smaller technical problems are subconsciously ignored if your design is clean and aesthetically pleasing.

The aesthetic-usability effect states if your design invokes a positive emotional response, the user tends to be more tolerant of minor usability issues on your site.

So if your aesthetic is on point, that means you can sweep large bugs under the rug? No. If your navigation isn't intuitive and easily-navigable, your users, and website traffic in general, will suffer. "If a user can't find your product, they can't buy it."

What is UX

User experience (UX) is what encapsulates your entire time on websites and applications. It's what you see, what you do, emotions you experience, and so much more.

In this post, I'll layout some principles of UX and UI (user interface), & how they're intertwined. You'd better add these concepts to your repertoire. Grab a coffee and let's enter the realm of swordplay and mediocre storytelling.

Why are we talking about a Sword?

The UX Sword is a way of sectioning the most crucial and overarching aspects of designing and developing a user-focused adventure. If you have any interest in graphic design, website design, web/app development, or content creation, this quest is for you.

The UX Sword is the ultimate weapon for crafting digital experiences that captivate and delight. With razor-sharp focus on empathetic design and unwavering commitment to intuitive interactions, anyone can forge connections with their audiences that resonate throughout the kingdom.

Empathy, Intuition, & Information Architecture

User intuition refers to the innate ability of individuals to understand and interact with digital interfaces naturally. I say innate as if this is some natural instinct.

But ask someone from 20 years ago to navigate through a complex website, they wouldn't have any idea what they were looking at. Nowadays, the ability to do so is intrinsic and natural because of information architecture.

Information architecture is the foundation upon which intuitive and user-friendly digital experiences are built. It involves the organization, structure, and labeling of information within a system, ensuring that users can easily find what they need and navigate through content effortlessly.

A well-thought-out information architecture considers user needs, goals, and mental models, guiding them through logical paths/pages and helping them make sense of complex information.

By creating a clear and intuitive structure, information architecture enhances the overall user experience, reduces cognitive load, and enables users to find and interact with content in a meaningful and efficient manner.

"Design does not become intuitive by magic. When we experience a design as intuitive, it's because we have encountered something like it before" ( Interaction-design.org).

Empathy

Empathy plays a crucial role in designing intuitive user experiences. It involves understanding and relating to the needs, emotions, and pain points of users. To create empathetic experiences, designers often start by developing user personas.

These fictional representations of target users help designers gain a deeper understanding of their motivations, behaviors, and goals. By putting themselves in the shoes of these personas, designers can empathize with their struggles and design solutions that cater to their specific needs.

Copywriting is heavily influenced by empathy and user personas. The writing on your website is the only chance you may have to talk to the end-stranger. So it's important to not talk to them like a stranger. Talk to them like you know their struggles, pain points.