Nielsen's Heuristics: 10 Usability Principles for Improving Interface Design

Contents:

• Clear System Status
• Real-World Elements
• Control and Freedom
• Consistent Rules
• Error Prevention
• Putting the Important Stuff First
• Flexibility to Achieve Your Goal
• Lack of Visual Noise
• Troubleshooting Help
• Clear Help

In 1990, interface and usability experts Jakob Nielsen and Rolf Molich presented ten guidelines for improving interfaces based on their professional experience. These rules, known as heuristics, may not always be mandatory, but their application can significantly increase the competitiveness of developers. Adherence to these principles helps create more intuitive and user-friendly interfaces, which in turn contributes to a better user experience and increased customer satisfaction.

In this article, we will consider the guidelines and their functioning in modern systems. Recommendations are algorithms that analyze user behavior and suggest content that matches their interests and preferences. These systems use a variety of methods, including machine learning and big data analysis, to suggest the most relevant content.

Modern recommendation systems are used in a variety of fields, such as e-commerce, streaming services, and social media. They help users find products, movies, or music they might like based on their previous interactions. These algorithms consider factors such as viewing history, ratings, and user preferences.

The effectiveness of recommendations directly impacts user satisfaction and engagement. The more accurately a system understands a user's needs, the more likely they are to remain on the platform and complete the desired action, whether a purchase or a subscription. Thus, understanding how recommendations work and their impact on user experience is becoming an important aspect for the development of modern digital services.

• clear system status;
• elements from the real world;
• control and freedom;
• consistent rules;
• error prevention;
• the important things go ahead;
• flexibility in achieving the goal;
• no visual noise;
• help in troubleshooting;
• clear help.

Clear system status

You placed a food order through the app, and after you completed the payment, a message appeared on the screen: “Order accepted. We will start collecting soon.” This notification informs you of the current status of your order and that its processing has already begun. However, the screen could also display other information, for example, a message about an error or a delay in the process. This notification helps the user understand the current status of the order and any potential issues, providing transparency and confidence in the delivery process.

There is a problem in the My Food app With the system status displayed in the support chat, users can't determine whether their message has been received, whether it's been read, or whether the response will be from a bot or a live operator. It's also unclear when to expect a response. Furthermore, after sending a message in the chat, there are no notifications about an incoming response from an operator, forcing users to periodically check the chat in hopes of seeing a response. This creates additional inconvenience and reduces the overall level of support. Improving the notification system and clarity in communication with clients will significantly increase the efficiency of the support service.

The Caps Lock button on the MacBook keyboard displays the current status of the function. When you press this button, a green indicator lights up, indicating that the feature is enabled. This allows the user to easily determine whether capitalization mode is active, which is especially useful when typing. Make sure you monitor the Caps Lock status to avoid typing errors.

On this keyboard, the Caps Lock indicator is located at a significant distance from the corresponding key. In addition, other indicators are located nearby, which makes it difficult to quickly determine their functions. This can cause inconvenience when typing and reduce overall work efficiency. When choosing a keyboard, it is important to consider the location of such indicators to ensure comfortable and productive use of the device.

In the Google Chrome browser, adding a bookmark to a folder is not accompanied by a notification. The user must manually check whether the link has appeared in the selected folder. This can be inconvenient, especially if you have many bookmarks and folders to organize them. To improve bookmark management, it is recommended to periodically review the contents of folders and use the search functions for easier navigation.

The Safari browser uses an intuitive system that clearly shows the user the file saving process. An animation clearly shows what was saved and where, which eliminates the need to double-check the result. This simplifies user interaction with the browser and improves the convenience of working with saved data.

Elements from the real world

Every interface is based on universal associations. For example, a magnifying glass icon traditionally symbolizes a search, while a shopping cart icon on a website indicates a shopping list. To avoid confusion and provide clarity to the user about functions and buttons, it's recommended to use familiar images or provide explanations directly in the interface. This will improve usability and enhance the user experience.

Skeuomorphism is a striking example of the application of this heuristic in design. Designers sought to create objects that are as realistic as possible, evoking the necessary associations in users and facilitating the perception of new technologies. Although this style has largely lost its popularity, the principle of skeuomorphism—explaining new ideas through familiar elements—continues to be used in modern designs. This approach helps users adapt to new interfaces and functionality more easily, while maintaining a connection to familiar objects from everyday life.

Control and Freedom

Remember the moment when you accidentally spilled tea on your keyboard and tried to dry it, hoping to avoid damage. In such situations, the lack of an "undo" function that could restore control is especially acute. Fortunately, such functions are present in most applications, although not all. If a user finds themselves in a difficult situation and does not know how to go back, they can simply press the "Back" or "Home" button, which allows them to quickly restore order.

In Telegram, if you accidentally delete a chat and want to restore it, you have the opportunity to undo this action within five seconds. This allows you to avoid losing important messages and information. Please be careful, as after this time it will be impossible to restore the deleted chat.

