Your users rely on link text to navigate through your site. These small and unassuming bits of UX copy contribute substantially to the findability, discoverability, and accessibility of your content.
The links that best fulfill those roles are:
Specific
Sincere
Substantial
Succinct
Specific
A link’s primary purpose is to communicate to users what they’ll find on the other side of a click. Vague or repetitive language fails that purpose.
One of the most common link failures is the generic and unhelpful Learn more.
Not Specific: Mailchimp used vague Learn more links throughout its site.
I’m generally impressed with Mailchimp’s copy. (I even use it as an example of good writing in the...
Toggles help users update preferences, settings, and other types of information. When using toggles, provide direct labels, use standard visual design, and deliver immediate results. Keep in mind that toggle switches should only be used when the user needs to decide between two opposing states. As
Whether you're designing web pages, web-based applications (e.g., SaaS), or native mobile apps, one of the basic building blocks is the humble text-input field: a box where the user can enter some text. Uses of this widget are plenty and not the topic of this article. We should point out that there
Each link in this list fully contains the most important content that users will find if they select it — for example, Marriage, civil partnership, and divorce. The descriptive text beneath this link is useful, but entirely supplementary: Includes getting married abroad, decree absolutes, and
A 60-Second Trailer of the 60-Day Report on Cybersecurity
She explained that the original design of the Internet was driven more by considerations of interoperability rather than security, and as a result we are now faced with almost insurmountable issues. Some examples include online criminals who steal our information, mass bandits who have the ability
Stop Focusing on Cryptocurrencies Problems. Consider its Future.
Some lawmakers have already begun the process. U.S. Reps. Warren Davidson of Ohio and Darren Soto of Florida introduced the bipartisan Token Taxonomy Act late last year. This Token Taxonomy Act operates to clarify crypto’s exemption from securities laws after it forms a functioning network. The
Cybersecurity in IoT: Achieving Digital Security in an Age of Surveillance
One of the obvious but unique aspects of IoT is that all of its devices broadcast their information through the internet. Even two devices sitting directly next to one another will communicate across millions of miles of internet infrastructure. Since these devices broadcast through cloud services
10 Ways to Use Exit-Intent Popups for Good
Popups have long been considered annoying to users. Often, it’s because they interrupt users during an important task or block out the page content with self-serving messaging. Yes, there have been plenty of examples of problematic popup usage. However, exit-intent popups are different, due to
better link labels: 4ss for encouraging clicks
Beyond Usability: 3 User Experiences Reshaping Their Industries
It used to be that you would buy two or three nice outfits to have in your wardrobe and would rotate them for special events. But in today’s era, with social media like Instagram, Facebook, and Snapchat, all your friends will see what you wear, whether they go to the same event or not. And even
Trustworthiness in Web Design: 4 Credibility Factors
UniHomeCleaning.com.sg: Participants commented that the website only displayed photos of clean places and not of the actual cleaning process. Although this was not a deal breaker for the site (which did include text explaining what services were included), people appreciated competitors’ photos
After the Buy Button in E-Commerce
I recently discussed our report on the usability of confirmation email with a marketing manager. She said that while it was interesting research, it wasn't really relevant to her marketing team because confirmation messages are sent out only after customers have placed their orders. It's
Usability Testing with Minors: 16 Tips
Working with minors requires parental approval; minors cannot sign consent forms on their own behalf. In our usability testing with older teenagers (16–17-year-olds), it was not uncommon for them to show up alone. Providing the consent form ahead of time allowed them to have their parent complete
How Community Can Drive Commerce: A Lesson from China’s Little Redbook
Companies can learn a lot by paying attention to what resonates with online shoppers. Establishing and monitoring a community around your products gives retailers the ability to analyze trends and preferences. Consumer insights and real-time feedback can inform businesses of what works and what
Hackathon 2019 Goes Boldly Where No Engineers Have Gone Before
Additionally, two unique awards are also handed out. For this hackathon, they were Customer Inspired, which recognized a project that has real potential to impact our customers in a positive way and was decided on by WP Engine’s Chief Customer Officer, Tina Dobie; and Warp Speed, a Star
better link labels: 4ss for encouraging clicks
WP Engine: 2018 in Review
New year, new you, did you say? Well, that was our reality in 2018 as we rolled out some of our favorite new platform additions. We took the lead on the Amazon Polly plugin, the first plugin to bring voice technology to WordPress. The WP Engine Digital Experience Platform continued to evolve and
Genesis Framework and StudioPress Themes Now Available for WP Engine Customers .
