On-Page Elements Rule: Top Design, User Experience & Conversions Columns Of 2015

You can spend millions on paid media or search engine optimization, but if your website and landing pages aren’t up to snuff, you might as well be throwing that investment away. These critical on-page elements were addressed by Marketing Land’s contributing experts on user experience (UX) and conversion optimization in 2015, and their advice will be valuable in 2016 and in years to come.

Shari Thurow’s columns on information architecture and website taxonomy — both addressing fundamental issues of web design — were the two most popular columns in this category this year. Articles covering the psychological principles that encourage user conversion also attracted lots of readers in 2015. Read on for the 10 most highly-trafficked columns of the year in this important category.

1. Redesigning Or Creating A Website? Here’s Why Information Architecture Should Be Priority #1 by Shari Thurow, published on 2/13/15.
   Social activity: Facebook 223, Google+ 98, LinkedIn 325
2. Website Taxonomy Guidelines And Tips: How Best To Organize Your Site by Shari Thurow, published on 5/8/15.
   Social activity: Facebook 206, Google+ 0, LinkedIn 183
3. 9 Ways To Use Urgency Psychology To Improve Conversions by Neil Patel, published on 1/9/15.
   Social activity: Facebook 273, Google+ 0, LinkedIn 258
4. 8 Ways Your Home Page Is Like A Multiple Choice Test by Brian Massey, published on 1/8/15.
   Social activity: Facebook 219, Google+ 275, LinkedIn 188
5. 6 Neuromarketing Principles That Are Always True by Jeremy Smith, published on 8/6/15.
   Social activity: Facebook 164, Google+ 52, LinkedIn 407
6. The Psychology Behind Asking Users For Their Email Address by Jeremy Smith, published on 3/19/15.
   Social activity: Facebook 176, Google+ 0, LinkedIn 241
7. Want To Win Fights With Your Web Designer? Use These CRO Tactics by Jeremy Smith, published on 5/14/15.
   Social activity: Facebook 124, Google+ 46, LinkedIn 121
8. 6 Information Architecture Facts Every Business Should Know by Shari Thurow, published on 3/13/15.
   Social activity: Facebook 121, Google+ 0, LinkedIn 218
9. Infinite Scroll: Is It Right For Your Site? by Kristine Schachinger, published on 4/17/15.
   Social activity: Facebook 226, Google+ 72, LinkedIn 168
10. Measuring Accessibility In The User Experience (UX) And The Searcher Experience by Shari Thurow, published on 8/28/15.
    Social activity: Facebook 120, Google+ 0, LinkedIn 228

Methodology: Columns published in 2015 are ranked in order of pageviews measured by Google Analytics. Data includes all columns published through November 30, 2015. Social data provided by SharedCount. 

About The Author

Pamela Parker

Pamela Parker is Research Director at Third Door Media's Content Studio, where she produces MarTech Intelligence Reports and other in-depth content for digital marketers in conjunction with Search Engine Land and MarTech. Prior to taking on this role at TDM, she served as Content Manager, Senior Editor and Executive Features Editor. Parker is a well-respected authority on digital marketing, having reported and written on the subject since its beginning. She's a former managing editor of ClickZ and has also worked on the business side helping independent publishers monetize their sites at Federated Media Publishing. Parker earned a master's degree in journalism from Columbia University.