Reflection Point: Design Patterns and Flows — Guide your users by experience instead of navigation buttons.
As much as I hate doctor’s visit (who doesn’t), finding a doctor and booking an appointment had never been an easy task in America. Imagine you have a runny nose, an itchy rash, or devastating heartbreak, and you need to flip through a thousand-page Yellow Book from your insurance provider in order to find a neighborhood doctor and call for an appointment without knowing the doctor’s schedule or practical experience. It was like buying a car from Craigslist without seeing a photo of it. — This was my life before Zocdoc.
Ever since I discovered Zocdoc, finding and booking doctor’s appointment has never been easier. At the core of Zocdoc, it serves a simple yet indispensable purpose — to create a better healthcare experience for patients. Beginning with online/in-app appointment-booking, patients get to read reviews from other patients, learn about the doctor’s education, see what languages they speak, view open appointment times, book instantly and keep track of their medical calendar. Best of all, patients can complete those pesky waiting room forms online/in-app, just once, and Zocdoc will keep them forever.
The process of finding a doctor is relatively straightforward. As soon as I landed on the homepage, the most distinctive pattern I saw was the Search Bar. First, I entered my condition (itchy skin), and it instantly suggested that I might be looking for a dermatologist, thanks for the Autocomplete widget. Then I put in my zip code, insurance carrier and plan, and hit Search. Voila, I got to see all the in-network dermatologists and their open schedule in no time.
Dr. Catherine Ding seems to be the closest to where I live according to the map, but I wondered what her experience and reviews are before I make the final decision. So I clicked on her name, and it took me to her page. After reading a few positive reviews, I was assured that I want to make an appointment with her.
Thursday 4:25 pm looks good to me. I selected the time and it bright me to the sign-up/sign-in page. Next to the sign-up/sign-in form, it shows the booking information once again, so I can confirm the doctor and time are correct.
Once I sign-in, it’ll ask me to confirm my insurance and personal detail. If everything looks good, I just need to hit the “Book Appointment” button, and the appointment will show on my calendar, and a reminder message will be sent.
What makes the process so smooth and intuitive? I think the IA and UI are well integrated in this matter. Not only the site is filled with beautiful graphics in bold and vivid colors, but the use of parallax scrolling also increase engagement and adds a bit of playfulness. As a patient, the interface instantly brightens up my mood, makes me feel warm and inviting.
Can you imagine going to a website that has no visible menu, but knowing where you want to go? If you come to Zocdoc for the first time, you may want to find out what’s available and where to go. With the absence of navigation bars, it takes the user to look no further but focus on the search field. From there, it leads the users from page to page.
Without that pesky bar at the top of the landing page, it makes a platform to have a fully immersive brand design that caters directly to the user, which allows the site to create experiences. Instead of clicking a link and being taken to a whole new page, users can now have the opportunity to be more engaged with the brand without a second thought. Zocdoc isn’t getting rid of menus altogether. They are just hiding them until they are called for.
This technique is best used for websites that serve to begin a relationship with prospects and don’t need to house complex, substantial content or e-commerce. It’s hard to argue the importance of traditional navigation bars. Immediately when we start designing, we are taught to think of the sitemap and how everything is going to connect. However, if we spent that time thinking about what our audience wants and how to engage with them. It could possibly change the entire way we think about web design. Do you think the absence of navigation will become a new way of navigation in the world of web design? Let me know your thoughts in the comments.
