Strive for "Subliminal Clarity" in Web Design

A website designed using our 'Subliminal Clarity' concept will allow a user to know exactly where they are, what to do next, with the minimum of words.

Not just another buzzword for management types to spout out in meetings to confuse their colleagues.  'Subliminal Clarity' is the phrase behind a design concept that E-CC introduced around 2007. Back then the great intuition and ease of use associated with Web 2.0 was still a relatively new idea used only by a few elite websites.

In short, a website application designed around the 'Subliminal Clarity' concept will allow a user to know exactly where they are, what to do next, with as little textual instructions as possible cluttering up the screen. Of course, textual help can usually be hidden behind mouse-over icons if need be. This allows a website to clearly show just the products or features to their best advantage without making the screen too busy.  We are now actively promoting and utilising this design concept for UK telecoms company Vodafone, wishing to radically simplify their VPN-provisioning web applications.

Most web designers would agree that web users are a fickle bunch - losing interest in long lines of text faster than a cat in a cold bath. Keeping users' attention in a website is just not the same as for readers of a magazine. On the Web, less is definitely more - so we use less words, more pictures & meaningful icons to create a user experience that is both fluid and intuitive.

Somebody once said a picture can paint a thousand words - so that has to be something definitely worth tapping into!

May 2009