The 10 most common UX/UI design mistakes that affect your conversion rate

In this post, we introduce you to the 10 most common and critical UX/UI design mistakes that can negatively affect your conversion rate. Each mistake is illustrated with a negative example so you can see if your own application is affected and how you can optimise it. 

1. Complex and cluttered navigation

Issue: 

Well-structured navigation is essential for any successful website. If users have difficulty navigating through your site, it quickly leads to frustration and an increased bounce rate. 94% of respondents in a Clutch survey stated that easy navigation is the most important feature of a website. Users expect an intuitive structure where they can find their way without high cognitive load. However, if the navigation has too many levels, inconsistent labelling, or unnecessarily complicated paths, many users give up and look for an alternative.

Example: 

An online shop offers navigation with numerous subcategories and nested menus. A user looking for a specific product has to click through several levels to find the right category. Since the process is so cumbersome, the page is left and decided to buy from a competitor.

Solution: 

Clear, intuitive navigation that leads the user directly to the desired content is crucial. A sleek, logical menu with clearly defined categories can significantly improve the user experience.

2. Unclear Call-to-Actions and lack of user guidance

Issue: 

Call-to-Actions (CTAs) are the bridge between user intent and actual conversion. If CTAs are unclear, inconspicuous, or poorly positioned, users do not understand what they are supposed to do next. This leads to confusion, uncertainty, and often to leaving the site without performing the desired action. Equally critical is a lack of user guidance, where users receive no clear instructions on how to complete a process.

Example: 

A SaaS platform offers a button labelled "Continue" without clarifying that this completes the sign-up process. Users are unsure whether to proceed in the process or if this is the last step. This confusion leads many to abandon the process instead of completing it.

Solution: 

Logical, intuitive user guidance and clear, succinctly formulated CTAs like "Buy now" or "Register" are crucial and should leave no questions unanswered. The placement of CTAs should be strategic to immediately capture the users' attention. Moreover, each step in the process should be clearly communicated to guide the users confidently to their goal.

A UX/UI audit can help you identify the strengths and weaknesses of your UI design and optimise it.

3. Long loading times

Issue: 

Users today expect websites to load in fractions of a second. Long loading times are one of the main reasons why users leave a website, as they become impatient and look for a faster alternative. In fact, a delay of just 1 second in page response can lead to a 7% decrease in conversion rate.

Example: 

A travel provider uses large, uncompressed images and extensive scripts, which slow down the page loading. Users looking to book a trip at short notice quickly lose patience and leave the page before completing the booking. The competition, whose pages load faster, benefits from this.

Solution: 

Optimising images through compression, using caching, and reducing unnecessary scripts can significantly shorten loading times. Additionally, the server should be configured to provide fast response times.

4. Poor mobile optimisation

Issue: 

With the steady increase in mobile internet usage, poor mobile optimisation is a serious mistake. By August 2024, mobile devices accounted for approximately 63.16% of total global internet traffic. Users expect websites to function just as well on their mobile devices as on a desktop. If your site is not optimised for mobile, this leads to a poor user experience, high bounce rates, and missed conversions. Furthermore, according to a survey by Formstack, 57% of customers would not recommend a business with a poorly designed mobile website, and 48% of respondents in a survey by Google, Sterling Research and SmithGeiger, believe that a poor mobile design suggests that a business doesn't care about its business.

Example: 

The website of a restaurant does not display the menu correctly on mobile devices, and the buttons are too small to be comfortably clicked. Additionally, the reservation process on the smartphone is cumbersome and user-unfriendly. Users are frustrated and switch to a competitor whose mobile site functions better, where the menu can be accessed more easily, and the reservation can be completed with a few clicks.

Solution: 

A responsive, mobile-optimised website is essential. This means that all elements – from images to buttons to forms – must be optimised for different screen sizes.

5. Missing visual hierarchy and overloaded user interface 

Issue: 

An overloaded user interface without a clear visual hierarchy can overwhelm users and prevent them from quickly grasping the most important information. If too many elements are present on a page or the content is not clearly structured, users may not immediately recognise what is important. This leads to them possibly leaving the page without performing the desired actions.

Example: 

A financial service provider presents a plethora of information on its homepage: various offers, advertising banners, text blocks, and call-to-actions, without any clear prioritisation or structure. The abundance of information overwhelms the visitors, who eventually leave the page without taking any action.

