Six Common Mistakes to Avoid in UI Design

UI design can make a huge difference between an aesthetically pleasing and successful application that loads on a website or, one that leaves an unforgettably bad impression. When creating high-quality websites and mobile applications, it isn’t big but the smallest details that make a real difference. This is when UI comes into play as well as the crucial facts that distinguish good UI from bad. 

That said, every application and website, even if it’s serving the same industrial niche, varies from one another which means there isn’t any universal formula to develop a super perfect, flawless interface. So, to be a perfectionist in UI design, you would need to know the common mistakes and how to avoid them. Interested? Read on for details!

1. Typography

Using micro or comparably smaller fonts for body text is a bad practice. Font size less than 12pts is incorrect as it strains the eyes, especially for users already having compromised vision. Yet another typography mistake is using more than two font families that confuse readers/users as well as makes your UI look sloppy. Although using a particular font for the title and another for the body text is indeed the best strategy, more than two are highly unpreferred.

2. Iconography & Imagery

The use of inconsistent or unclear iconography, as well as low-resolution pictures, is as bad when you look at it as it sounds here. Professionals always use consistent line thickness and corner radius for the icons while ensuring that all the images in the web and mobile applications are undistorted. Always test the design to be presented, for a possible unreadable text that at the initial stage gives a nice contrast but the moment the app or website goes live, the text eventually becomes unreadable with a dim background. All such issues and errors should be identified and resolved.

3. Colors & Shading

Lowering down the contrast for the text is obvious to make for poor readability. UI designers prefer setting up the contrast of both images and text at 4.5:1. Likewise, using multiple colors in a design is also unpreferred as it’ll make your UI look flawed and sloppy. Putting up too many colors in the UI communicates too much information all at once to the viewer/user which creates confusion. Simply use limited colors and maintain consistency in the palette for functions like buttons, text, menu icons, and action elements that are sure to improve UI and UX to a certain extent.

You may also be appealed to make a darker UI or theme as a default. It definitely does look impressive but at the same time, less practical than the white. Always remember and stick to the context or basic rules, that is for whom you’re actually designing the interface. This is especially for UIs with heavier texts for which you should avoid using darker UI as it strains the eyes and makes the text look blur or invisible.

4. Shapes & Geometry

Never use square or rectangular shapes with circular; rather go for anyone between the both for cards as well as buttons. UI elements that are well-formatted help communicate clearly and facilitates users’ perception of visual hierarchy. Keep font size, color contrast, and spacing balanced by all means to segregate each element based on its function and visual prominence. 

It’s likely that the object with the highest visual weight gets more attention and looks appealing. With this, there should also be a distinction between primary and secondary CTAs. You can properly guide users by providing visual assistance and prominence to the core action elements because Google makes UI design easily scannable.

5. Interactive Patterns

Whereas swipe-through screens that display multiple products all at once may be the standard but, users are unlikely to read the app features and rather experience them which can only be made possible if the UI is appealing and has all the proper functions. 

For designers, the app may seem perfect in the first-go but, but that isn’t always true for end-users as it may lack context-based support and assistance. To counter this flaw, always have the design tested with selected users before public release. Identify possible areas or sections of friction that require introducing a system or mechanism that smooths out the performance.

Voice search is indeed the latest gig and a rising trend in UI design but it couldn’t ever replace the traditional touch UI. That said, users are likely unable to speak when using their mobile in various situations or in public places. Voice should always be secondary support rather than a replacement to touch UI. Another mistake is trying to be extra creative to impress users which eventually backfires the entire plan. Creative patterns like gesture navigation may be fun and entertaining, but users in the end are left confused and rather spend more time learning.

6. Navigation & Animation

When the top navigation has five or even fewer options, tab bar navigation is preferred instead of the hamburger menu. With this, overusing decorative and high-animation effects is also not preferred as it slows down the website or mobile application. Just keep a balance between everything to keep up with good UI practices.

Now that we know some of the most common UI mistakes and how to avoid them, you can surely have the best website design and app design for your next successful project.