Leaving The Fold Behind

“Keep it above the fold.”

Rarely is this something a client would say to us, but that’s often exactly what they mean even if they aren’t aware. The term “above the fold” has long been used as a reference from the newspaper industry that distinguishes the content on the upper half of the page. More recently, the term has been applied to the web when referring to portions of a page that are visible without scrolling. (Also sometimes referred to as “above the crease” or “above the scroll”).

Many times clients think it’s a good idea to cram as much as humanly possible into the top of the page, fearing users won’t see their content otherwise. This creates a scenario that most often clutters and ruins a well thought out design. On the web, clutter causes confusion and confusion leads to wounded retinas and mass exodus.

So where is the fold, exactly? That’s the $100k question that is going to be too difficult for you to answer about 98% of the time. Is the user going to be viewing your site on a smart phone, a tablet, a netbook, a laptop or a workstation? And at what resolution? Most likely its going to be all of these devices, and in a wide variety of resolutions. What about different browsers / view ports or add-ons that take up screen real estate? Guess what? Tallying all of those variables up is going to leave you with more folds to account for than an origami Statue of Liberty. It doesn’t matter! Good design can trump all, and unless you are targeting a specific device with extraordinarily well defined requirements, you should not be inflicting havoc on your design just to bump everything up to the top of the page. In the end, you’re just hurting yourself.

Each and every site we design at Threshold has different needs and goals. We like to look at websites like funnels, and help guide the user where the owner of the site wants them to end up. There is no doubt that, depending on the site and its goals, a clear call to action placed towards the top of the page (ok, ok, “above the fold”) - can be the right choice. However, users do know how to scroll. Its a fundamental activity when using the internet. If a person is reading a page out of a book, eventually they figure out that to read more they must turn the page. It’s a standard practice in the same way that scrolling now is online. Turning the page isn’t evil or confusing, its just how one navigates a book.

How many times can you fold a dollar bill in half? Hint: less times than your site has folds.

The idea that users don’t know how to scroll may have had some merit in the web’s infancy, but today it’s fairly absurd. Now, knowing isn’t the same as doing, but that’s where gooddesign comes in. This idea is visualized expertly via Paddy Donnelly’s excellent Life Below 600 px.

Scrolling isn’t a bad thing folks, and its definitely NOT dead! Additionally, there is a valid argument that a great design helps lead the user down the page. That is to say, in a well thought out design less content above the fold can encourage more exploration beneath the fold. In short, scrolling is better than ‘paging’ through multiple different pages to get the information one seeks. Its faster, more intuitive and it allows for great design to be a strong foundation for your brand and your site.