User Experience (UX) design is more important than ever in 2020 with the increase in smartphone usage and access to the internet on different devices. UX trends change and evolve each year, but something that always stays the same (if not grows) is the importance of UX design. If a website is cumbersome to navigate, the bounce rate will be high, customer satisfaction will be low, and conversions will be a shot in the dark.
User satisfaction leads to user action, and subsequently, they become a loyal customer.
Over the years and the past decade especially, we’ve learned a lot about the state of UX. As we move further into 2020, it’s time for these lessons to be applied in a way that supports the vision of the company or brand and engages the customer in a way like never before. We are fortunate to have the advancement of technology and the creative minds of engineers on our side.
Whether you’re looking to increase site traffic, working on a plan for a client, starting from scratch, or need a complete overhaul for your website, these UX Design trends for 2020 are sure to give you the boost you’re looking for. We’ve never seen such exponential growth in the digital realm that can be implemented in so many ways. 2020 is truly the year that we lay the foundation of what will come to define the next decade in design.
UX is a discipline, and one that requires devotion. As technology advances, so must design. And as the user evolves and faces new challenges, great UX is always at the core of the solution.
The past few years have produced huge advancements in UX, but 2020 has much more in store. Let’s look at the top UX design trends of 2020.
Top UX Design Trends of 2020
2020 holds a lot of change. This is the year that the foundation for many new UX practices will be laid, and the opportunity for great UX Designers to set the tone for best practices for the years to come. This year we will see virtual and augmented reality take a huge leap out of the gaming industry and firmly root in the lives of millions. We’ll also micro-interactions within apps and mobile sites evolve and develop, greatly increasing user satisfaction. One place that will see a bit of a controversial evolution is information architecture in the form of user entrapping. Overall, UX Design is evolving in leaps and bounds. It will be truly exciting to see what the future holds.
Voice Assistant UX
UX Design has been largely restricted to Natural User Interfaces, until now. In 2020 we’ll see a move towards auditory and even tactile interfaces. Voice User Interfaces (VUI) and voice assistants like Google Home and Alexa are at the forefront of how many people search while at home. In addition, features like Siri on smartphones are in a steady rise. The acceptance of new technologies in homes and smartphones is a major UX trend for 2020. Interfaces need to be built in a way that takes into account how many more people in 2020 are using voice assistants to search the web. This also extends out to how search engines catalog the information that will be accessible for voice assistants.
When UX Design is considered in terms of VUI, it can be confusing as to how this all plays out. There are many UX design fundamentals that allow us to converse with our devices. From setting an alarm, playing a song, or adding something to a grocery list, there’s a lot going on behind the screen that the user will never see. The importance lies in the intuitive design and precise execution. Voices are diverse, complex, and can sound different from day to day. Communication between humans can be sketchy at best at times, and with computers, there’s even more of a barrier to breakthrough. Designers will be able to build better experiences that grow with the evolving technology in 2020 and beyond.
Micro Interactions
Micro-interactions are in every app and website we use today. But in 2020, we are going to see even more of these within a user interface to help drill down into the actions the user is looking for, and the steps the app or website wants the user to take. These interactions are incredibly intuitive and helpful, and sometimes even overlooked because of the ease at which the user can access them and get what they want or need. They are inherently blended into what we as users and creators look for, and they are getting an upgrade in 2020.
From menus to navigation and even in-app purchases, these micro-interactions keep things running smoothly. Take them away, and the user will be incredibly lost and frustrated. In 2020 we’ll see an ever-greater attention to detail in micro-interaction and new devices to apply this UX design to directly.
3D Graphics for Web and Mobile
The world is moving toward virtual reality, and the next best thing is 3D. UX design is going to be challenged in a creative way to deliver what the people want: an interactive experience that is lifelike, creative, and fun. While 3D graphics are nothing new, they have been improving and advancing over the past decade. This advancement in technology has allowed for the implementation of 3D graphics in many more places and on many more devices than previously possible. Users will now be able to interact with and experience something, like a new car or the menu of a website, like never before.
This interactive and lifelike experience is what people are craving in their digital usage. With as much time as people are spending on their computers and smartphones especially, technology has to keep up in order to maintain their interest and attention. Everything from 3D graphic renders to features on a website or mobile device can benefit from a little 3D action. Brands will implement 3D graphics to emulate in-store experiences that people can have from across the world.
