Being UI designers, our ambition will be to create a smooth experience so that individuals will be able to enjoy a website or app, plus navigate through it without any problem whatsoever. A decent user interface is essential for a decent user experience. It will not be possible for the folks to use the product in case the interface does not allow them to use the website or application easily. UI has the ability to impact a business significantly, and it is essential for the success of a digital product.
Here, we have mentioned several essential principles of UI design which is going to make your users satisfied.
1. The user should be placed at the center
It is important to focus on the individuals or the users. In fact, a decent user interface should be natural to use as well as easy, and it should perform whatever the user requires.
It is important for you to comprehend who the users are and also what they like to do. Figure out whether they are experts or not. The most effective way to do this will be to converse with them. It will be imperative to interview your audience and create user interface designs for them.
2. Go all-out for clarity
The main objective of the user interface will be to enable the user to communicate with the application or website. Stay away from doing anything which makes people confused and does not allow them to interact.
3. Reduce actions and steps every screen
Simplify actions and tasks such that they can be performed in fewer steps. It is imperative for every screen to have one main focus. For instance, the main objective of this particular article will be for you to go through, and, hopefully, learn from it by enjoying it. Keep the main action at the front and provide the secondary actions with lighter visual weight.
4. Simplicity
There is a reason why classics exist; they happen to be timeless in spite of benefiting from contemporary touches. Consider the tuxedo or the attractive black cocktail outfit; each of them happens to be fashion-style staples. They are elegant, simple, and provide the wearer with a touch of class. It is important for a user interface to be simple as well as elegant.
5. Make your user interface design invisible
Do not draw attention to the user interface of yours. A decent UI will allow the individuals to make use of the product without any friction and not spend time comprehending how to interact with it.
6. Be consistent
Consistency helps to create familiarity, and interfaces which are familiar happen to be more usable. It will be quite frustrating to start driving a vehicle and find that the accelerator is on the left and the brake on the right. It will likewise be quite annoying to find that the “Submit” button is in red and the “Delete” button is in green.
In case the design is consistent, the friction will be reduced for the user. The design which is consistent happens to be predictable and this implies that it is simple to comprehend how to make use of functions without any instruction. It is essential for UI design to be consistent internally as well as externally. The Human Interface Guidelines of Apple offer an excellent example of consistency across applications. These guidelines mention the manner in which functions ought to work across applications as well as on every Apple device such that any Apple product user will be capable of picking up another and use it easily.
This likewise implies not inventing common patterns. In fact, lots of patterns exist already for design issues. In case the position of the search bar is at the bottom of any page, it will create confusion in the long run.
A design system will be capable of ensuring consistency in user interface design.
7. Offer useful feedback
It is possible for feedback to be audio, a sense of touch, or visual. It is imperative for every action to have feedback indicating that the action had been effective or not.
Feedback aids in answering queries in 4 areas:
• Location
• Status
• Features status
• Results and outcomes
Hovering your mouse over a navigation item which changes color will indicate that the item happens to be clickable. It is important for buttons to appear like buttons. Feedback will enable the user to understand whether the right thing is performed by them or not.
8. Include the feedback of the users in the user interface
Refrain from designing in a vacuum. Verify and confirm user interface choices by accumulating feedback from the users. Watch the users trying to use your design. Observe whether they are confused or not. Is it possible for them to achieve the desired result effortlessly? This should be done in the design process and evaluated continually after launch.