User experience design is about creating the ideal encounter for the customer or visitor while using a product or service. The term is mainly used in relation to digital experiences, including websites, software, and mobile apps, but can also apply to the remote control to your TV, the control pad on your microwave, and the process you go through to return an item to a store.
User experience design can be described by seven factors, according to Peter Morville:
In my next seven blog posts, I'll be doing a deeper dive into each of these factors that shape the user experience. Today's post is the fourth in the series and is about credibility.
Having a credible website and one that specifically informs the user of its credibility is of utmost importance for conducting business over the web, especially for e-commerce. But what exactly is credibility? Credibility is the quality of being trusted and believed in. Trust is defined as confidence in or the truth in a statement. The design of your website or app needs to communicate trust.
The design itself can communicate trustworthiness in 4 ways:
Online trust is important whether you are trying to distribute information or initiating online business transactions. Sticking to web conventions lends your site credibility. One of the best methods to improve your credibility is to be clear and honest about the product or service you're selling. Other trust inducing features as defined by researchers, Ye Diana Wang and Henry H. Emurian include:
Graphic Design: First impressions are important.
Structure Design: Overall organization and accessibility of information.
Content Design: Informational components, either textual or graphical.
Social-cue design: Embedded social cues, such as face-to-face interaction and social presence
What are some clues that you notice that make you trust or distrust a website? Please share in the comments below.