According to Intechnic, a global site design and UX design agency, 79% of web users leave without a moment's hesitation after encountering a site whose UX and UI they do not like!
So it doesn't matter if you are designing a product or designing an application's user interface; Knowing a series of fixed and golden rules will change your design path.
In this article from the zhik agency blog, we get to know the 8 golden rules from Ben Shanderman, a professor of computer science at the University of Maryland, USA, who works in the field of human-computer interaction. Join us to create a spark in your interaction with your users by following 8 simple but practical tips.
the first law; Be consistent and straightforward
Consider color, font, images, guides, short and long sentences throughout the site, and all other distracting elements. In a world full of emotions and different colors and full of attractive but shocking actions, there is no room left for thinking and choosing. So, in such a situation, the user chooses to return to his safe point. Google results page; Where there is no noise!
Using a specific color palette, standard font, straightforward guidance, and navigation system, and maintaining harmony in UI design is the first point that we must follow in designing a website, product, or application. An eye-catching design not only increases the user's sense of satisfaction but also increases his desire to stay and browse our website pages in the first step.
the second law; Don't underestimate shortcuts
Imagine a boring world without CTRL+C and CTRL+V! Shortcut keys play an essential role in creating a successful user experience. No matter how simple and accessible your site or product is, you cannot give the user the desired convenience without having shortcuts.
Using shortcut keys in UI design of site or application or product
Embedding commands to simplify the user's movement on the site or application gives the user the opportunity to deepen the site's and application's features and capabilities.Know the needs of customers and users and guide them to their desired destination without wasting time.
the third law is; Give informative feedback
Never neglect to guide your users. Short guides can make it easier for users to use various features of the site.
For example, in choosing a password, each site may have its own conditions. Acceptable passwords for different websites may require lowercase and uppercase letters or accept more or less than 10 characters. Short sentences to announce these special features to users can save them from confusion.
the fourth law; Don't keep your users guessing
Imagine that you are in a race and you reach the end of the line with a long distance from the rest of the participants. What are you waiting for at this moment? A banner will be hung around your neck to congratulate you for being the first in the race, the audience's hands and screams, and maybe even a flower ring as a sign of victory.
Now, in such a situation, if we cross the finish line and hear nothing but silence, not only will we doubt our victory, we may even doubt the correctness of the path we ran on.
Let's replace the happy runner with an active user on our site. A web user, like a runner, needs to face a message that indicates the completion of the process after actions such as registering on the site or buying from it.
By notifying the user that the operation process is complete, you not only create an opportunity to thank them but also prepare and direct the user to start a new process.
Acknowledging the user's activity on the site with a short message or a new page
Therefore, we suggest that you do not leave your users in the guesswork of reaching the finish line and announce the end of the operation with a new page or short message before reaching the stage of confusion and worry.
the fifth law; Don't forget the simple solutions to fix the errors
Do you remember the memorable Windows XP error? A dark page, made of numbers and codes we didn't even know what they meant. In the face of that incomprehensible error, the only way to save was the ESC button, which according to an unwritten rule, we all used, and in an interesting way, we got results!
But over time and with the recognition of the importance of user experience, errors became more understandable and sometimes even creative for different users.
Example of creative 404 error on zhik agency site
Although error pages and messages may not seem so important at first glance, they will play a very prominent role in the user experience. The worst thing you can do is to display specialized error pages or messages with a special coding language. In this case, the user will not only not understand the problem, but also will not find a suitable solution to solve it.
The sixth law; Don't punish users by "starting over"!
In UI design, first, try to minimize mistakes by guiding the user correctly. However, this sentence should not scare the user from making a mistake in your mind!
Suppose you are a user of a site and after spending several minutes filling out a multi-page form, you remember that you accidentally entered some information incorrectly. If the site or application we are using does not have a proper UI, we may encounter an error that forces us to fill out the forms again; That too from the first page! You can probably imagine how annoying and tiring these conditions are
It will be In his book, Schneiderman explains: “Heeding the sixth law relieves users' anxiety.
Because they know that mistakes can be undone. For this reason, they are even encouraged to explore unfamiliar options.
So it is better to let your users go back to the pages and correct their mistakes easily; without having to start over.
One of the best examples of this option is the Undo option and access to the activity history in Adobe programs. Imagine you are designing a poster in Photoshop; The History section in this popular tool allows us to design without worrying about losing our data and to go back to several previous moves if needed.
The seventh law is; Give control to the user
Experienced users strongly want to feel that they are in charge of the space and that they are managing it themselves when working in a new environment. "Users don't want surprises or changes in familiar behavior patterns," says Schneiderman. They will hate the difficulty of getting vital information, the inability to get desired results, and the tedious sequences of entering information over and over again!”
It is better to design the user interface in such a way that the user feels that he is in control of the situation and that the path is not pre-written for him.
One of the best and most successful examples of creating a sense of control for the user is the program exit messages in Microsoft Office. After you click the Exit button or the cross to exit, the system will ask you if you want to exit the page without saving the work or not. This not only makes the user feel in control but also ensures that their hard work is not lost in the event of an accidental exit.
the last law; Don't stress the user's short-term memory
According to the Live Science reporter, it doesn't matter if you are very smart or a person of average intelligence; Your active memory faces a limit of 3 to 4 each time you remember information. This means that we, as UI designers, should remove the burden of remembering various information from the shoulders of users as much as possible.
but how?