You can restore original photos that were previously edited and saved on your iPhone. To do this, simply open the Photos app, find the desired image, and select the editing option. Then select "Reset," which will restore the photo to its original state. This process allows you to easily manage edited images and restore their original appearance at any time.

In the Samokat delivery app, there is a risk of accidentally deleting an item from the cart when scrolling. Because the system lacks an "undo" function, users are forced to remember deleted items and search for them again. This can be inconvenient and time-consuming. Optimizing the interface and adding a function to restore deleted items would significantly improve the user experience.

Consistent rules

To ensure the predictability of all interface elements, they must be systematized. For example, if the "Buy" button is used to add an item to a cart, it would be illogical if it also served as a deletion button. Consistency in the actions of interface elements improves the user experience and increases trust in the web resource.

The primary button responsible for the target action should always lead the user along a given path. For convenience and intuitive perception, it should be located to the right of the "Back" or "Cancel" buttons. This placement aligns with generally accepted user standards and habits, which improves the user experience and increases conversion.

The consistency heuristic in interface design includes the use of color. If primary buttons are blue and secondary buttons are light blue, this rule should be followed throughout the interface. "Dangerous" buttons, such as delete or log out buttons, are usually colored red. Design systems and guidelines are developed to ensure consistency in design. Any deviation from the familiar visual pattern can cause additional cognitive load for the user, negatively impacting their perception and interaction with the interface. Therefore, it is important to maintain consistency in the use of color schemes and interface elements.

In the Ozon app, the log out button is highlighted in red, making it easily visible. This button signals the termination of several active processes, ensuring the security of user data and protecting the account from unauthorized access. Users can quickly close all open sessions, which helps prevent potential security risks.

The SushiVesla delivery app lacks a clear separation between primary and secondary buttons, which leads to increased Cognitive load on users. All elements appear equally important, making the interface difficult to read. The buttons labeled "Learn More" and "Repeat" have similar visual design and begin with the same letter, creating confusion. Clicking "Learn More" expands the order but cannot be collapsed, adding to navigation complexity. As a result, users are left with only a large "Repeat" button, and below it, buttons for other orders, creating confusion. Optimizing the interface, including clearly separating the button functionality, could significantly improve the user experience.

Error Prevention

"Oh, I "I clicked something, and everything disappeared!" — this phrase has become popular among users who lack experience working with interfaces. In fact, high-quality and thoughtful interface design can prevent accidental errors and incorrect user actions. For example, in an email application, the lack of a security mechanism can result in an email being sent to all company employees by mistake. In an office environment, this may only cause minor inconvenience, but in the case of medical equipment interfaces, the consequences of poor design can be much more serious. Therefore, it is important to pay attention to creating intuitive and secure interfaces, especially in critical areas such as medicine.

An example of an effective user interface can be seen in the Tinkoff app. When the user fills in fields that require only numbers, the app automatically displays a keyboard that contains only numeric characters. In cases where text is required, such as a name or title, the app switches to a keyboard with letters. This approach improves the user experience and simplifies the data entry process, which is especially important for mobile applications.

In the Papa John's food delivery app, users are faced with an issue where the order form returns an error, even if the fields are empty. This situation can cause dissatisfaction and difficulties when placing an order. To improve user experience, it's important to fix bugs in the app and ensure the order form functions correctly. Optimizing the functionality of the application will help to avoid such errors and increase customer satisfaction.

Important things first

Imagine an online store that doesn't specify the delivery time. Or a banking app that doesn't display the card balance when making a purchase. In this case, users have to remember numerous details, perform complex calculations, and search for the necessary information, instead of simply completing the action and saving time. Simplifying processes and making information accessible are key factors for the comfortable use of online services. Effective solutions minimize user effort, making their experience more enjoyable and productive.

A well-designed interface concentrates all key user information in one place and displays it immediately on the screen. For example, in banking apps, account balances are updated automatically, allowing users to quickly obtain up-to-date data. In marketplaces, delivery date information is presented along with the product in a single card, ensuring convenience and transparency. This approach to interface design improves the user experience and increases the effectiveness of interaction with the app.

The Wildberries app provides delivery information directly on the product card. This allows users to quickly review delivery terms, timing, and cost, significantly simplifying the selection and purchase process. This feature allows shoppers to make more informed decisions, saving time and effort. The user-friendly interface of the application makes the process of searching and placing an order as comfortable as possible, which contributes to increased customer satisfaction.

In the Golden Apple application, the indicator of products with express delivery is missing on the product card that you find through the search. To find out if an item will be delivered today, you need to go to the product page itself. This can complicate the selection and shopping planning process. Improving the interface and adding delivery information to the product card would make the process more convenient for users, allowing them to quickly navigate delivery options.

