The relevance of Usability Heuristics for User Interface Design to User Experience
Before starting a project, it is always important to start by brainstorming design ideas. The usability issues are evident, and you have ideas for how to solve them. Before jumping straight into the design, you may want to consider conducting a heuristic evaluation.
A heuristic evaluation is a usability inspection method mainly used to identify any design issues associated with the user interface.
Jakob Nielsen’s heuristics are probably the most-used usability heuristics for user interface design.
They are called “heuristics” because they are broad rules of thumb and not specific usability guidelines.
Evaluating the UI against these principles allows you to objectively assess a design. Plus, it serves as documentation, which can help you gain buy-in from stakeholders. Below are the top 10 usability heuristics you should refer to next time you’re auditing a website or product.
Let’s have a look into them one by one.
01. Visibility of system status
The system should always keep users informed about what is going on, through appropriate feedback within reasonable time.
Displaying system status can take on the form of a progress bar, loading spinner, or change in button colour.
02. Visibility of system status
The system should speak the users’ language, with words, phrases and concepts familiar to the user, rather than system-oriented terms. Follow real-world conventions, making information appear in a natural and logical order.
An example of matching the system with the real world is designing a navigation menu that conforms to how a user would find information in a brick-and-mortar store.
03. User control and freedom
Users often choose system functions by mistake and will need a clearly marked “emergency exit” to leave the unwanted state without having to go through an extended dialogue. Support undo and redo.
Users should have the ability to correct their mistakes. They should be able to take control of their actions and have the freedom to leave the interface without an extended dialogue.
04. Consistency and standards
Users should not have to wonder whether different words, situations, or actions mean the same thing.
In addition to having a consistent UI, a design should also follow platform conventions. A couple of platform convention examples include the placement of the company logo on either the top left corner or in the top centre of the page or a magnifying glass icon to represent the search function.
05. Error prevention
Even better than good error messages is a careful design that prevents a problem from occurring in the first place. Either eliminate error-prone conditions or check for them and present users with a confirmation option before they commit to the action.
To Be Continued…….
