Here are our top 5 mistakes to avoid when you're picking iconography for your business’s web and mobile sites.
1. Don't be obtuse
Your icons need to be quickly and easily understood.
All too often, they're treated like bad stock photos – a nice picture to fill in the space, tangibly related to whatever’s nearby.
But really, icons should be treated like great ad copy, and focus on saying the most important thing quickly and in a really easy-to-digest way.
2. Don't be superfluous
While iconography should be part of your branding and website (
especially for responsive sites!) they shouldn’t be your
entire brand and website.
Icons are a design strut: they’re great at supporting other design and copy, but they’re never really the star of the show.
There’s no need to have a different icon for every single service or product you offer. It quickly overloads your visitors and they lose all meaning as one icon bleeds quietly into the next.
A few icons for a few major buckets is all you need.
3. Avoid the abstract
Of course, everything on the web is going to be a little abstract. But it’s a sliding scale, and companies run into trouble when they try to use icons to represent vague and ill-defined concepts.
Sure, it can go well, but your iconography is best when it’s grounded in something your users instantly recognize or know.
For example, say you're a sandwich company. Better to make an icon of your finished product (the sandwich) than the process of making one.
4. Icons are not copy
Icons, however wonderful, are not actually copy, and do not replace copy. They’re great at providing road markers of what a user is looking at, and are great at helping clarify what copy is going to say before the user reads it.
But make no mistake – your customers didn't buy your product or service because of great icons. They probably purchased because at some point your copy resonated with them.
Designers and copywriters should be working closely together, so that the iconography and copy are one cohesive package.
5. Don't be (too) clever
Every company should be clever. But more importantly,
every company should be clear and concise in their messaging, and this includes iconography.
Too many try to be clever rather than clear. Never make the mistake of forcing your users to work to understand your brand, your company, your product, or your service.
Iconography should be crystal clear, all the time.
If you’re struggling to develop amazing and unique icons, then stick to the tried and true. Because at the end of the day, clarity trumps clever every time.
Clear iconography is an easy way to ice your amazing website/app and can go a long way towards helping you provide a superb user experience.
Just follow these simple guidelines and your website is sure to shine.