Flexibility of achievement

Let's say you need to send an email to several recipients, each of whom needs to make minor changes. Typically, you would use keyboard shortcuts to copy and paste, then edit the text. However, imagine that there are no keyboard shortcuts. You would have to manually go to Edit → Copy, right-click in the input field and select Paste, then edit the email text and repeat this procedure several times. For someone who rarely uses this program, this may seem acceptable. But if you have to do this task several times a day, such work becomes inefficient and wastes valuable time. Using keyboard shortcuts can significantly speed up the process of editing and sending emails, which is especially important for people working in a fast-paced environment.

Empower users to choose their own paths to achieve their goals. If a certain interface action is performed frequently, provide quick access to it or configure the app to perform it automatically. This will not only improve the user experience but also increase the efficiency of the app.

Chat with sellers on the Avito platform offers convenient template responses for users who prefer not to waste time writing messages from scratch. These templates significantly speed up the communication process and allow you to ask personalized questions, tailoring them to specific situations. Using such solutions makes interaction more efficient and comfortable for customers.

The Todoist task planner requires registration for access. Users who wish to log in later face restrictions and are unable to use the service without prior registration.

Lack of visual noise

Excessive details in the interface, such Unnecessary features, numerous icons, and advertising banners distract users and prevent them from achieving their goals. Information overload can be irritating and reduce overall app performance. It's important to understand that having a minimal set of features doesn't make an app bad; on the contrary, brevity and simplicity can significantly improve the user experience. Optimized interfaces help focus on the essentials, which facilitates faster and more convenient task completion.

The Exactly neural network is focused exclusively on training its own models and generating images based on them. In contrast, the free Stable Diffusion offers many additional features, which makes the image generation process more complex. Thus, Exactly provides a more focused and simplified approach to image generation, which may appeal to users looking for specific AI solutions.

The Ozon app's dashboard is an example of an unsuccessful approach to interface design. All functions are concentrated in one place: events, installment plans, points for purchases, banking services, and recently viewed products. As a result, the screen displays numerous buttons that don't fit in a single screenshot. At the top of the interface, "Favorites" is located next to reviews, premium subscriptions, and travel services, creating confusion and making navigation difficult. This cluttered interface can negatively impact user experience and reduce app efficiency.

The Focus Tomato app stands out among other time trackers for its simplicity. It has only four buttons, making it intuitive and easy to use. Engraved illustrations emphasize the concept of the timer without distracting users from the main task. Focus Tomato is ideal for those who value efficiency and convenience in time management.

Help in troubleshooting

Remember the application forms consisting of 25 items. When you click the "Next" button, the page scrolls up, erasing all completed fields, and displays an error message without specifying the problem. In modern complex interfaces, such hints are already present by default, significantly simplifying the process. The use of hints and intuitive design helps users avoid misunderstandings and errors, improving the overall user experience.

Hints not only help users identify errors but also provide detailed explanations for correcting them. This improves the user experience and promotes a deeper understanding of the material. Proper hints can significantly accelerate the learning process and increase resource utilization.

Sharing files using AirDrop on iPhone: When attempting to transfer a file with Bluetooth disabled, the device will prompt you to activate it instead of displaying vague error messages such as "some kind of error" or "unable to transfer file." This simplifies the sharing process and makes it more intuitive for the user. AirDrop provides fast and secure file transfers between Apple devices, and having clear connection status notifications improves the overall user experience.

When registering on the Tashir Pizza website, an error may occur if the fields are filled in incorrectly. An error notification will be displayed, but information about what error occurred, where it occurred, and why will remain unclear. To avoid such situations, it is recommended to carefully check the entered data before submitting the form.

Clear help

Regardless of how well you have developed the interface with Despite clear logic and a minimalist design, users will eventually require additional support. This could be information on frequently asked questions, a support chat, or a help section. It's important that all answers are presented in simple and accessible language, minimizing the likelihood of additional questions and difficulties. This approach will not only increase user satisfaction but also improve the overall effectiveness of interaction with your product.

The Golden Apple app offers a support team ready to answer any questions about products, orders, or app functionality. You can get help at any time, making the process of interacting with our service as convenient and efficient as possible. We strive to provide high-quality customer service and respond quickly to your inquiries.

An example of unsuccessful instructions is the "Shedevroom" application from Yandex. The neural network may unexpectedly stop generating images for your request if it contains prohibited words. Although the service provides troubleshooting recommendations, the instructions lack a list of prohibited words, leaving the user to guess what exactly is bothering Shedevroom. Your request may be perfectly harmless. It is important that developers provide more complete information about the rules and restrictions so that users can avoid misunderstandings and use the application effectively.

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Information on interface design and its current aspects. Creating intuitive user interfaces is a key element of successful web design and app development. It's important to consider usability principles, visual hierarchy, and adaptability across devices. A deeper understanding of these topics will help designers create more effective and engaging solutions. Explore modern interface design trends such as minimalism, color gradients, and animation to enhance user interaction with your product. Explore practical examples of successful interfaces for inspiration and to improve your skills.

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