8 common design myths

Have you heard anyone say that users don't scroll and that white space is unused area? That there's talk of not having more than three clicks? Here we list 8 common design myths you should know about.

There are plenty of design myths that persist thanks to old truths, people not doing their research, or simply not knowing any better. Here we list some common design myths you should be aware of 

Myth 1: All pages should be reachable within 3 clicks

Have you heard of the 3‑click rule where users should be able to reach their goal in a maximum of three clicks, otherwise they'll lose interest? This is a myth that has lived on for decades and has been widely used by both clients and designers. However, there is no data to support this claim. It has rather been shown that the number of required clicks does not cause frustration as long as there are clear navigation options.

Users want to find what they're after with as little effort as possible, but three clicks is not the magic number to achieve that. Different clicks demand different amounts of mental effort; some are easier and quicker to understand than others. A website that requires five simple clicks for a user to reach their goal is far more likely to be perceived as faster and easier than a page that requires fewer but hard-to-interpret clicks. If users understand where a click (for example in the form of a link or a call-to-action) will take them, you've gone a long way toward creating clear navigation paths. If the user is sufficiently interested, the number of clicks matters less. It's about being pedagogical and managing to motivate, rather than counting clicks.

Myth 2: Users don't scroll

It's time we once and for all burst the myth that users don't scroll on the web, because they do — if they have a reason. In the past we were unaccustomed to scrolling and it demanded more from us as users. We had to click the scroll bar arrows and drag along the browser window to get through a web page. As a result, "above the fold" became a term everyone talked about. Above the fold, or above the crease, is about users not scrolling and, because of that, placing your most important information and primary call-to-action there. This has led many to overload the top of web pages with too much information. But just as technology evolves, so does our digital behaviour. This in turn affects how we should design our products, services and user experiences. Today scrolling has become a natural action and we probably scroll more than ever. Online shops have product listings that never seem to end and social media feeds can capture our attention for hours

Although studies show we still spend most of our time "above the fold", we are nevertheless more likely to interact further down the page. Below the fold, users are often more engaged and sufficiently convinced to convert. The area above the fold is meant to catch the user's interest and entice them to read on. Above the fold we must give our users a reason to scroll, but cramming all the information we have into that small space can do more harm than good. We must work strategically with our content and entice further reading

Myth 3: White space is unused space

By white space we mean the air or the empty areas between or around elements in a layout. Many consider it unnecessary and think it could instead be used for important content. Including empty areas, however, is a useful tool for creating visual hierarchies, increasing readability and guiding the user correctly through a layout. It's simply about using empty space the right way.

A cluttered page often gives a messy impression that makes the user unsure what they should focus on. The risk then is that information gets lost. White space can instead help create calm and harmony. You don't, however, want such large empty areas that it looks like the pages end when they don't. No website benefits from either too much information or overly large empty spaces — a good balance is required.

Myth 4: Your users read on the web

Most of us don't read everything on a webpage, that's just how it is. On the web users scan a text or page to a greater extent than if the text had been published in print. The eye skims texts and jumps between elements, such as headings, lists or keywords that manage to catch one's attention. People only read a text carefully if they are genuinely interested in the content, and that may happen after they have scanned the page and gotten a sense of whether it seems to contain what they're looking for.

However, a lot of information doesn't always have to be a bad thing. It's about how you package and present the content. If you have a lot of information that you want users to take in, you can help them along. We can make it easier to scan a webpage by having a well-thought-out layout and structure. We can use well-formulated headings and break the information into steps. Using images, bullet lists and clear paragraph breaks are a few more tricks that can make texts easier to scan More tips that improve your web content.

Myth 5: Users make well-considered choices

How many people haven't Googled and clicked the first link in the search results only to quickly go back and click the next link? As we mentioned in the previous myth, users largely scan web pages. They look for information that resembles what they're after. They then tend to choose the first option that catches their attention, only to quickly click back if it turns out they've landed in the wrong place. So they rarely read an entire web page from start to finish (unless they're genuinely interested). This also means that we humans seldom make fully thought-out decisions. We take chances and try things out when we don't have much to lose. This is something you can, for example, take advantage of when designing different choice situations. Nudging is a useful method for facilitating decision situations and guiding the user to a desired choice.

Myth 6: People are rational

Studies have shown that most of our decisions are driven by our emotions, more than by our logical and conscious thinking. We know that an apple is healthier than a bun. Often we still choose the bun because our brain convinces us that it tastes better and will give us greater satisfaction. At the same time we are good at rationalizing and justifying our decisions after we have made them. "The bun was quite small anyway, and the apple looked a bit bruised and sour"

The idea that humans are rational beings who can make logical decisions without being affected by emotions is therefore a myth. All information we take in passes through our emotional center and we are emotion-driven junkies, whether we want to be or not. If we humans are not as rational and predictable as we think, the key is to be aware of our users' emotions. It is only when we know them that we can manage and make use of them. By understanding the human brain and identifying our limitations we can learn to design and create content based on them.

As a designer or web editor you can create a design and content that "nudges", or pushes visitors in the right direction. Consider what emotions your particular product, service or brand evokes in your customers? Do they match what you want to convey?

Myth 7: Design is only about the visual

One of the most common myths is that design is solely about how pretty something is, about the visual and about color and form. But it is at least as much about functionality and problem solving.

To create good design the user must be the focus. You need to get to know your users, and this is where UX comes into play. UX (the user experience) goes hand in hand with design (the visual). A nice-looking website can stand or fall if the user experience or the content is poor. The same applies if you fail to meet users' needs and behaviors. Likewise, good content can be hard to take in if it has no styling. Design is therefore not solely about the visual.

Myth 8: You are like your users

It's not uncommon for companies and clients to have an inside-out mindset when it's time to redesign the website. People within the organization think it's important to include information that users may not care about at all. Sometimes it's easy to forget that we as clients or designers are not our users. As a client you know everything about the business, and as designers we have experience of user behavior and design principles. Understanding and getting to know your users is fundamental to success. We must stop starting from ourselves and think from the user's perspective. For example, we can involve users in the design process, conduct interviews and observations, or look at user data and do user testing.

Find out what your users' needs, behaviors and motivations are. How does your product/service help them – does it save your users time or money? What do you do better than your competitors? Remember to communicate the value of your product/service to the customer. A useful method to begin designing and working from your users' perspective is Design thinking.

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