Countless publications such as Wired and the New York Times live on WordPress. The News Pro Theme gives you the look and feel of a full-featured publication. Display featured stories, article snippets and different categories. The theme even includes built-in ad space so you don’t have to account
UX Research Cheat Sheet
When deciding where to start or what to focus on first, use some of these top UX methods. Some methods may be more appropriate than others, depending on time constraints, system maturity, type of product or service, and the current top concerns. It’s a good idea to use different or alternating
To gain insight into users’ expectations and mental models around the many types of individualized recommendations offered on sites, we ran a remote moderated usability study with 8 participants located across the United States. In each session, participants completed facilitator-assigned tasks
The Sketch Test: Test and Improve Your UX Deliverables and Other Documents
The sketch test can help surface two types of problems with deliverables: (1) content that is not easily perceptible in the document (e.g. using blue text to annotate a screenshot made it difficult to notice against a similar background), and (2) content that is not comprehensible (e.g. the purpose
Data Lake vs. Data Warehouse: Which Is the Best Data Architecture?
Complicating things further is the “data marketplace.” Unlike the first two concepts, this isn’t an architecture but rather an interface to a data lake that enables those outside of the IT team, such as business analysts, to its contents. Through a search function, it allows users
A 60-Second Trailer of the 60-Day Report on Cybersecurity
Finally, Hathaway sees this as a unique opportunity for the United States to work with countries around the world, and with organizations on an extremely local level. “We cannot succeed if our government works in isolation,” she added. It requires “leading from the top” from
Internet of Warnings: How Smart Technology Can Threaten Your Business’s Security
Most of the security concerns with IoT technology have to do with the engineering of the devices themselves. For this reason, knowledge and discretion are the most important safeguards to take when considering the switch to an interconnected network of smart devices. Though it may be fun to imagine
A 60-Second Trailer of the 60-Day Report on Cybersecurity
She explained that the original design of the Internet was driven more by considerations of interoperability rather than security, and as a result we are now faced with almost insurmountable issues. Some examples include online criminals who steal our information, mass bandits who have the ability
better link labels: 4ss for encouraging clicks
A Startup Should Take out a Business Loan that Makes Sense
When your workforce outgrows the available space in your current office, you may feel it is the right time to expand it and take up a larger space altogether. Larger accommodations involve an enormous cost of leasing a new real estate, picking and moving, overhead and other allied expenses. If you
A 60-Second Trailer of the 60-Day Report on Cybersecurity
Finally, Hathaway sees this as a unique opportunity for the United States to work with countries around the world, and with organizations on an extremely local level. “We cannot succeed if our government works in isolation,” she added. It requires “leading from the top” from
Better Link Labels: 4Ss for Encouraging Clicks | Aspects of Design Quality
Aspects of Design Quality
This negative correlation certainly doesn't mean that accessibility stands in opposition to a good homepage design. Remember: We evaluated the homepages' usability, not whether they had a particularly glamorous appearance or featured intricate Flash animations. (The latter usually reduce both
No More Pogo Sticking: Protect Users from Wasted Clicks
Pogo-stick behavior on the Redbox website: After specifying a kiosk location, the list of movies still included options not available to rent at the chosen kiosk. This did not match the expectation set by selecting a location, and forced me to pogo stick through each movie in the list until an
Ensure High Contrast for Text Over Images
Left: In this edited version, a blur has been added to bottom of photos containing text, and the font color has been changed to the default dark colors instead of white. Additionally, the text has been moved down to have consistent placement with other grid items, allowing the blur to be contained
