In the past, the use of animation was eminent in UX design. It was common to find entire websites operating on Flash, where every element was animated. Those days are over. The animation is a part of web design, but not a centerpiece.
But that doesn’t mean the animation is just a luxury.
It has become an important tool to create an engaging and interactive web product. Animation evokes emotions as well as sparks conversations and prompts your audience to follow the story.
No wonder why it has become an important part of web designing where user engagement is crucial.
Animation design is more interactive than images and creates excitement around the content. Whether you want to stand out of the crowd online or create your brand’s story, web animation helps you achieve your goal. It encourages visitors to keep exploring a website. It improves the overall user experience.
How to use animation in making amazing UX design?
Is that simple? Well, you have to be careful with your design even with animation. Going overboard with animation can kill the user experience. Even worse, it can make things complicated. That’s why the thoughtful use of animation is important. Here’s how...
Using Animation For Complicated UX Design
Sometimes you get on a screen and you have no idea how to interact with it straight away. In this scenario, the user can be provided with a clue of a certain object when it appears.
For example, if you have a list of posts, sliding them could give the idea that they need to swipe to see more.
Animation Makes Loading Sequence Less Painful
They say that a website should load within 2 seconds or less.
Slow loading time can frustrate a user and prompt them to leave the site. Therefore, loading time is an important factor to work over. However, some sites are bound to load slowly due to their heavy content. Sometimes, slow internet speed is a culprit.
If you can relate any of these two scenarios, you can use animation to encourage the users to stay on your site. For example, you can show a cute bunny dancing its way to the loading bar. This way, they are less likely to leave your website due to slow loading time.
The point is here that such animations work by distracting the user when information or site is being processed or loaded. It makes the users feel that the loading time is shorter. In other words, it is a clever trick.
However, make sure to keep these “loading” animations simple as users might divert attention back to the loading time issue if they are too complex.
Guiding the Users to Complete the Tasks
Engaging web designs can encourage users to take action and guide them through exhaustive tasks. Animation can be used to help users to make decisions on what to do next, such as the steps of filling out a contact form.
Read Also: 7 Effective Tips to Monetize Your App
Creating the Smooth Transition
Moving from point A to point B should not only be smooth but also work as an indication of a change. The transition in UI usually involves hard cuts which can hinder the flow. Hard cut transitions are too quick and can be overwhelming for users.
Animation can be an answer to this concern. With the animated transition, users can view another section while staying on the same page.
Making Scrolling Visually Appealing
Scrolling is a vital part of a UX design. Making it attractive is crucial, as it will determine whether the viewer continues exploring your website.
Creating a smooth interaction for scrolling ensures better customer experience and boosts engagement as well. And animations will make this even interactive for users.
For example, you can break content into different sections and add animations in between. This way, it is likely to be more engaging for the customers as they scroll the web page.
Savah helps design team to be more productive
Create your free account
Revealing Hidden Menus
Most old school designers think that menus should be visible.
However, it can’t be denied that hidden menus can make your website looks clean and easy.
Animated drop-down menus can be used if you have to create a large number of pages. Using animation can soften the “occurrence” of the hidden menu. Without them, menus would just appear on the screen, which can be disturbing. You can use a fade, slide, flip, or expanded menu for your drop-down menu.
Read Also: How AI can Redefine UX Design
LAST NOTE:
Incorporating animation into UX design of your website or app can improve user experience and lead to better engagement.
It not only attracts eyes to your website but also facilitates navigation and other things. Animation creates an emotional bond with the viewers and humanizes your brand as well. However, it is important to use animation carefully across the website.
Another thing to keep in mind is that it should be simple and meaningful. Complex or superfluous animations can eat up your user’s valuable time and the user will get exhausted after the first initial delight.
What do you think? Let us know by commenting below.
