The usability of bingo sign-ups

Any user of Gala, Jackpotjoy or tombola have one goal; to play online bingo and the only thing standing in their way is a sign-up form. So who’s getting it right?

Minimising the number of fields within the sign-up form doesn’t necessarily mean it will be a better experience for the end user. However, consideration should be given to the amount of interaction points each data input field requires. A good example is Gala’s sign-up process which includes 18 input fields with a total of 38 interaction points.

By comparison, tombola seems to have adopted a similar process, but with an increase in two additional data input fields, which requires less interaction to complete the sign-up process. This suggests a better user experience because it only requires 25 interaction points from 20 input points. Tombola requires less interaction to complete the sign-up process resulting in a better overall sign-up experience in our opinion.

Comparing Gala and tombola to that of Jackpotjoy, they have opted to split their sign-up form into three steps. This helps with the cognitive load on a user’s brain, instead of being presented with a large form and lots of information to digest.

However, Jackpotjoy has added additional fields in the sign-up form, which appear to be marketing led and not necessarily compulsory to the sign-up or validation process, which increases the number of input fields and the level of interaction.

When presented with a sign-up form, clear instructions of what information is required are vital. Labels are a good way to tell the user the purpose of the input field, while making the form more accessible.

Excluding labels from your form can save significant screen space when you are designing for smaller mediums such as mobile. Unfortunately this approach is somewhat flawed because it provides the user with a lack of context.

Gala, tombola and Jackpotjoy all display labels that give the user context within their sign-up process. Tombola has chosen to display their labels inline of the input. This transitions on interaction to the right hand side of the field while still providing the user with the supporting information they require. This also saves valuable on screen “real estate”.

While all three bingo brands adhere to best practices by providing their users with supporting context, Gala has duplicated their form labels and placeholder copy. This feels somewhat counter-intuitive to what the user would expect.

Real-time validation

There is nothing worse than filling out a form and getting to the end of the process, then realising you have multiple errors that need fixing. Immediately informing the user of what data is required can significantly improve the user’s experience.

Looking at Gala and tombola’s approach, both have adopted a two-step validation process on the first and last name fields. Jackpotjoy’s UX is somewhat different and less explicit in comparison to Gala and tombola.

UX industry expert Nielsen Norman Group recommends passwords are always visible on mobile. “When people can see what passwords they type, they make fewer mistakes and they can review their password once entered.”

Out of all three bingo brands only Gala gives their users the ability to mask their password. By applying a tiny change to the behaviour of this approach would adhere to best practices.

When requesting information from a user, it’s vital you assist them through the journey and provide the right indicators. Give people examples of how the data needs to be entered so you can ensure the information you collect is correct.

James Grundy is the head of UX for the leading online bingo reviews site, WhichBingo. With over 12 years of experience in the digital world, Grundy is responsible for researching and ensuring the needs of the users are met.