With so many websites adopting an innovative and slick scroll style, infinite scrolling has grown to be one of the most popular web design trends. You might be wondering if this is a feature that could benefit your business as well.
However, keep in mind that while limitless scrolling has proven to be incredibly engaging for certain websites, providing new and creative possibilities, it has backfired for others, leading to serious navigational and disorientation concerns.
Infinite Scrolling: What Is It?
With an infinite scrolling feature, users can continue scrolling down a single page of your website indefinitely without having to select a different page from a menu. The users never reach the bottom because there is no end to this single page in sight. Instead of having to wait for a new page to load each time, which would waste their time, customers may view all of your information at once. They might even become uninterested and stop visiting the website entirely.
With remarkable popularity, social media has adopted limitless scrolling. Social media platforms like Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest, and Instagram are demonstrating how infinite scrolling can be used profitably and to great effect, if done so for the right reasons, with the appropriate methods, and with the right audience. In the end, you must decide whether limitless scrolling is appropriate for you in order to give your visitors a top-notch user experience. You must consider both the objectives of your company and the expectations of your customers in order to make this determination.
What Do You Want Your Website to Achieve?
Determine the website’s objective for your business in a minute. Is it a newspaper or an online magazine? If so, what kind? Is it content-focused, containing a wealth of knowledge and articles of comparable value that should be communicated as effectively and engagingly as possible? In that case, infinite scrolling may be a wise choice. By implementing this feature, you’ll be able to deliver your posts to readers in a way that’s visually appealing and keeps them interested for a while.
However, infinite scrolling might be a major oversight if you run an e-commerce website. As there is no obvious structure for your customers to be able to find your products and services in an easy and straightforward way, this feature doesn’t work well for this type of business. Navigational problems and disorientation can be very frustrating.
What Expectations Do Your Users Have?
Define your audience with care. Are your visitors using their smartphones and tablets to access the information you have to offer? Do they have touch-screen mobile devices? Do they desire an intense visual experience? The best option is then infinite scrolling. It can free your visitors from the hassle of having to try and tap little links here and there on their small screen and wait for a new page to load every time, allowing you to present your content in a convenient and appealing way. Additionally, infinite scrolling will present your content in a pleasing manner if it contains a lot of images and is targeted at a visually inclined audience. For inspiration, check out Instagram and Pinterest.
But what happens if your website’s visitors aren’t looking for inspiration or information? What if they arrive wanting to purchase your goods or use your services rather than coming to connect with friends or stay current? In that case, you need a footer because, in most cases, your visitors won’t ever get to it due to infinite scrolling. Infinite scrolling may not only make their experience more difficult, but it may also make them completely turn away from your business if your users are searching for links to things like FAQs, Shipping Information, Track Your Order, or Contact Us. Infinite scrolling is not advised because it would feel awkward and confusing to your customers, who prefer a clear structure and simple navigation.
Conclusion
The endless scrolling phenomenon can be engaging, imaginative, and a lot of fun. But keep in mind that not everyone will enjoy it before you add it to your website. Identify the nature of your business and the purpose of your website. Consider the demands and expectations of your users. In the end, infinite scrolling might turn out to be the best thing that has ever happened to your website, or it might turn out to be a huge error.
Knowband, a top developer of eCommerce plugins, has a module called “infinite scrolling.” It will show all of the content on one page, loading it as the user scrolls down the page. To test the demo or like to know more about the endless scrolling module, feel free to drop an email at [email protected]
