Improving the registration form on the site (4 useful tips)
On the Internet, the registration procedure occurs to us as often as the authorization form on the sites. You have to register: in all kinds of web services that help you find the information you need, free distributions of materials, online stores, social networks, etc. At such moments, the feeling of joy from an interesting find instantly disappears due to the need to fill in endless input fields (besides, sometimes they are completely unnecessary).
As a rule, all this is inconvenient, takes a lot of time and looks too intrusive. Plus, a person may reasonably be alerted by the requirement to provide data about himself, since this violates his privacy (and confidentiality is important to many).
Today we will tell you how to make the online registration form on the site convenient and less time-consuming to fill out so that it does not annoy potential customers. Let s take a look at a few good examples from the web.
The note is a translation of this article plus we added a couple of details. Compared to login forms, there are many more different nuances to be guided by.
1. Pay attention to safety issues
People want to know that their personal data is protected. If you are not ready to provide privacy to your subscribers, then sooner or later they will turn their backs on you. When creating a registration form, think about how the user will perceive it. Often he simply does not understand why you needed all this information, and this misunderstanding scares him away.
An illustrative example is registration in the Claritymoney service. In it you will see the now popular checkbox “I am not a robot”, demonstrating that the whole process is reliably protected. Why is this a good decision? – Numerous studies have shown the negative effect of using CAPTCHA on conversions, since a person has to put in extra effort. Clicking on the checkbox is not difficult, plus it makes the site visitor feel completely safe.
A good implementation can be found in the Mint.com project. There is a lock-shaped icon on the “Sign Up” button – this makes the user understand that the whole further process is reliably protected.
After clicking on the button, you will be taken to a page where you will be asked to indicate your e-mail (note that you do not need to write your first and last name), phone number (optional) and password. After that, you just have to click on the “Create an account” button with the image of the same lock. By the way, at the bottom of the page you will find links to the company s security policy – this is not a superfluous thing.
2. The user needs explanations
Another way to make the registration form more “friendly” towards visitors is to clearly explain to them why you are asking for certain data. This is important because in most cases people simply do not understand why you need their personal information. It would be great if you bother a little to clarify this, say, somewhere near the input fields.
A separate story concerns passwords. The Github resource immediately suggests which characters should be contained in it – the corresponding rules are placed just below the field to be filled in. Remember how many times you came up with and entered data on various sites, after which you received a system warning about the inadmissibility of the selected combination. This is very annoying.
Some services have gone even further in terms of usability – they offer beautiful meters of password strength and a built-in notification system that the selected login is already taken by another person. Moreover, the user receives all this information even before clicking on the “Register” button. And do not ask for password confirmation again – this is the last century!
Another good example of all of the above is the popular web project Dropbox, where the entire account creation process takes less than a minute.
3. Don t need many fields
The motto “less is better” applies in our case as well. The number of fields to fill in directly affects the potential conversion.
Take the Ebay system. There, the online registration form is quite simple, given that it is the largest online trading platform where serious financial transactions take place. Here you will not even be asked to come up with a login!
Pay attention to the icons on the right – these are additional chips that help find answers to popular questions. Very convenient, practical and non-distracting.
4. Use social chips
Very often, to simplify the process, it is proposed to use e-mail as a login, but an even more interesting option from the point of view of UI / UX design is the ability to register and log into an account through accounts in social networks. This will allow you to log in to the site with just one click, and the user will not need to store dozens of passwords.
With this approach, the system itself collects all the necessary information. Since many are confused by the issue of privacy and security of personal data, it is recommended to offer this option in conjunction with other, more traditional, methods.
The second useful feature is the so-called “social proof”. It is often found in the development of a landing page where it is important to reinforce the significance of a particular product. In online registration forms, you can add reviews about your product, thereby showing that many people have already connected and are using it successfully. Additionally, in the example above, there is an icon for launching a web chat with technical support – as in the case of Ebay, it demonstrates the care of users.
Total. We hope the 4 tips above will help you make the registration form on the site even better. In this matter, it is recommended to take care of your visitors – try to simplify their work as much as possible, as well as provide tips and assistance if necessary. It s also a good idea to spy on and borrow successful implementations from the best services in the niche.
Perhaps you have more thoughts on the topic of the post? – share them below. Have you already implemented any of these methods?
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