Principles in designing graphical interfaces
What are the rules regarding UI? Find out on our blog.
Creating websites is not just about UI design and ensuring the site’s visual consistency. Professional web developers and designers also ensure well-thought-out information architecture and a user experience (UX) that complies with generally accepted principles. At 052B, we constantly update our knowledge to provide our clients with only tried-and-tested solutions that will positively impact their company’s image and conversion rates on the website. In our work, we are guided primarily by teamwork, intuition and principles developed by renowned specialists. Would you like to find out more about them? We invite you to read on.
Hick’s Law
Hick’s principle describes the ratio of the elements of a page to the duration of the time purchasing decisions made by the customer . This principle helps designers to understand the mechanism behind consumer decision-making on the on the basis of the information reaching the user. In the case of designing the UI, one could say, that the law stipulates, that users need more time to complete the conversion, when they see more elements on the page. In short: the more elements on the page, the lower the likelihood of completing a purchase.
A good graphic designer knows that simplicity always goes hand in hand with practicality. It is therefore important to tailor the number of elements visible on a given screen to the client’s specific needs. The user should not be distracted by unnecessary graphics, colours or buttons (CTAs).
The Law of Miller
Every person has working memory. Miller demonstrated that, thanks to this, one can only remember seven items. Of course, the fewer details there are to remember, the more productive the human brain is. This means that a website’s UI must contain as few elements as possible. Miller’s Law states that the fewer objects there are, the higher a website’s conversion rate.
Law of the joint region
People perceive objects as organised patterns. The law of common region therefore states that people perceive elements in groups. Applying this principle to UX design, objects on a page should be located in common areas. For example, the login, search and shopping basket icons, located in the menu bar, should be further highlighted with a different colour.
In addition, the ‘common region’ rule also applies when isolating a section that we wish to highlight. In such cases, it is usually highlighted by using a contrasting background colour.
The aesthetic impact of usability
Transparency and aesthetics are the most desirable features of a website. A study by Huruso and Koari showed that users are more likely to turn a blind eye to to usability issues, if the interface of the website is intuitive and designed with good taste. Often the clarity of the UI is achieved thanks to white as the base colour . This approach conveys a sense of luxury and clean design.
The Law of Jacob
Jakob has demonstrated that consumers transfer their expectations from products they are familiar with to others. This trend also applies when visiting websites. As users are already familiar with how a competitor’s site works, they will expect your site to function in a similar way. For website owners, this means that researching other companies in the industry will be crucial when designing the UX. A completely new way of using your website may frustrate visitors and, as a result, cause them to leave.
You are already familiar with the main principles of user interface design. Thanks to them you’ll create a UX, which will keep users on the website. Remember, that the above principles, when combined with a personalised approach to the project are the key to success.
