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- Visibility of system status – On a web page, this generally means that it should be immediately clear to the user where they are in a site (including how “deep” they are relative to the home page), where they came from, and where they could go to next. Drawing on the “user control and freedom” heuristic, one could also include how they could go back to where they came from without using the “back” button.
- Consistency – A given color, font, shape, type of formatting, location, etc. should be used in a consistent way throughout the site. For example, if options to filter search results are located on the left side of the page in one situation, they should always be located on the left side of the page. If changing the visual appearance of an element when the mouse rolls over it is sometimes used to indicate that this element can be clicked on, it should always indicate that the element can be clicked on. Similarly, a particular visual appearance should not sometimes be used to indicate one thing, and other times be used to indicate something else.
- Effective use of information scent – “Information scent” refers to to how well the the navigation elements of a page convey what will be found by following that link. For example, “Additional information” creates a weak information scent because you have no idea what you might find by following that link. In contrast, “How to do a return” has a very strong information scent because you have a clear sense of what you might find by following that link. Of course, if you clicked on “How to do a return” and ended up on a page about the company’s privacy policy, then the information scent was strong but misleading. With good design, links and other navigation elements should have a strong information scent, and that scent should be a reliable guide to the user, helping them quickly and easily find what they are looking for.
- Action-oriented design – Most people visit a web page because they are trying to complete a certain task, like buying a sweater, getting directions, registering for classes, etc. For actions that many users may want to perform, it should be possible to tell at a glance how to do that action, and it should be quick and easy to do so. Where appropriate, elements should be labeled with action-oriented language, for example, “View Cart” rather than “Shopping Cart.” Elements for performing common actions should be visually conspicuous, creating a clear “call to action.”
- Logical and clear information architecture – Information architecture refers to the organizing and labeling of information on a web site. For example, imagine a site selling pet supplies. Suppose the navigation bar at the top included the options “Collars,” “For Golden Retrievers,” and “Special Offers.” This would be a poorly thought out information architecture because there’s no particular logic to what is placed on the navigation bar. In contrast, if the navigation bar included “Collars,” “Beds,” and “Toys,” that would be a much more logical organization.
- Minimalist design – Every additional element you add to a page competes for attention with the other elements on the page. If a web page is overly cluttered, people will try to deal with the information overload by tuning out a substantial portion of the content. In other words, putting the information on the web page is no guarantee people will actually process it. To avoid this issue, limit the amount of content you put on any one page. If you must have a lot of content, visually organize it to help the user find what they’re looking for. Don’t overwhelm navigation and action elements with flashy pictures and graphics.