The role of User Experience in mobile applications is essential to provide users with an optimal usability. A good UX does not only impact the world of social media and entertainment, where intuitive platforms such as TikTok are tremendously growing: it is crucial in more institutional areas, such as publishing and news apps.
Nowadays, usability features such as speed, customization, different and interactive formats to better enjoy the content – videos, reels, gifs – cannot be ignored if you want to take your user experience to a higher level. Reading news and information content from the publishing world might sound like an “analog” activity, but a positive experience can turn readers into loyal habitues, making them willing to seek out and even pay for new value-added services.
News publishing and apps are facing a unique challenge in the digital age, where the amount of information available is overwhelming. People need quick and efficient access to relevant, reliable and up-to-date news.
6 fundamental UX features for publishing Apps
A good UX can immediately simplify the entire process of searching, reading and sharing news.
Here are some essential features News Applications need:
- Intuitive Navigation – A well-designed UX lets users easily find their way around the app. An intuitive interface, with a clear and organized menu, allows readers to effortlessly find what they are looking for. A consistent, clean layout also helps them focus on the key elements;
- Content Personalization – News apps can leverage UX to deliver personalized content to users. Thanks to intelligent algorithms and data collection, the app show the most relevant news for each person, improving the overall experience and keeping users engaged over time;
- Fast Load Time – Good UX also means fast load times. Nowadays people are impatient, and if an app takes too long to load, they may abandon it. Optimized design and image compression can help reduce loading times and avoid distractions;
- Readability and accessibility – In publishing and news apps, clarity is key. A well-designed UX ensures that texts are easy to read, with appropriate fonts, sizes and spacing. In addition, applications should be accessible to all users, providing options to enlarge text, use high-visibility colors and support assistive technologies.
- Easy sharing and Interaction – A crucial feature of news apps is the possibility to share interesting articles with others. An effective UX simplifies this interaction by a quick and direct way to share news on social media platforms, email and such.
- Appropriate Feedback – An app that provides users with reliable feedback, – such as acknowledging their actions and error reports – helps enhance people’s confidence in using the app, while it lets developers continually improve the application itself.
A few examples of News Apps enhanced by a good UX
One significant fact is that the best examples of news and editorial content applications with a good UX are precisely the major international publishers and newspapers: great Apps made by globally recognized brands.
As a matter of fact, they are widely appreciated for their ease of use, the customization and the engaging design: all features that make reading the news an enjoyable, enriching and immediate experience.
Here are three giants from the publishing world that have great apps:
- The New York Times is an example of a well-known news organization that offers a solid UX through their app. It features a clean and well-organized layout, with easy navigation among articles and different sections. Images and videos nicely integrated in the news makes the reading experience even more engaging. Furthermore, it provides a wide range of customization options for users, allowing them to select their favorite topics and interest;
- BBC News is another news app with good UX. The interface is simple and straightforward, to easily explore the latest news. The app also offers a customizable notifications feature to keep users updated on the most relevant information;
- The Guardian is a major British news organization, and their app offers a consistent and pleasant UX. The app features a clean layout with a clear navigation bar that allows users to easily navigate through different news sections and categories. Additionally, the app provides a wealth of multimedia content to enrich your reading experience.