Solution: 

A minimalist design that focuses on the essentials and a clear visual hierarchy that directs users to the most important elements are crucial. A thoughtful arrangement of content, with ample white space and targeted visual cues, helps users focus on what is important.

6. Hard-to-find contact options 

Issue: 

Contacting you should be as easy as possible for users. If contact options are hard to find or buried deep within the site, potential customers may become frustrated and seek an easier way to get their questions answered—possibly from a competitor.

Example:

A provider of B2B software solutions does not offer clearly visible contact options. The contact form is hidden in a submenu, and there is no immediately visible phone number or live chat option. Potential customers who have questions or need more information before making a purchase leave the site frustrated, without receiving the necessary support.

Solution:

Clearly visible and easily accessible contact options, such as a well-placed contact form, a phone number, or the possibility of live chat or chatbots, can strengthen potential customers' trust and increase the conversion rate.

7. Inconsistent Branding and Design

Problem:

Consistency in design is crucial for building trust and recognition. If your website uses inconsistent colors, fonts, or layouts, it confuses users and can undermine trust in your brand. An inconsistent design gives the impression of unprofessionalism and can deter potential customers.

Example:

A website for luxury products uses different fonts, colors, and logos on different pages. The homepage is modern, while the product pages appear outdated and do not match the corporate design. This inconsistency confuses potential customers and makes them doubt the professionalism and trustworthiness of the brand.

Solution:

Consistent CI, branding, and design across all platforms are crucial for building trust and recognition. All elements of your website—from the colors to the fonts to the images—should be uniform and aligned with your brand identity.

8. Lack of Visual Feedback and Unclear Error Handling

Problem:

Visual feedback and clear error handling are essential to guide users through processes and avoid uncertainty. If users do not receive visual confirmation of their actions or encounter unclear error messages, they often do not know if their action was successful or how to fix a mistake. This leads to frustration and may cause the process to be abandoned.

Example:

An online banking provider only displays a general error message like "Error" after entering incorrect login details, without clear instructions on what the user needs to do to fix the problem. Customers do not know whether to re-enter their login details or contact customer service, and eventually, they give up.

Solution:

Clear visual feedback that informs users whether their actions were successful, and detailed error messages that explain what went wrong and how to fix it, are essential to prevent users from leaving the site.

9. Neglect of Accessibility

Problem:

Accessibility is an often overlooked but extremely important aspect of UX/UI design. A non-accessible website excludes a large number of users, especially people with disabilities. This is not only ethically problematic but also bad business, as it can significantly limit your website's reach and conversion rate.

Example:

The city administration's website does not offer alternative text for images, and the colors used have very low contrast, making it difficult for visually impaired users to access the site. Additionally, keyboard navigation and screen reader support are lacking. These users are unable to retrieve the information they need and leave the site frustrated.

Solution:

Accessibility should be integrated into the design from the start to ensure that all users—regardless of their abilities—have access to the content. This includes using alternative text for images, subtitles in videos, sufficient color contrast, keyboard navigation, and other accessible design practices.

10. Lack of User Research Consideration

Problem:

Without regular user testing and feedback collection, design decisions are often based on assumptions that may not reflect the actual needs and expectations of the users. This can lead to important features or design aspects being overlooked, negatively impacting the user experience and lowering the conversion rate.

Example:

An e-learning provider develops a new user interface based on the design team's internal assumptions without testing it with actual users. After the relaunch, the new interface is found to be confusing and cluttered, leading to a decrease in usage. It is only later realized that many of the assumptions did not match the actual user habits.

Solution:

Regular user testing and feedback collection are essential to ensure that the design meets the users' needs. Prototyping plays an important role in this: By creating and testing prototypes, the design can be evaluated early on and adjusted to the actual requirements of the users. This way, issues can be identified and addressed during the development phase before they negatively impact the user experience and conversion rate.

Conclusion

A user-friendly interface is crucial to the success of any digital platform. The 10 UX/UI design mistakes presented are common pitfalls that can significantly impact your conversion rate. By avoiding these mistakes and employing proven UX/UI principles, you can not only increase user satisfaction but also significantly improve your conversion rate.