No one likes a 404 page, but it happens that links might go bad over time and visitors are soon lost.
Good news is that with some small UX tricks on error pages, you can actually increase conversions and boost revenue, while transforming users frustration into an opportunity to drive them in the right direction.
- Make users feel comfortable with the page. Put some playful graphics and keep an aestethic consistency with the rest of the website, this surely helps to eliminate that overwhelming sense of warning!
- Explain the error message. Clearly explain what went wrong with the page and why, then invite users to proceed with the navigation.
- Include key links. Lead your users into a working page of the website or back to the latest page visited, instead of letting them just leave the page. The use of calls to action can be a nice idea as well, for example with a signup button, search or contact forms.
