OpenSea UX Teardown: 3 Key Takeaways

Understanding Non-Fungible Tokens (NFTs)

NFTs, or non-fungible tokens, represent distinct digital assets. These can encompass a wide range of items, including digital artwork, musical pieces, or even social media posts.

These unique tokens are securely recorded on a blockchain, ensuring their authenticity and ownership.

OpenSea's Market Position and Funding

Currently, OpenSea stands as the leading NFT marketplace. The platform achieved a valuation of $1.5 billion earlier in the year.

Significant investment has been secured from prominent figures and firms, such as Andreessen Horowitz, Kevin Durant, and Ashton Kutcher.

Evaluating the User Experience on OpenSea

However, questions remain regarding the actual user experience offered by OpenSea for both creators and sellers. UX analyst Peter Ramsey undertook a project to assess this.

Over several weeks, Ramsey engaged in the process of creating and selling NFTs on the platform. His conclusion? Substantial improvements are needed.

Deeper Insights and UX Improvements

A more comprehensive discussion of these findings is available in an exclusive Extra Crunch feature.

This detailed conversation, hosted on Built for Mars, aims to connect OpenSea’s shortcomings with actionable strategies for enhancing product UX.

The goal is to provide a framework for making impactful changes to user experiences within the NFT space.

Understanding Actionable Routes

The idea of an actionable route, though potentially known by a different term, fundamentally represents the most logical subsequent action a user might take at any given moment. Consider, for instance, concluding a program on Netflix; continuing to the subsequent episode or selecting an entirely new show both qualify as actionable routes.

From a design perspective, focus should be directed towards the prevalent and generally favored actionable routes. While a user might opt to replay an episode at an accelerated pace, the infrequent nature of this choice suggests it shouldn't be prioritized.

Applicability Across Industries

This concept, as illustrated through a case study involving the creation of a collection on OpenSea, possesses universal relevance across all products and services.

Consider a business operating an e-scooter service. What action is a user most likely to pursue immediately following a ride? Similarly, for a new payments platform, what are the most probable user actions after completing a transaction?

Avoiding Common Pitfalls

Frequently, businesses default to prompting users to share content on social media or submit reviews on platforms like the iTunes store. While these actions may be appropriate in certain contexts, they shouldn't be the sole actionable routes considered.

For example, after a user's initial ride in an unfamiliar city, they might appreciate viewing a map of their route or gaining information regarding scooter reservation options for future use – perhaps to secure a scooter while dining.

Identifying Key User Actions

• What does the user need to accomplish immediately after their primary task?
• What information would be most valuable to them at that moment?
• Are there preventative measures they might want to take?

Prioritizing these likely actions will lead to a more intuitive and satisfying user experience.

The Illusion of Multitasking

Research consistently demonstrates that attempting to multitask elevates stress levels and diminishes overall productivity. Despite this established evidence, a common belief persists that individuals can effectively handle multiple tasks concurrently.

A contributing factor to this misconception may lie in the imprecise definition of "multitasking" itself. It's crucial to understand the underlying mechanisms at play.

In reality, when using a computer, true simultaneous execution of two tasks is limited by the single cursor. Therefore, the terms "task switching" and "multitasking" are often used interchangeably in this context.

However, the act of switching between tasks inherently incurs a cognitive cost. This penalty arises from the mental effort required to re-engage with each task.

A frequent misunderstanding centers on the nature of multitasking. It isn’t simply about performing multiple actions at the same time, but rather the cognitive load associated with considering multiple tasks.

This is where many products encounter difficulties with subtasks. For instance, platforms like OpenSea have faced challenges in seamlessly transitioning users between different actions.

Poor management of these transitions can lead to a frustrating user experience. Effective design requires anticipating and mitigating the cognitive burden of task switching.

Consider the example of invoice creation within an accountancy tool. A user might initiate invoice creation, then need to modify the invoice template mid-process.

Upon completing the template customization, the tool must efficiently return the user to the original task of sending the invoice. This necessitates a robust context buffer to minimize disruption.

Without such a buffer, the user experiences cognitive friction, hindering efficiency and potentially increasing errors. Prioritizing smooth task transitions is vital for optimal user performance.

Automatic Data Preservation

A critical element in effectively handling transitions between different parts of a task is guaranteeing that user progress isn't lost. Re-entry of information should always be avoided. Implementing autosaving is frequently the solution to this challenge.

Another prevalent situation where automatic saving proves exceptionally beneficial is when users encounter disruptions in their workflow. Not every error can be anticipated, and creating informative error messages for every possibility isn't practical. However, autosaving can function as a safety net for user experience.

A frequent misunderstanding exists regarding the utility of autosaving; it's often believed to be valuable only during extended input processes, such as forms containing numerous fields.

This assumption is inaccurate, and it’s often advised that products incorporate autosaving even with minimal input requirements. The frustration of re-entering data is universal, irrespective of the number of fields involved.

However, certain exceptions do apply, notably fields designated for sensitive data like credit card details and passwords.

Consider the impact of unexpected browser closures or system failures; autosaving mitigates data loss in these scenarios.

Benefits of Autosaving

• Reduced user frustration.
• Improved task completion rates.
• Enhanced user experience.
• Protection against data loss.

Implementing autosaving demonstrates a commitment to user-centric design and can significantly improve overall product usability.