To stand out among the half a million websites that exist throughout the Internet, it is not an option to have a platform that provides relevant content and invites you to interact with them through an intelligent usability design.

Jakob Nielsen has a lot to say about this. He is a computer engineer - like the CEO and founder of Lab9 - and is an expert in usability design for websites. Since its publication “Usability Engineering” -launched in 1993-, its avant-garde conceptualizations regarding how usability structures for web pages should be studied and composed landed at the dawn of computing to then lay the foundations of what would be not only its object of study but also the rest of the technologies that would come later.

Nielsen and his wonderful heuristics

1 - Visibility of the system state

This implies that the system must inform the user of the state they are in, so that the user is aware of the consequences generated by their actions and knows what to do afterwards.

For example: if you access the Google Maps app, a dialog box always appears indicating the current location, to know in detail where you are and where you want to go.

2 - The system must be aware of the real world

This is related to the fact that the design must always speak the same codes as the users, working with concepts familiar to them from the textual, the auditory and the visual. Therefore we talk about a design focused 100% on people. To obtain this kind of information, it is necessary to make research - or “research” - a habit to know the target audiences in depth, internalizing their tastes, preferences, customs, modes of behavior and mental models.

For example: at Lab9 we worked on the development of a corporate app whose objective was to reduce work absenteeism. During the investigation, it was concluded that the majority of employees were absent from work due to illness. That is why when creating the application, emphasis was placed on improving the quality of life through actions that motivate people to engage in physical activity.

3 - Control and freedom of the user with respect to the system

To ensure that people have the ability to reverse an action, UX designers should create their apps and websites showing where they can resume a previous step, cancel or correct any failed move. This option provides a feeling of confidence that removes all kinds of frustration that usually occurs when users do not meet their objectives. That is why the usability expert rectifies the emphasis on the “Redo”, “Modify”, “Cancel” and “Return” buttons.

For example: a situation opposite to the trust aroused by an app occurs when someone tries to register in a corporate application but cannot activate their profile due to a failure in the “Modify” button.

4 - Maintain consistency and industry standards

Taking into account that user expectations are intrinsically linked to their previous experiences, that is, to what they already know, it is highly recommended that those in charge of the usability of a product use a glossary of words specific to that type of article. This maintains a consistency of internal and external senses.

For example: perhaps you never realized but a basic rule in hotels states that the check-in area should always be in the main entrance area. This is a customer reception structure shared by all types of accommodation.

5 - Error prevention

We are human and mistakes are common from the moment we wake up until the moment we go to bed. While Nielsen takes this, he also states that good usability practices anticipate any type of situation that leads to a failure. For this, it is advisable to prioritize the errors that would have a higher cost and then deal with the small frustrations that the user may feel when using the product or service.

For example: when we fill out a form it is common for a dialog window to appear asking us if we are sure of the data we have just entered. All this implies prevention of usability failures for both the system and the consumer.

6 - Recognize instead of remember

Usability always has to have visible elements and actions that the user can take, because a usability design that promotes recognition causes people's cognitive effort to be much less and thus the experience achieves the goal of being intuitive.

7 - Flexibility and efficiency of product use

The usability design must be prepared for users with and without experience, that is, it must have a certain malleability and customization in terms of processes. Actions such as keyboard shortcuts allow you to adapt the usability of the product to your own needs.

For example: from Lab9 we had the opportunity to work for our client “Regalale Bitcoins”, a mobile and desktop app that seeks to encourage financial education through cryptocurrencies. There our team of UX/UI designers were in charge of carrying out a series of behavioral analyzes - known as user flow - of the users who would use the product, to define not only the user's route but also issues related to the visual messages that were intended to be communicated. This would be the best way to align the objectives of our clients with the needs of their users.

8 - Minimalist design

Nielsen states that interfaces do not have to have irrelevant data since each unit of additional information undoubtedly competes with what users require to fulfill their objective with the product. This causes the relative importance to decrease. So the idea is to learn to channel the content through a filter that contains the important elements and lets go of what is not useful.

9 - Help users recognize, diagnose and recover from errors

Within the usability design, error messages must be prioritized, indicating the problem and offering a solution for it. This can be done in a more striking way using traditional visual resources.

For example: if you use Google Chrome as a browser, you will know that when your Internet connection is cut off, who appears? The fun dinosaur that jumps obstacles and saved us so many seconds of boredom!

10 - Documentation and Help Center

This is where the user finds all kinds of information related to doubts and queries about inconveniences that arise when browsing.