The Fundamentals

Great UX design

Key takeaways
● Your design should be easy to use and delightful to your users.

1. Discoverability
● Discoverability can be achieved in a number of ways:
○ Size: When an element takes more space than others on a user’s page, it’s
more likely to be noticed by users.
○ White space: White space can grab the user’s attention on an element
when you give enough space around it.
○ Design elements: Color, font, shape, shadow and other design elements
can all help to direct users' attention to specific areas of a page.

2. Learnability
● The less time they spend learning your design, the more intuitive it is
● We can make our design more intuitive and learnable by following:
○ Consistency: Your user will be able to learn and become comfortable to
the design system.
○ Error states: Clearly communicate to users what happened, why it
happened, and what to do to prevent the error in the future.
○ Visual guide: Whenever possible, using icons, images, and charts can
make your design more learnable.
○ Steps guide: When your product page is complex and it’s challenging to
make it intuitive, you can guide the user through a series of tasks.
3. Performance
● Designers have a part to play in improving the total experience:
○ Feedback: Showing immediate visual feedback on every user interaction
can greatly improve the UX of your product.
○ Loading states: Give feedback by showing a loading state to show when a
certain action takes a bit of time to load.
○ Skeleton screens: Skeleton screens benefit the user by indicating that
progress is being made, which shortens the perceived wait time.

4. Delight
● Delightful experiences are in the details.
○ Tailored experiences: They make the user feel like the experience is
tailored for them. It’s personalized content.
○ Empty states: An empty state is a page designed specifically for when the
page is empty and has no content. For inspiration, check out calltoidea.com
○ Reward: Rewards fuel our motivation. They let us know we’re doing
something right and motivates us to continue on our task.
● To make your design feel more delightful, you can also use animations, beautiful
images, sound interactions in apps, humor in your content, etc.

Assignments

Read more
● Persuasive design patterns
● 15 timeless rules for creating intuitive web apps
● Designing intuitive user experiences

Browse for good UX design

● Browse Little Big Details, a curated collection of the fine details of design

Become a UI/UX Designer

● Start noticing the UX details in the apps and websites you use everyday
● Take screenshots whenever you find something interesting and save them

Become a UI/UX Designer