I recently had an emergency land in my inbox. A client needed their cookie notice pop-up updated to better reflect the data they capture. On the surface, it was a simple job. In reality, I found myself in the weeds scouring the ICO guidelines, the GDPR guidelines, and article upon article of best practice principles.
Just because a project is simple in design terms, doesn’t mean that the thought process is.
The existing cookie notice on the client’s website was not fit for purpose. A very basic message was accompanied by an uninspiring design that didn’t match the brand but was also easy to miss in its position at the bottom of the page.
I initially had 2 simple goals in mind. Improve the clarity, and align with the brand.
The key message gathered from the ICO’s guide to Cookies is:
“You must tell people if you set cookies, and clearly explain what the cookies do and why. You must also get the user’s consent. Consent must be actively and clearly given.”
This one sentence makes it clear that the original cookie notice pop-up on the client’s website doesn’t meet the requirements. It doesn’t clearly explain which cookies are being used and what user information is being gathered.
With this clear information in hand, I researched companies which have well-informed, clear cookie notices on their sites to inform my own design.
A stand-out example I found was from New Balance.
The creative used by New Balance is sleek, clean, and in keeping with the overall visual language of the site. The most impressive aspect of their cookie notice, however, lies with the language choice.
“The choice is yours” is an impressively strong headline. It allows a feeling of control and trust to users who may otherwise be wary of technical jargon.
Beyond this, their cookie selection screen explains their purpose in plain English that any non-technically minded person could understand.
By drawing inspiration from my research, I have implemented a "Let me choose" call-to-action (CTA) that promotes a sense of trust for the user.
To encourage positive action, the initial "That's OK" CTA is highlighted in green. While the outlined "Let me choose" serves as a secondary CTA.
In order to provide clarity for users, cookie selections have been grouped based on their functions, with essential cookies being non-negotiable for proper website functionality.
Furthermore, for those interested in specifics of how their data is being used, a "More" toggle has been included to provide further detailed information.
And finally, for those who prefer a quick and easy option, an "Accept all" CTA has been made available.
Equally as important, the design language of this pop-up follows the style used across the client’s entire site and sits comfortably amongst other homepage assets. The bold sans-serif of the headlines, and green accenting follow suit with all other CTA’s across the site, and extends to the client's scial media profiles.
As a cookie notice is one of the first things a new user sees upon visiting a site for the first time, it’s important that the brand style is reflected from the start.
This redesigned creative enforces the styling used throughout the rest of the site, and introduces users to the friendly, approachable language used by the brand.
Remember; a happy end-user is the most important metric for any client to achieve.
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