23 Actionable Lessons from Eye-Tracking Studies [Web Design]

February 23, 2008

In the web design world, eye tracking studies are hugely beneficial, especially for clients that aren’t quite sure what they want.

VirtualHosting.com has but together a nice list of 23 things we can learn from eye tracking. I am going to glean over them here, but for more check out their site.

  1. Text attracts attention before graphics. (This is usually surprising to customers)
  2. Initial eye movement focuses on the upper left corner of the page.
  3. Users initially look at the top left and upper portion of the page before moving down and to the right. Users scan in the shape of an ‘F’
  4. Readers ignore banners.
  5. Fancy formatting and fonts are ignored.
  6. Show numbers and numerals.
  7. Type size influences viewing behavior.
  8. Users only look at a subheadline if it interests them.
  9. People generally scan lower portions of pages.
  10. Shorter paragraphs perform better than long ones.
  11. One column formats perform better in eye fixation than multi-column formats.
  12. Ads in the top and left portions of a page will receive the more eye fixation.
  13. Ads placed next to the best content are seen more often.
  14. Text ads were viewed most intently of all types tested.
  15. Bigger images get more attention.
  16. clean, clear faces in images attract more eye fixation.
  17. Headings draw the eye.
  18. Users spend a lot of time looking at buttons and menus.
  19. Lists hold reader attention longer.
  20. Large blocks of text are avoided.
  21. Formatting can draw attention.
  22. White space is good.
  23. Navigation tools work better when placed at the top of the page.

Posted by Jason | Filed Under Web Design 

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