About the Style
Design
Webinar
in web-design
1 December at 8:00 PM
MINIMALISM
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UX RESEARCH
Project Summary
The website focuses on minimalism: a gallery of minimalist art, lectures, and educational content about minimalism as a lifestyle. The product’s goal is to inform, inspire, and convert visitors into lecture participants, subscribers, or exhibition attendees through a simple, aesthetically pleasing interface.
Research Goals
Objectives:
Assess how quickly visitors find information about lectures and register for them.
Identify key barriers in perceiving the visual style and navigation (impact of minimalist design on conversion).
Test the clarity of the lecture registration and newsletter subscription processes.
Formulate hypotheses and specific priority recommendations for UI, content, and products (gallery/lectures/articles).
Assess how quickly visitors find information about lectures and register for them.
Identify key barriers in perceiving the visual style and navigation (impact of minimalist design on conversion).
Test the clarity of the lecture registration and newsletter subscription processes.
Formulate hypotheses and specific priority recommendations for UI, content, and products (gallery/lectures/articles).
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Target Audience
Research Methods
Target Audience Segments:
- A. “Curious Beginner” — interested in aesthetics, reads articles, may attend a free lecture.
- B. “Practicing Enthusiast/Collector” — looks for exhibitions and high-quality visuals; may purchase tickets or subscriptions.
- C. “Professional / Lecturer” — seeks a platform and information about collaboration.
- Age 20–55
- Uses web/mobile browsers
- Has previously attended online lectures or visited art websites (or shown interest)
Competitive Analysis— 5–7 websites (museums, galleries, educational platforms) evaluated using Nielsen’s heuristics + visual tone (grid, white space, typography).
In-Depth Interviews— 10–12 users segmented into A/B/C groups.
Moderated Usability Testing of Prototype— 5–8 participants per iteration; scenarios: find a lecture, register, browse the gallery.
Empathy Mapping
Analytics & A/B Testing
In-Depth Interview
Tell us a bit about yourself: what do you do, and how do you spend your time online?
What do you understand by the term “minimalism”? (in art / in life)
Where do you usually look for lectures/educational content? What do you like or dislike about it?
Can you describe your ideal lecture page? Which elements should be included as a must-have?
What motivates you to register for an online lecture? (price, speaker, reviews, format)
How do you feel about clean, minimalist websites (little text, lots of white space)? Does it help or hinder you? Why?
Have there been instances when minimalist design made it difficult to understand what to do next? Can you give an example?.
On a mobile device, what is critical for you when registering for a lecture?
How important is the presence of photos/videos of works in the gallery?
What would you change on a typical lecture/gallery website to make registering easier?
What do you understand by the term “minimalism”? (in art / in life)
Where do you usually look for lectures/educational content? What do you like or dislike about it?
Can you describe your ideal lecture page? Which elements should be included as a must-have?
What motivates you to register for an online lecture? (price, speaker, reviews, format)
How do you feel about clean, minimalist websites (little text, lots of white space)? Does it help or hinder you? Why?
Have there been instances when minimalist design made it difficult to understand what to do next? Can you give an example?.
On a mobile device, what is critical for you when registering for a lecture?
How important is the presence of photos/videos of works in the gallery?
What would you change on a typical lecture/gallery website to make registering easier?
Conclusions from Competitor Analysis Using Nielsen’s Heuristics
Empathy Mapping
Competitors’ Strengths:
Simplicity and clean design (especially Minimalissimo).
Clear visual hierarchy and readable typography.
Well-structured articles and sections.
Main Weaknesses:
Insufficient user feedback on errors.
Navigation difficulties (especially on mobile devices).
Lack of personalization and quick actions (“find a lecture,” “subscribe”).
Occasionally text-heavy with few visual accents.
Simplicity and clean design (especially Minimalissimo).
Clear visual hierarchy and readable typography.
Well-structured articles and sections.
Main Weaknesses:
Insufficient user feedback on errors.
Navigation difficulties (especially on mobile devices).
Lack of personalization and quick actions (“find a lecture,” “subscribe”).
Occasionally text-heavy with few visual accents.
