What did we do?
As part of our project, we conducted a comprehensive redesign of the official NudgeNight website and empirically examined how targeted design changes affect the attention, orientation, and usage behavior of visitors. Using eye-tracking and a standardized user survey, we not only captured which content is actually perceived – but also how users experience the website as a whole.
What is it about?
Websites are far more than digital business cards. They are communication tools that convey information, provide orientation, and actively guide users through content. How well this succeeds depends largely on design decisions – colors, typography, structure, and visual hierarchy all influence what is perceived, what is retained, and how visitors navigate a page. Most of these processes occur unconsciously, often within milliseconds.
What was our goal?
The aim of the project was to create a website that not only convinces aesthetically, but above all functions effectively. Concretely, this meant: greater usability, clearer orientation, and a more interactive design that invites visitors to engage more deeply with the content on nudging and behavioral economics. Good design should actively support user behavior – not merely accompany it.
What was not working?
Before redesigning, it was first necessary to understand where the existing website reached its limits. The analysis revealed three central problem areas:
- Lack of orientation: Users had difficulty finding relevant content quickly. The existing page structure offered little visual guidance and made intuitive navigation difficult.
- Low interactivity: The site offered few opportunities for active engagement with the content, which significantly limited the time visitors spent on the page and their overall engagement.
- Unclear content priority: Key information on nudging and behavioral economics was lost within the existing layout and frequently went unnoticed by users.
Who did we do this for?
The NudgeNight addresses a broad and diverse audience: students, professionals from business and academia, as well as anyone with an interest in nudging and behavioral economics. Accordingly, expectations of the website vary considerably – from quick information retrieval to a deeper exploration of the subject matter. Meeting this demand was a central objective of the redesign.
What added value does the redesign create?
The redesign produces a website that not only informs visitors, but actively invites them to engage with the content. A clearer structure, targeted visual guidance, and interactive elements ensure that topics such as nudging and behavioral economics become more accessible and are retained more effectively. The design decisions made are not based on assumptions, but on measurable user behavior – and therefore on a solid empirical foundation. A detailed insight into our findings will be presented at the NudgeNight, before the redesigned website is officially launched.