Virtual Reality and Augmented Reality
VR is a growing trend that will only get exponentially larger in 2020. Designing a user experience for VR is incredibly complicated and there are tons of variables. Mostly confined to the gaming industry in the recent past, VR is going to get a leading role in our digital experiences in 2020. VR is an all-inclusive experience that closes out the physical world and drops the user into a place filled with dreams. The gaming industry moves at such a fast and rigorous pace that we often see technology developed exclusively for gaming come out of the industry and into other supporting industries that welcome the technology with open arms.
Interactivity in virtual reality is composed of three elements: speed, range, and mapping. As more and more platforms grow into 3D and VR, we are also going to see everything in between. This includes Augmented Reality (AR) and Mixed Reality (MR). Depending on the platform, the goal, and the user, 2020 is going to encourage the incorporation of one or all three of these in various ways. That also means that UX design in 2020 will be stepping up to the plate to deliver.
AR is a different way to incorporate the virtual into the real. The world’s leading tech companies are investing millions into AR development to deliver the exciting experience the user is looking for, and to move away from the tired experience the user is bored with. Apply recently launched their own AR toolkit called ARKit3 to help designers create this experience. This will be a combination of UI and UX design.
UX Design as a Team Effort
More often than not, a UX designer is a lone wolf. They design alone, work alone, and are seen as a separate entity from web designers, architects, and graphics. This will be changing in 2020 as the demands of design and technology will require collaboration on a level UX designers haven’t experienced previously. In 2020, User Experience will require equal inputs from algorithm engineers, data scientists, illustrators and content creators alike. This is good news, maybe not for the introverts, because with more collaboration we will see more advancements in design and a faster implementation. We’ll also see a shorter lead time because many different moving parts and pieces will be orchestrated like a choreographed dance.
UX simply can’t exist in isolation. It is dependent upon many other facets of the process and vice versa. A more robust feedback look will be created to incorporate business strategy, marketing, process, and research.
Information Architecture
Information architecture is going to get an upgrade in 2020 that will help brands and businesses achieve their goals, and help users better navigate. Information architecture has two main components:- one that defines the site content & functionality and the other that forms the underlying organization, structure, and nomenclature. With a more intuitive and streamlined blueprint, websites will operate more smoothly and deliver what the user is looking for in a more concise way. As technology provides more ways for users to consume content, information architecture must be optimized to keep pace.
Optimized discovery patterns will be seen in 2020 as evolving technology allows for more customization. Things like autocomplete in fields, behavioral data for A/B testing in navigation, and narrowed search results. Specific actions like these will make the websites of 2020 easier to navigate which translates to conversions and customer loyalty. Additionally, information architecture will include the advancements being made in voice assistant UX. Much of what we are going to see happen in UX design trends in 2020 is going to stem from information architecture, as it’s the core of every website design.
User Entrapping
Competition is fierce and only getting more cut-throat. As Google’s search algorithm becomes increasingly more complex and ad revenue falls, brands are getting desperate to entrap users and encourage them to take action in specific ways. Piggybacking on the general advancements we’ll see in information architecture as a whole, user entrapping is going to increase and become much more prevalent in 2020.
Techniques designed to keep the user on the site for a longer period of time and follow through in specific actions is a growing trend. As bounce rates increase, attention spans decrease, and sales are spread thin between multiple similar brands, something has to give. This process doesn’t necessarily improve user experience, but it is surely something we are going to see a lot more of in the coming years. As users spend more time on a site, ad revenue increases. While use satisfaction is surely at risk, this trend isn’t going anywhere anytime soon. UX Designers and Information Architects need to be prepared to manage this in the least invasive way possible in the next few years. That will set the pace the industry will follow with best practices.
Implement UX Design Trends in 2020
The implementation of these UX Design trends in 2020 is going to help you and your clients take advantage and advancing technology in a way like never before. With 3D design, Virtual Reality, improved information architecture and everything in between, it’s a great time to implement.
Take you website to the next level or help your clients increase their business with these exciting trends in UX Design. At Pico Digital Marketing, we specialize in UX Design and can help you develop a plan to help implement all these advancements. Whether you’re working with a client or looking to improve your own website, we can help you make sense of what you need, what you don’t, and where to get creative and take some risks.
Get in touch with us to learn more about UX Design trends in 2020.
