App design is at once a creative and enterprising activity that plays a huge role in garnering traffic and more downloads. Ignoring design elements your so called unique app does not stand a chance to win the user preference and create its own niche of users. While some elements of app design you need to stay clear off, there are other twists of creativity that you need to incorporate as positive input. Here we would provide 7 mobile app design tips that win users.
1. Keep it simple and effective
Maybe your app design is too glossy in look but it won’t be interesting enough for the user until it looks useful. But how does an app looks useful at the first instant? To answer back to this question we have no option but to answer with same old term ‘simplicity’. Yes, first and foremost of all, your app should not look complicated. It should offer an easy and simple look and feel to develop faster impression and grow attachment quickly. Your design should offer user directly the needful to the user. Every app solves a problem and your design should take users straight to the solution.
2. Making design platform and device specific
Single app design for all operating platforms just cannot come out with a great design and often the app fails to enjoy same user preference across all the platforms. Make sure the app design typically compliments the platform specific advantages and constraints. Meeting these advantages and overtaking the constraints often require creative brilliance and a great app designer should have that. Same truth applies to designing app for different devices as well.
3. Branding through design
Obviously incorporating brand specific elements in app design is important for making an impression with your brand and reaping the consequent business benefits. A consistent branding approach with brand specific color, graphic and design in everything including the mobile app and web presence often proves to be effective. Sometimes a brand is recognizable instantly with an icon or logo or a typical set of colors in a design. For instance, acquiring Instagram Facebook did not change the instantly recognizable camera icon as changing this would lead to losing users or losing brand advantage.
4. High resolution images
Using high resolution images is already a design tactic among websites as they capture user attention fast and inspire them to stay longer on page. In mobile apps also high resolution images quickly creates an impression and make you feel comfortable. Specially if you offer such robust and beautiful image at the start before the user scroll down or touch another navigation button to go inside the app, it makes a far unalterable impression than the so called clutter of words.
5. Beautiful typography and use of empty space
Typography is what makes the app page either beautiful or cluttered. Use of typography should not be challenging for the eyes of users and you should keep different user eye sights in mind. Typically typography should be prominent, bold, clutter free and absolutely readable by anyone. Secondly spacing between words should optimize the readability without compromising on overall look and feel of the app. Using enough empty or white space around typography makes it more effective for the user’s vision.
6. Flawless smooth navigation
The app design should particularly focus on offering easy navigation buttons. There are apps that in spite of offering huge amount of content just do not provide an easily recognizable ‘Search’ button. If as a user I cannot get to the thing I am looking for there is no point of using such an app. Prominent, clear and smooth navigation buttons and direction would ultimately add more value to your app than so called stunning elements of look.
7. Customized elements as per user
Finally, customizing your app design to the benefit of users is a key consideration that would help in garnering more downloads and creating your niche user groups. Consider different contextual grounds of using your app. For instance, does the app look useful in sunlight in the same way as it looks inside the darkness of the room? Similarly, does the used font looks same or effective in different languages? It is needless to say, a great app design will address these user specific issues in an innovative and useful manner.
Author : Juned Ghanchi founder and leads Indian App Developers company world class mobile application development team, one of the premier mobile consulting firms. Juned Ghanchi remains busy in researching and learning about the latest mobile technologies trends and shares his creative knowledge through various blogs and articles.