The psychology of website navigation

It can be very easy to overlook your website navigation. After all, you know exactly how to get to the important pages on your website so why shouldn't this be obvious for your website visitors too? But you have to put yourself in your customers shoes, and sadly, your customers don't know your business like you do.

In my past experience as a UX researcher, I’ve seen how different people can group information. I once ran a seemingly simple task of getting users to sort animals (dogs, cats, dolphins, monkeys, etc.) to demonstrate how this can lead to vastly different results depending on who’s doing the sorting. Some people grouped animals by how many legs they have, others by whether they’re pets or wild, and some by where they live (land vs. water). And this just shows how much human psychology and behaviour play a role in how we navigate through things—especially websites.

The good news is that you can design your website to guide visitors naturally toward taking action (like booking a service or buying a product) by understanding a bit of psychology and applying it to your navigation. Let’s dive in.

1. Keep your navigation simple and clear

First things first: simplicity is key. Overcomplicating your website’s navigation is one of the fastest ways to frustrate users and make them bounce. The goal is to make it as easy as possible for visitors to find what they’re looking for with minimal effort.

How to Do This:

• Use clear, straightforward labels. Think “Services,” “About,” “Contact” instead of anything too creative (sadly your nav isn't the time to push your unique tone of voice).

• Limit the number of menu items. Too many choices can overwhelm visitors. Stick to the essentials.

I can’t tell you how many times I’ve worked with clients who wanted to get fancy with their navigation, only for it to backfire. I remember one client who wanted a “We change your world" page as part of their site (they were selling coaching services). But after testing with a few users, we found it was too vague and people didn’t know what it meant. We ended up changing it to "“What we do". I'm the first to admit this sounds significantly more boring, but boring won and the amount of clicks into this page, and thus the sites conversion, improved.

2. The power of visual hierarchy

Humans are naturally wired to follow visual cues. We tend to focus on things that stand out first. This concept, known as visual hierarchy, can be super helpful when designing your website navigation.

How to Use This:

• Make your main navigation items stand out. Use bold fonts, larger size, or a different colour to highlight the most important sections.

• If you have subcategories (like “Services” > “Consulting” or “Services” > “Web Design”), make sure they’re secondary in visual weight. They should be easy to find but not overshadow the primary categories.

3. Think like your users (not like a business owner)

One of the biggest mistakes I see is businesses designing their websites with their own needs in mind, rather than the needs of their visitors. And whilst they're both important, user needs beat business needs every time.

When you’re creating a website, it’s easy to think about how you want to organise things. But how you group information or categorise services may not make sense to your users.

How to Fix This:

• Conduct user testing. Even if it’s just a few friends or family members, ask them to navigate your site and see if they can find what they’re looking for. And then actually act on this feedback. If they can't find your services, then it's likely your target customer can't either.

• Use language that your customers would use, not industry jargon. If you’re a personal trainer, don’t label your services as “physical fitness programs.” Instead, go with something simpler like “Personal Training” or “Online Coaching.”

I’ll be honest—I didn’t always do this. When I first started out, I used to think I knew exactly how my users would behave. But once I tested things and listened to feedback, I realised how easy it is to get it wrong. Simple testing can save you a lot of frustration down the road.

4. Keep groupings logical

As I mentioned earlier, people categorise things differently. But when it comes to website navigation, you’ve got to make sure your categories make sense. If you group information in a way that’s confusing or feels random, visitors will hesitate to take action.

How to Group Information:

• Keep categories logical. For example, if you offer services in different industries (like marketing and design), make sure each service has its own page. Then, organise them under clear categories like “Our Services” > “Digital Marketing” and “Our Services” > “Web Design.”

• Avoid nesting too many categories under each other. If you have more than three or four subcategories, it’s a good sign that your navigation is becoming too complex.

5. The importance of a call to action (CTA)

At the end of the day, your navigation should lead users toward a clear action. You want them to book a call, buy a service, or contact you for more info. If your navigation doesn’t highlight this, you’re missing out.

How to Do It:

• Include a CTA button in your navigation or header. It could say something like “Book a Consultation” or “Get Started Today.”

• Make it stand out by using a contrasting colour or larger font.

When I worked with a client who was offering self-build mortgage advice and services, we added a bright “Book FREE Consultation” button in the top navigation. The result? Their conversion rate shot up, simply because the CTA was clear, accessible, and above the fold (meaning it was visible without scrolling).

In conclusion: Design your website navigation for action, not just aesthetics

Landing on a website and instantly feeling lost is frustrating, and as a business owner you don't want your website to feel like that. If your navigation doesn't make sense or is too complicated then you're going to lose visitors AND sales.

The psychology of website navigation is all about making it easy for visitors to find what they need and take the next step in their journey. The simpler, clearer, and more intuitive your navigation is, the more likely your visitors will convert into customers.

And the most important takeaway: Your website navigation is for your customers, not you.

Looking for help with your website design? Check out our Website Design Service to see what we can do for you!