Latest / The Feed & The Thread / The Feed & The Thread - January 23, 2026

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The Feed & The Thread - January 23, 2026 · The Feed & The Thread

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  Today we're covering how subtle tweaks to call-to-action design
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  can dramatically boost website conversions, showing that
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  sometimes all you need is a fresh button color or text
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  change. And we'll hear what the community is saying about an
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  unexpected enhancement in color perception through the use of
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  black in ambient settings.
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  Welcome to The Feed & The Thread, brought to you by
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  Chicago Camps. Our next UX Camp event is coming up in February.
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  We're still accepting presentations for the event -
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  submit your talk today!
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  The industry's been busy over the past day. Here's what's
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  catching our attention and worthy of yours. In a new piece
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  titled "How Subtle CTA Changes Can Double Conversions Without
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  Re-designing Your Website," Wira at Web Designer News argues that
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  minor tweaks to call-to-action design can significantly boost
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  website conversions. The article highlights specific examples
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  like changing button colors or text, which have doubled
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  conversion rates. It emphasizes the need for continuous A/B
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  testing to find what works best for different audiences. Over at
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  Web Designer News, Robert Tanislav's latest "Beyond
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  Generative: The Rise Of Agentic AI And User-Centric Design"
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  takes on how designing effective agentic AI requires a new
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  playbook. Victor Yocco points out that these systems need to
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  build trust and ensure transparency as they act on
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  users' behalf. This shift has significant implications for
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  responsible design practices. Also worth noting – new pieces
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  recently from TPGi (The Paciello Group), Codrops, and Roman
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  Pichler. Be sure to check them out in your feeds!
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  Let's check in with the practitioners today for their
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  hot topics. Over in the Design subreddit, someone just posted
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  this bird table and it's gotten two hundred upvotes already.
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  Just sit back and enjoy, they say. I mean, that's fair;
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  sometimes we all need a break from the usual design debates to
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  appreciate something that's both functional and beautiful.
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  Meanwhile, another post in the same subreddit is making waves
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  with an observation about black being used as an enhancement for
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  color perception in ambient settings. It's amazing how much
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  detail can be lost without those dark elements – pretty mind-
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  blowing stuff if you ask me. And speaking of details, over in the
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  UX Design subreddit, there's a heated discussion about AI and
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  its role in design. "Are We Building AI Because It's Useful,
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  or Just Because We Can?" is generating some interest. I
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  mean, that pretty much nails it – when technology advances, we
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  need to ask ourselves if we're using it for actual progress or
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  just because we can. Kind of like this podcast, right? But
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  wait till you hear this. The UserExperience subreddit is
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  seeing a lot of chatter about the "Pixel-Perfect" era.
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  Designers are feeling like glorified constraint-managers
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  these days and wondering whether they've moved past that phase.
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  It's tough when you're spending more time on pixels than on user
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  needs. That's what folks are buzzing about today! Lots to
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  chew on, from the beauty of design to the practicalities of
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  UX and AI debates.
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  Chicago Camps is hosting UX Camp Winter on Saturday, February
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  21st. The event is online, so you can join from anywhere in
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  the world. Catch presentations coming from people delivering UX
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  work - out in the field - where it matters most. Tickets are
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  only thirteen dollars and fifty cents. Pay-What-You-Can tickets,
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  and free passes available to anyone with a need. Get tickets
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  now at Chicago Camps dot org. And there's still room for
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  additional speakers - submit your idea today!
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  Today, we explored how minor tweaks to call-to-action designs
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  can dramatically boost website conversions without a full
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  redesign. It's fascinating how small changes can have such a
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  big impact. And speaking of simple pleasures, u/749762's
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  bird table post reminded us to appreciate the beauty in
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  everyday design. Thanks for tuning in — we'll catch you next
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  time on The Feed and The Thread.
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  That's The Feed and The Thread for today. Keep designing with
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  intention!