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I have a dialog box for trouble reporting, i.e. the user clicks a link and a dialog box pops up. The user will have to fill out a form and then click submit.
Where should I put a link like this? I want it to be hidden and at the same time easy to find. It should not be in a place that is too visible, but I want the user to find it when he is looking for it. Where does a user look for such a link?
It is a web application for desktop.
Thanks
As the context can be very specific, the best approach would be to test with a few of your users and ask them to report a bug. Check out where they are going first; you cill then be able to base your design decisions on tangible data.
Other option is to A/B test it by picking two options and then analyzing the result. If you are looking for ideas on where such a link can be placed, I would suggest:
Booth options should go relatively unnoticed for a normal usage of your app, yet should be easily found when looked for.
Keeping a low amount of high contrast items is one of the keys for good design, adding another action in your pages will decrease the usability of the rest - so you may want to think twice about how needed is this feature.
Contradictions:
I want it to be hidden and at the same time easy to find.
And this:
It should not be in a place that is too visible, but I want the user to find it when he is looking for it.
It might help if you could put up a rough visualisation of your proposed design, because without it, it will be very difficult for the community to provide suggestions.
However, the bottom line is you want people to actually use this feature, otherwise it will be a waste of money building it. So you really need to consider the utility of this link and how easy it is to find it.
One approach for you to consider when a user first comes to this page - how about implementing an on-boarding mechanism which flags this link (wherever you place it) and provides a brief explanation as to its purpose.
In terms of this link's placement, I would would guess that Trouble Reporting would not be needed most of the time, so the link should be placed much further down the information hierarchy of the page, so that it does not interfere with the primary feature of the page.
Without being able to see your proposed design, I would guess that the bottom right-hand corner of the page would be good, because the corners of a page are prime positions.
If you have a footer in the application, I would personally place it in the bottom-right of the footer, because this ensures it is visually separated from the rest of the page, while at the same time its corner position ensures it is always easy to find.