Minimalissimo— an online magazine about minimalist design and culture.
The Minimalists— an educational website about minimalism as a lifestyle.
Dezeen— a platform on contemporary design and architecture with minimalist elements.
The Minimalists— an educational website about minimalism as a lifestyle.
Dezeen— a platform on contemporary design and architecture with minimalist elements.
What They See:
Clean websites with white backgrounds and plenty of white space.
Confusing posters and lecture schedules on other sources.
On social media — attractive images, but without context.
Online platforms with too much information and advertising.
Clean websites with white backgrounds and plenty of white space.
Confusing posters and lecture schedules on other sources.
On social media — attractive images, but without context.
Online platforms with too much information and advertising.
What They Say and Do:
Says:“I want to learn to live more simply, but I don’t know where to start.”
Does:Googles “minimalism lecture,” visits museum websites, browses event listings.
Shares links with friends.
Likely to abandon if the registration process takes more than 2–3 steps.
Says:“I want to learn to live more simply, but I don’t know where to start.”
Does:Googles “minimalism lecture,” visits museum websites, browses event listings.
Shares links with friends.
Likely to abandon if the registration process takes more than 2–3 steps.
Pains:
- Difficult to quickly find the desired lecture.
- Too much distracting information on other websites.
- Unclear how the lecture is conducted (online/offline).
- Lack of trust in new platforms (who the speaker is, whether it’s worth the time).
Gains:
- Clean and user-friendly website with focus on important content.
- Ability to register for a lecture in 1–2 clicks.
- Inspiring visuals (large images, minimalist site style).
- Clear information: when, where, who the speaker is, and why attend.
What They Hear:
From friends: “Minimalism is about style and order.”
From bloggers: “It’s a trend” or “It’s a way to live more simply.”
From instructors: “Lectures are useful, but hard to find in a convenient format.”
From friends: “Minimalism is about style and order.”
From bloggers: “It’s a trend” or “It’s a way to live more simply.”
From instructors: “Lectures are useful, but hard to find in a convenient format.”
What They Think and Feel:
“Minimalism appeals to me, but I’m afraid it might be too complicated or expensive.”
Feels interest and inspiration when seeing aesthetic images.
Experiences mild frustration if they can’t quickly figure out how to register.
Thinks: “I want to understand what this will bring to my life.”
“Minimalism appeals to me, but I’m afraid it might be too complicated or expensive.”
Feels interest and inspiration when seeing aesthetic images.
Experiences mild frustration if they can’t quickly figure out how to register.
Thinks: “I want to understand what this will bring to my life.”
H1:If the CTA in the hero section is contrasting (yellow accent), then the conversion rate for registrations will increase by 15%.
H2:If the lecture card includes a “Why Attend” block (1 sentence), then the conversion rate will increase by 10%.
H3:If a lightbox with context is added in the gallery, time on page will increase, and engagement (share/save) will increase by 20%.
H2:If the lecture card includes a “Why Attend” block (1 sentence), then the conversion rate will increase by 10%.
H3:If a lightbox with context is added in the gallery, time on page will increase, and engagement (share/save) will increase by 20%.
Hypotheses for A/B Testing (with Success Criteria)
EXAMPLES OF MINIMALISM IN PHOTOGRAPHY
Minimalist-style design uses flat textures. The goal is to eliminate unnecessary details. Three-dimensional effects, gradients, and shadows are rarely used. In flat design, everything is reduced to a minimum — fonts, icons. It is both aesthetic and functional.
FLAT DESIGN AND TEXTURES
USE OF NEGATIVE SPACE
Photographs and illustrations are important elements of minimalist design. They can convey more thoughts and emotions than words. However, the images used must follow the principles of minimalism. If a photograph or illustration is overly saturated with details, the effect is lost.
PHOTOGRAPHS AND ILLUSTRATIONS
One of the key components of minimalist design is negative space — the empty, unoccupied space between elements on a page. It is used to focus users’ attention on the page’s content and to simplify content perception. It is often mistakenly assumed that negative space is simply a white background. But that’s not true. It is not always white — it can be any empty, solid-color background.
