We gave users a super simple task on our paper prototype: 𝗙𝗶𝗻𝗱 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝟯𝟬-𝗱𝗮𝘆 𝗿𝗲𝘁𝘂𝗿𝗻 𝗽𝗼𝗹𝗶𝗰𝘆. The trick was, we took out the top menu, search bar, and footer links. It was painful to watch. People spent over three minutes clicking around in circles and getting totally stuck.

𝗛𝗲𝗿𝗲 𝗶𝘀 𝘄𝗵𝗮𝘁 𝘄𝗲 𝗻𝗼𝘁𝗶𝗰𝗲𝗱: → Menus are like maps: Without standard spots to look at, people lose their way and tap random places out of pure frustration. → Too much reading: When everything is hidden, users have to read every single line like a book just to find what they want. → Instant goodbye: If someone takes three minutes to find a simple page in a test, a real visitor on your live site will just close the tab and leave.

Basic design rules are there for a good reason. Don't throw them out just to be different.

Makes you wonder how many live sites are quietly losing visitors right now just because someone wanted to reinvent the menu bar.

Thank YouU 🙂