How can you optimize web app navigation with click maps?

1 What are click maps?

Click maps are a form of heat map that reveals the distribution and intensity of clicks on your web app interface. These maps can be divided into four types: click maps, hover maps, scroll maps, and move maps. Click maps report the total number of clicks on each element, while hover maps show how long users linger over each element before clicking or moving away. Scroll maps provide insight into how far users scroll down your web app pages and where they stop or bounce. Move maps track how users move their mouse or cursor across your web app interface. To generate these click maps, you can use tools such as Google Analytics, Hotjar, Crazy Egg, or Mouseflow. You can also segment your click map data by different criteria for further analysis, such as device, browser, location, or time.

2 How to use click maps?

To use click maps effectively, you need to have a clear goal and a hypothesis for your web app navigation optimization. For instance, you may want to increase conversions, reduce bounce rate, or boost user satisfaction. Thus, based on your goal, you can formulate a hypothesis such as users being more likely to click on the call-to-action button if it is larger, brighter, or more prominent; or users being confused by the multiple navigation options and preferring a simpler or more consistent layout; or users being interested in the content below the fold and scrolling down if they see a hint or a teaser. After that, you can use click maps to test your hypothesis by comparing the data before and after making changes to your web app design. Moreover, click maps can be used to uncover unexpected insights or anomalies such as users clicking on elements that are not clickable due to a lack of clarity or feedback; users ignoring or skipping important elements due to a lack of relevance or motivation; and users clicking on elements that are hidden or hard to find due to a lack of visibility or accessibility.

4 Here’s what else to consider

This is a space to share examples, stories, or insights that don’t fit into any of the previous sections. What else would you like to add?