These articles are based on observations and test findings from our usability research on homepage, category and navigation design.
Our latest Homepage and Category Navigation UX desktop benchmark reveals that the performance for the average top-grossing US and European site is “poor”. Here are 12 common UX pitfalls.
The Current State of Homepage and Category Navigation UX (12 Common Pitfalls)
Consider Providing “Intermediary Category Pages” (13% Don’t)
New 2023 Homepage & Category UX Benchmark with 3,000+ Performance Scores and 2,500+ Best Practice Examples
Provide a Hover Delay of 300–500 MS for Hover-Based Drop-Down Menus (60% Don’t)
Make Product Categories the Top-Level Navigation Items on Mobile Sites (33% Don’t)
Our latest Homepage UX benchmark reveals that even given the generally decent performance of e-commerce sites, there’s still room for improvements. Here are 8 common Homepage UX pitfalls & best practices.
Overcategorization of the Product Catalog Can Lead to Abandonment (Yet 75% Get It Wrong)
Consider Having a “Sales” or “Deals” Filter-Based Category (32% Don’t or Have Implementation Issues)
Have a “View All” Option in the Main Navigation at Each Level of the Mobile Product Catalog (Only 24% Get It Right)
DTC UX: Avoid Intermediary Category Pages
Mobile UX Trends: The Current State of Mobile UX (15 Common Pitfalls & Best Practices)
Homepage carousels are now only used by 28% of e-commerce sites. Our testing shows that a carousel can perform OK with users, but most carousels don’t. We’ve also found a vastly simpler alternative that performs as well.
Make It Clear Where Hit Areas in Visual Elements Lead: 33% of Sites Don’t
Direct-to-Consumer UX Benchmark: 5 Common DTC Pitfalls
250+ New Examples Added from Large-Scale Testing on European Sites
Always Provide the Full Scope for Links on Mobile Homepages (58% Don’t)
The Current State of Homepage UX – 8 Common Pitfalls & Best Practices
Direct-to-Consumer Research: 5 Effective Ways for DTC Sites to Tell Their ‘Brand’ & ‘Product’ Stories
New Research Study on “Digital Subscriptions” (SaaS) UX
6 Important Aspects of Well-Performing Mobile Product Page Breadcrumbs
Inspirational Images Should Link to All Depicted Products (9% of Sites Don’t)
4 Design Patterns That Violate “Back” Button UX Expectations – 59% of Sites Get It Wrong
Highlight the User’s Current Scope in the Main Navigation (66% of Sites Don’t)
Footer Links Should be Divided into Distinct Semantic Sections (13% of Sites Don’t Use These Footer Best Practices)
9 UX Requirements for a User-Friendly Homepage Carousel Design (If You Need One)
Have Direct Links to ‘Return Policy’ and ‘Shipping Info’ in the Footer (20% don’t)
7 Navigational Implementations that Make Kohl’s Best-in-Class
The Current State of Homepage & Category UX (Performance Is Up 39% Since 2013)
Responsive Upscaling: 11 Ideas for Large-Screen E-Commerce Design
6 Guidelines for Truncation Design
Avoid Inline Scroll Areas (26% Get it Wrong)
Avoid These 5 Types of E-Commerce Graphics
Sub-Sub-Category Links: a Vital Feature in E-Commerce Navigation (52% Get it Wrong)
Homepage Usability: Can Users Infer the Breadth of Your Product Catalog?
Featured Products Should Also Link to Their Categories (43% Get it Wrong)
Inspirational Images Should Link to All Depicted Products
E-Commerce Sites Need 2 Types of Breadcrumbs (68% Get it Wrong)
External Article: 7 Guidelines For Better Navigation And Categories
E-Commerce Navigation: Show Sibling Categories for Easy Scope Adjustment (47% Get it Wrong)
Homepage & Category Usability: Exploring the Customer’s Product Finding Experience
Home Page Strategy: Category vs. Product
E-Commerce Home Page Focus
244 top sites ranked by UX performance.
14,000+ annotated designs for systematic inspiration.
Code samples, demos, and key stats for usability.