To make Shanderman's meaning clearer, we will go deeper into this topic with a few simple examples.
Has it happened to you that every time you enter your favorite website, your user information is requested again? Usually, the confusion caused by entering information can cause the user to regret being on the site and eventually leave.
Don't force users to re-enter their personal information every time they buy from your website, or to re-enter their email address and name every time they enter your website. Of course, the law of short-term memory is not limited to user account information and can find its place in your design in any way.
Easy access to frequently used icons on the screen of iPhone mobile phones
One of the most interesting ways to use this human flaw is Apple's solution for its smartphones. If you have never moved the icons of your mobile phone, you must see three or four main icons of call, SMS, gallery, and camera (these icons may be different) on its home screen.
The arrangement of these icons is based on the same principle of remembering three or four things at the same time, which started with the intelligence of Apple, and today it can be seen almost by default in all Android and iOS mobile phones.
So try to give information concisely and intelligently to stay in the minds of your audience!
Seek to create a friendly, intimate, and human relationship!
In this article from the zhik agency blog, we learned 8 golden rules from Ben Schneiderman. The more we read about the principles of UI and UX design, we will eventually return to the same basic principle; Make the convenience and accessibility of users your priority.the fifth law; Don't forget the simple solutions to fix the errors
Do you remember the memorable Windows XP error? A dark page, made of numbers and codes we didn't even know what they meant. In the face of that incomprehensible error, the only way to save was the ESC button, which according to an unwritten rule, we all used, and in an interesting way, we got results!
But over time and with the recognition of the importance of user experience, errors became more understandable and sometimes even creative for different users.
Example of creative 404 error on zhik agency site
Although error pages and messages may not seem so important at first glance, they will play a very prominent role in the user experience. The worst thing you can do is to display specialized error pages or messages with a special coding language. In this case, the user will not only not understand the problem, but also will not find a suitable solution to solve it.
The sixth law; Don't punish users by "starting over"!
In UI design, first, try to minimize mistakes by guiding the user correctly. However, this sentence should not scare the user from making a mistake in your mind!
Suppose you are a user of a site and after spending several minutes filling out a multi-page form, you remember that you accidentally entered some information incorrectly. If the site or application we are using does not have a proper UI, we may encounter an error that forces us to fill out the forms again; That too from the first page! You can probably imagine how annoying and tiring these conditions are
It will be In his book, Schneiderman explains: “Heeding the sixth law relieves users' anxiety.
Because they know that mistakes can be undone. For this reason, they are even encouraged to explore unfamiliar options.
So it is better to let your users go back to the pages and correct their mistakes easily; without having to start over.
One of the best examples of this option is the Undo option and access to the activity history in Adobe programs. Imagine you are designing a poster in Photoshop; The History section in this popular tool allows us to design without worrying about losing our data and to go back to several previous moves if needed.
The seventh law is; Give control to the user
Experienced users strongly want to feel that they are in charge of the space and that they are managing it themselves when working in a new environment. "Users don't want surprises or changes in familiar behavior patterns," says Schneiderman. They will hate the difficulty of getting vital information, the inability to get desired results, and the tedious sequences of entering information over and over again!”
It is better to design the user interface in such a way that the user feels that he is in control of the situation and that the path is not pre-written for him.
One of the best and most successful examples of creating a sense of control for the user is the program exit messages in Microsoft Office. After you click the Exit button or the cross to exit, the system will ask you if you want to exit the page without saving the work or not. This not only makes the user feel in control but also ensures that their hard work is not lost in the event of an accidental exit.
the last law; Don't stress the user's short-term memory
According to the Live Science reporter, it doesn't matter if you are very smart or a person of average intelligence; Your active memory faces a limit of 3 to 4 each time you remember information. This means that we, as UI designers, should remove the burden of remembering various information from the shoulders of users as much as possible.
but how?
To make Shanderman's meaning clearer, we will go deeper into this topic with a few simple examples.
Has it happened to you that every time you enter your favorite website, your user information is requested again? Usually, the confusion caused by entering information can cause the user to regret being on the site and eventually leave.
Don't force users to re-enter their personal information every time they buy from your website, or to re-enter their email address and name every time they enter your website. Of course, the law of short-term memory is not limited to user account information and can find its place in your design in any way.
Easy access to frequently used icons on the screen of iPhone mobile phones
One of the most interesting ways to use this human flaw is Apple's solution for its smartphones. If you have never moved the icons of your mobile phone, you must see three or four main icons of call, SMS, gallery, and camera (these icons may be different) on its home screen.
The arrangement of these icons is based on the same principle of remembering three or four things at the same time, which started with the intelligence of Apple, and today it can be seen almost by default in all Android and iOS mobile phones.
So try to give information concisely and intelligently to stay in the minds of your audience!
Seek to create a friendly, intimate, and human relationship!
In this article from the zhik agency blog, we learned 8 golden rules from Ben Schneiderman. The more we read about the principles of UI and UX design, we will eventually return to the same basic principle; Make the convenience and accessibility of users your priority.
