I am working on one project in the role of UX Designer. Its a web app focused on sales and the most important part are forms. Quite long forms - to be exact. Every form is divided in several steps, but even the steps are quite long. The user has to choose many options. If the user chooses some options, there are another sub-options and so on...To prevent users freaking out right at the beginning, we keep some parts of the form collapsed at default. Only if the User pick some options, we expand the part of the form belonging to this option.
Designs are supplied by the external agency. They provided us with a new design for a "main checkbox". Normal check boxes are smaller, 3D style. This new ones are big 2D in different colours. The message should be like "this big check boxes are the most important".
I´m really not sure about the design on the new ones... My concerns are: 1) Is it too confusing for Users to have two different check boxes in one form? 2) If the checkbox is not checked it looks more like "missing picture or icon" for me. Its too big to "feel it" as unchecked checkbox. 3) I prefer to keep the same style of controls. The original small check boxes are the same style as radio buttons - for example. The new ones are too different.
Here is a sample of this form. It is only a part on the first step. All the controls I was talking about are highlighted in red. You can see the big check boxes right next to H3 Label 3 in checked style and right at the bottom as unchecked. The original check boxes are at the beginning. Both check boxes should be used at the same form. everything between checked and unchecked big check boxes is collapsed by default (when the check boxes are all unchecked)
I would really appreciate your opinions and comments. Thanks.