Sliders
Sure you see them everywhere, but are they any good?
@curtismchale
Why???
In theory you get more 'important' content on the page
In reality a slider lets you tell management that their latest idea is on the homepage
Make it easy for the designer to get departments satisfied
Saves you from saying NO which feels hard
How many clicks
Only 1% of users even clicked on the slider
Users overwhelmingly only interact with the first slide (89%)
So no one clicks and if they do it's on the first item
User Tasks
What if we asked a user to click on something that was in the first slider position?
They fail to find the huge item in the first position
People are 'blind' to sliders just like ads on sites
Relevancy
Usually displaying the latest marketing messages
Is that even what they came looking for?
If so it often switches just as they want to click
So do we now focus on the next offer and check relevancy or find the back button?
Speed
Most sliders load huge images and lots of JS
Test speed of things with Load Impact
SEO Impacts
Changing headers which makes relevancy hard
They often take the place of content
accessibility
Sliders/Carrousels don't work well with assistive devices
- weak or no keyboard navigation
- hard for assistive devices like screen readers
- Carousels are bad for accessibility
Mobile???
Even slower since LTE is not everywhere
How does the navigation work in a touch environment?
but if you must that article has tips
Use a hero image instead
Swiping though a common interaction is still a mystery
There is no 'button' or indicator to hint
But 'the fold'
Don't sliders help us keep information up so users don't scroll?
The fold is different depending on screensize
The fold is dead and has been for a while
More 'fold' reading
When to use sliders
To showcase product photos
Portfolio possibly
When the slider is the end goal of the site
Galleries are probably better
Design tips for sliders or galleries
use simple effects
Let the pictures do the talking
- no awesome drop shadows
- thumbnail and arrow navigation
- Envira is a great example
Single call to action
Use one call to action and use it on all slides
- Nest at least on the first 2 slides
Use great images
Way to many clients just pull out their phone to take a picture
You decide
More reading
Sliders
By curtismchale
Sliders
- 4,648
