How to grab attention on your website, by implementing this few things — CXL Digital psychology and persuasion course (Review)
“You never get a second chance to make a first impression” — Andrew Grant
It takes users an average of two-tenths of a second to form a first impression of the site.
In fact,
it was recently revealed that it takes 0.05 seconds for a visitor to judge your website — deciding whether they will stay or go.
Luckily we have various methods, that are proven to hold your customer attention.
If I still have your attention, continue reading as I will point out the fundaments of having a qualitative, digital content.
We live in a world of short attention spans
Eight seconds.
Your website has a lot of work to do in a short amount of time, and we are constantly distracted by something in your peripheral vision.
Fortunately, there’s a simple solution to evaluate the functionality of a website
Here’s how to do it yourself: 7 questions that should be answered within 7 seconds
If your website design passes this test, you probably grabbed your users attention, which led to the most crucial thing,
I’m sure you’re with me on this one,
First impressions.
Professors of Business and Information Technology found that seven sections of the reviewed websites attracted the most interest from users.
The participants spent an average of 20 seconds on each website.
What drew the most interest from viewers?
- The institution’s logo. Users spent about 6.48 seconds focused on this area before moving on.
- The main navigation menu. Almost as popular as the logo, subjects spent an average of 6.44 seconds viewing the menu.
- The search box, where users focused for just over 6 seconds.
- Social networking links to sites such as Facebook and Twitter. Users spent about 5.95 seconds viewing these areas.
- The site’s main image, where users’ eyes fixated for an average of 5.94 seconds.
- The site’s written content, where users spent about 5.59 seconds.
- The bottom of a website, where users spent about 5.25 seconds.
As expected, aesthetics is much more than “just” decoration.
Keep reading, I will share some juicy info really soon.
You never get a second chance to make a first impression
Sounds pretty harsh, right?
If you disagree with this one, (I did)
Check this in-depth study from Stanford University and Consumer Web Watch “How Do People Evaluate A Website’s Credibility” — a 100-page research study, that answers all of your possible doubts, and claims about first impressions or digital content in general.
It all boils down to these 2 factors:
1. Visual Design
“The Beauty is in the eyes of the beholder”, simple as it gets. I agree that beauty is subjective. However, various studies show a similar pattern, in how we perceive design.
We are all drawn to visually appealing things, but as management expert Gary Hamel points out, we’re not quite sure why.
This first impression depends on many factors: structure, colours, spacing, symmetry, amount of text, fonts, and more.
Try to set your focus on these fundamental guidelines:
Simplicity: Eliminate unnecessary design elements and make your site easy to understand.
Hierarchy: Arrange your site, so visitors naturally gravitate to the most important elements.
Navigability: Make your site’s navigation simple and obvious.
Consistency: The look and feel of your site should be uniform throughout.
Accessibility: Your site should be compatible with all devices (mobile, tablet, etc.).
Conventionality: Don’t reinvent the wheel. Use elements and design that people are familiar with.
Credibility: Be upfront about your intent and your pricing.
User-centricity: Gather user responses to all site elements to get the best UX.
It’s all about the Design that puts users first
If you want to learn more, check this article written by Peep Laja, from CXL Institute.
2. Your Value Proposition
What’s in it for me? Why buy from you?
Creating a unique value proposition is something that even the best marketers have trouble with. It’s not always easy to find it in the first place, nor how to create one to be effective.
Value propositions are the primary reason a prospect should buy from you. And this is where people run into trouble.
How to craft a powerful and unique value proposition?
Click here to learn all the tips and tricks that will make your offer unique.
How people read websites
After making the first impression and grabbing the users attention, we need to hold it somehow.
One incredibly exciting field of study about consumer behaviour is eye tracking. The information gleaned from eye tracking can help you become a more proficient web designer, content writer, or online marketer.
Amazing, isn’t it?
These are some interesting findings, which you can apply:
- Gutenberg diagram
Even in 2020, the top left corner is the area that is most noticed, keep in mind to put more important content in the areas where they will be most effective.
- Online Reading Patterns
Most people don’t read content — they scan it and various studies showed similar user- behaviour when scanning the page.
3 of the most common reading patterns are:
- F-Pattern
- the most common eye-scanning pattern, typically used for web pages with an immense amount of content
2. The Layer cake Pattern
- the user scans the page by going through horizontal lines to see if the section they choose matches their interest
3. Spotted Pattern
- the user scans more for specific word shapes, particular words, and text treatments that are different from normal text
So, if you want your website to stand out, make sure you consider implementing these key elements.
That’s all for this one! Hope you found some useful information.
There is always a pattern in a user-behaviour, luckily we have the tools to prove it, and methods to apply. Keep an eye for upcoming articles, and remember technology changes quickly, but humans don’t.
