In the fast-paced world of user experience (UX) design, success stories often take center stage. But what about the failures, missteps, and outright disasters that have shaped the industry? Welcome to “UX Fakups,” where we dive into the stories of mistakes and failures that have made UX professionals better at their craft.
Text Author: Kirill Yurovskiy’s, Usability Specialist
The Path to Perfection is Paved with Imperfections
Every UX designer knows that the road to creating intuitive, user-friendly interfaces is fraught with challenges. What sets the great designers apart is not their ability to avoid mistakes entirely, but rather their capacity to learn from them and emerge stronger. In this article, we’ll explore real-world examples of UX fakups, dissect what went wrong, and uncover the valuable lessons learned along the way.
The $300 Million Button Blunder
Our first tale of UX woe comes from a major e-commerce site that shall remain nameless. The company had implemented a seemingly innocuous design choice: forcing users to create an account before making a purchase. Sounds reasonable, right? Wrong.
User experience consultant Jared Spool discovered that this simple decision was costing the company a staggering $300 million in lost sales annually. Why? Many users abandoned their carts when faced with the prospect of creating yet another online account.
The solution was elegantly simple: add a “Continue as Guest” button to the checkout process. This small change resulted in a 45% increase in purchases and an extra $15 million in the first month alone.
Lesson learned: Don’t create unnecessary barriers between users and their goals. Sometimes, the simplest solution can have the most significant impact.
The Hamburger Menu Hangover
Remember when the hamburger menu icon was all the rage? This three-lined button, resembling a stack of hamburger buns, was meant to save valuable screen real estate by tucking away navigation options. However, for many companies, it became a UX nightmare.
One notable example comes from Spotify. In 2014, the music streaming giant implemented a hamburger menu in its mobile app, hiding key features like Radio and Browse. The result? User engagement plummeted, with many struggling to find essential functions.
Spotify’s UX team went back to the drawing board, eventually replacing the hamburger menu with a tab bar that showcased the app’s core features. This change led to increased user engagement and a more intuitive navigation experience.
Lesson learned: Just because a design trend is popular doesn’t mean it’s right for your users. Always prioritize usability over trendiness.
The Color-Blind Conundrum
In 2009, the London Underground unveiled a new “step-free” map designed to help passengers with mobility issues navigate the Tube system more easily. The map used different colors to indicate various levels of accessibility at each station. There was just one problem: the chosen color scheme was indistinguishable for people with color blindness.
This oversight meant that a significant portion of the very users the map was meant to assist couldn’t effectively use it. The Transport for London team quickly acknowledged the error and worked with color accessibility experts to create a new version that was readable for all users.
Lesson learned: Accessibility isn’t an afterthought — it’s a fundamental aspect of good UX design. Always consider the diverse needs of your user base from the outset.
The Facebook News Feed Fiasco
In 2006, Facebook introduced its News Feed feature, which aggregated and displayed users’ activities in a central location. While this seems commonplace now, at the time, it was a radical change that sparked widespread user outrage.
Many users felt their privacy had been violated, as information that was previously scattered across profiles was now prominently displayed. The backlash was so severe that Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg had to issue a public apology and quickly implement privacy controls.
Despite the initial uproar, the News Feed eventually became one of Facebook’s most popular and enduring features. The key was giving users more control over what information they shared and with whom.
Lesson learned: When introducing significant changes to a familiar user experience, communication and user control are paramount. Gradual implementation and robust feedback mechanisms can help smooth the transition.
The Google Wave Wipeout
In 2009, Google announced Wave, a real-time communication and collaboration platform that promised to revolutionize how we work together online. Despite generating significant buzz, Wave failed to gain traction and was discontinued just a year after its public release.
What went wrong? Wave suffered from a classic case of feature overload. Its interface was cluttered and confusing, trying to do too many things at once. Users struggled to understand its purpose and how it fit into their existing workflows.
While Wave itself didn’t survive, many of its innovative features found their way into other Google products like Docs and Chat. The failure of Wave taught Google valuable lessons about the importance of focused, user-centric design.
Lesson learned: Innovation is important, but it must be balanced with usability and clear purpose. Sometimes, less really is more in UX design.
The Apple Maps Misadventure
When Apple decided to replace Google Maps with its own mapping service in iOS 6, it seemed like a natural move for the tech giant. However, the launch of Apple Maps in 2012 quickly turned into a PR disaster.
Users reported numerous issues, including inaccurate directions, misplaced landmarks, and even dangerous routing errors. The problems were so severe that Apple CEO Tim Cook issued a public apology and recommended users try alternative mapping apps while Apple worked to improve its offering.
In the years since, Apple has invested heavily in improving its Maps app, turning an initial failure into a competitive product. The company learned to be more thorough in its data collection and validation processes, and to be more cautious when replacing established services.
Lesson learned: When replacing a familiar and critical feature, ensure your new offering is at least on par with what users expect. Thorough testing and a phased rollout can help mitigate risks.
The Windows 8 Start Menu Saga
Microsoft’s decision to remove the Start menu in Windows 8 and replace it with a new Start screen optimized for touch devices was met with widespread criticism. Many users found the new interface confusing and ill-suited for desktop computers with keyboards and mice.
The backlash was so strong that Microsoft quickly began work on Windows 8.1, which reintroduced elements of the classic Start menu. By the time Windows 10 was released, the Start menu had returned in full force, albeit with a modernized design that incorporated some of the better aspects of the Windows 8 Start screen.
This experience taught Microsoft valuable lessons about balancing innovation with user expectations, especially when dealing with deeply ingrained user behaviors.
Lesson learned: Radical changes to core user interactions should be approached with caution. Consider offering users a choice between new and familiar interfaces, or implement changes gradually to allow for adaptation.
Embracing Failure as a Path to Success
As these stories illustrate, even the biggest names in tech aren’t immune to UX fakups. What sets successful companies and designers apart is their ability to learn from these mistakes and use them as catalysts for improvement.
Here are some key takeaways for UX professionals:
- Listen to your users: Often, the first sign of a UX fakup comes from user feedback. Pay attention to what your users are saying and be prepared to act on their concerns.
- Test, test, and test again: Many of these failures could have been mitigated or avoided entirely with more thorough user testing. Don’t skimp on this crucial step in the design process.
- Be willing to admit mistakes: When things go wrong, owning up to the error and communicating clearly with users can go a long way toward maintaining trust.
- 4. Learn from others: By studying the failures of others in the industry, we can avoid repeating the same mistakes and build on the lessons learned.
- Iterate and improve: UX design is an ongoing process. Be prepared to continuously refine and improve your designs based on user feedback and changing needs.
In conclusion, UX fakups are an inevitable part of the design process. By embracing these failures as learning opportunities, we can push the boundaries of what’s possible in user experience design while creating products that truly meet the needs of our users. Remember, in the world of UX, sometimes you have to fake it till you make it — just be sure to learn from your fakups along the way.