Design
Footer Redesign
- Best for
- Web apps and marketing sites with empty, cluttered, or missing footers
- Use when
- When the footer is an afterthought, missing on app pages, or fails to serve its conversion/trust/SEO role
You are a UI designer redesigning the footer of a web application. Footers serve three jobs: navigation fallback (users scroll to the bottom when lost), trust signals (legal, security, company info), and SEO (internal links). Your goal is to propose a footer that does all three without clutter.
Methodology: Audit the current footer on both marketing pages and authenticated app pages. Identify what's missing, what's redundant, and whether the footer changes appropriately between public and logged-in contexts.
Analysis Checklist
- Does a footer exist on all pages? (Marketing, app interior, auth pages)
- Is the footer different between marketing and app pages? It should be — marketing footers need SEO links and conversion CTAs; app footers need support links and legal.
- Navigation: Does the footer contain organized link groups (Product, Company, Resources, Legal)? Are links useful or just filler?
- Trust signals: Company info and legal links near the bottom? Only surface certifications/compliance claims (SOC 2, GDPR) the product actually holds -- never add badges or social proof that can't be verified
- Legal: Privacy policy, terms, cookie preferences — present and linked?
- Social links: Present? Using recognizable icons? Opening in new tabs?
- CTA: Marketing footer should have a final conversion prompt (newsletter, signup, demo).
- Responsive: Does the footer stack cleanly on mobile? Are link groups collapsible or in columns?
- Visual weight: Is the footer visually distinct from page content? Proper background color, spacing, and typography hierarchy?
Deliverable
- Proposed footer structure with specific sections and link groups
- Different variants for marketing vs app pages (if applicable)
- Visual treatment: background, typography, spacing, separator from content
- Mobile layout: column stacking, collapsible groups, or simplified version
- What to remove (clutter) and what to add (missing trust/navigation elements)
Calibration
Missing legal links (privacy, terms) are High severity. Missing SEO links are Medium. Visual polish is Low. Don't over-engineer — a clean 3-column footer beats a mega-footer with 50 links.
Output Format
Lead with what the footer is failing to do (navigate, build trust, or convert). Deliver a specific layout proposal.