The 4 Most Important Laws of UX Design

Summary

This video script introduces four crucial laws of UX design: Fitts' Law, Hick's Law, Jacob's Law, and Miller's Law. Fitts' Law emphasizes the importance of target size and distance for ease of access. Hick's Law addresses decision-making time in relation to the number of choices. Jacob's Law suggests that users prefer familiar navigation patterns. Miller's Law highlights the limitation of the human working memory, recommending streamlined content. The video encourages designers to apply these principles for effective UX.

Takeaways

• 🎯 Fitt's Law: The time to acquire a target is a function of the distance to and the size of the target, emphasizing the importance of touch target size and placement for user accessibility.
• 📍 Touch Target Guidelines: Ensure touch targets are large enough to interact with, have sufficient spacing to avoid accidental taps, and are placed in easily accessible areas of the design.
• ⏱ Hick's Law: Decision time increases with the number and complexity of choices, suggesting the need to minimize options and simplify decision-making processes to reduce cognitive load.
• 🔍 Implementing Hick's Law: Use techniques like minimizing options, breaking complex flows into digestible steps, and highlighting suggested options to streamline user decision-making.
• 🔄 Jacob's Law: Users prefer sites that work similarly to other familiar sites, advocating for the use of established UI and UX patterns rather than creating unique, unfamiliar ones.
• 🛠 Applying Jacob's Law: Take inspiration from familiar UI and UX patterns, use similar navigational structures, and avoid significant deviations from the norm to maintain user comfort.
• 🧠 Miller's Law: The average person can only keep about seven items in working memory, indicating the need to challenge content and limit the number of options presented to users.
• 📚 Categorization in Design: Use Miller's Law to categorize and sub-categorize items in design, making it easier for users to process and remember information.
• 📉 Avoiding Information Overload: Don't force content to fit the 'magic number' of seven; instead, strive for the most streamlined and effective presentation of options.
• 🌐 UX Principles Overview: While there are many UX laws and principles, the four discussed in the video are considered most critical for enhancing user experience.
• 🔗 Resource for Further Learning: The video is inspired by the 'Laws of UX' website, which provides further examples, implementations, and a wealth of additional principles for UX design.

Q & A

What is Fitt's Law and how does it apply to UX design?

Fitt's Law states that the time to acquire a target is a function of the distance to and the size of the target itself. In UX design, it suggests that the placement and size of interactive elements like buttons and links should be optimized for ease of access and interaction.

How can you use Fitt's Law to improve touch targets in a design?

To apply Fitt's Law, ensure that touch targets are large enough to be easily tapped or interacted with, provide sufficient space between them to prevent accidental clicks, and place them in accessible locations within the design.

What is Hick's Law and how does it influence decision-making in UX?

Hick's Law states that the time it takes to make a decision increases with the number and complexity of choices. In UX, it implies that reducing the number of options and simplifying choices can decrease cognitive load and improve user decision-making.

How can Hick's Law be implemented to improve user experience?

Hick's Law can be implemented by minimizing options on the screen, breaking complex tasks into smaller steps, providing suggested options, and using progressive disclosure to reveal information as users progress through a process.

What does Jacob's Law state and why is it important for UX design?

Jacob's Law states that users spend most of their time on other sites, implying that they prefer interfaces that are consistent with their existing experiences. It's important for UX design because it encourages designers to use familiar UI patterns and navigation structures to enhance user comfort and efficiency.

How can you apply Jacob's Law to everyday design work?

Apply Jacob's Law by taking inspiration from UI and UX patterns of familiar products, using similar flows and mental models for navigation, and minimizing deviations from the norm to avoid confusing users.

What is Miller's Law and how does it relate to working memory in UX design?

Miller's Law states that the average person can only keep seven plus or minus two items in their working memory at any one time. In UX design, it suggests that presenting users with too many options can overwhelm their cognitive capacity, leading to a need for content categorization and simplification.

How can Miller's Law be used to enhance the user interface?

Miller's Law can be used to enhance the user interface by categorizing and sub-categorizing options, presenting a manageable number of choices, and challenging the need for excessive content to streamline the user experience.

What is the significance of the 'laws of UX' mentioned in the video?

The 'laws of UX' are a collection of principles and best practices that guide designers in creating user-friendly interfaces. The video highlights four particularly important laws, but there are many more that can provide additional insights for enhancing user experience.

How can a designer ensure that their work aligns with the principles discussed in the video?

A designer can ensure alignment with these principles by regularly reviewing and applying the laws of UX, seeking feedback from users, and staying updated with current trends and research in user experience design.

What is the role of user feedback in the context of these UX laws?

User feedback plays a crucial role as it provides real-world insights into how well the design adheres to these laws. It helps designers identify areas for improvement and ensure that the user experience is intuitive and efficient.

Outlines

00:00

📏 Fitts' Law in UX Design

The video script discusses the importance of Fitts' Law in user experience (UX) design. Fitts' Law states that the time it takes to acquire a target is a function of the distance to the target and the size of the target itself. This principle is crucial for designing interfaces where users can easily find and interact with buttons, call-to-actions, or links. The script suggests making touch targets large enough to be easily tapped, ensuring there is adequate spacing between targets to prevent accidental clicks, and placing these interactive elements in accessible locations within the design.

05:00

🛠 Hicks' Law: Simplifying User Decisions

Hicks' Law is introduced as a principle stating that the time it takes to make a decision increases with the number and complexity of choices. To adhere to this law, the script advises designers to minimize the number of options presented to users, especially when quick decisions are necessary. It recommends breaking down complex tasks into simpler steps and providing suggested options to guide users. The concept of progressive disclosure is also mentioned as a way to reveal options and information gradually, which is beneficial for onboarding and checkout processes.

🔄 Jacob's Law: Consistency in UX

Jacob's Law is highlighted, emphasizing that users prefer websites that work similarly to other sites they are familiar with. The script advises designers to use established UI and UX patterns rather than creating entirely new navigation systems. It suggests that designers should make minimal deviations from the norm and ensure that any changes do not confuse users. The goal is to leverage familiar patterns to make the user experience as intuitive as possible.

🧠 Miller's Law: Managing Cognitive Load

Miller's Law is discussed, which posits that the average person can only hold about seven items in their working memory at any one time. The script suggests that designers should challenge content and business ideas to ensure that users are not overwhelmed with too many options. It recommends categorizing and sub-categorizing items within a design to manage cognitive load effectively. The advice is to avoid filling the interface with unnecessary content just to reach the 'magic number' of seven, but rather to strive for the most streamlined and user-friendly design possible.

Keywords

💡Fitts's Law

Fitts's Law is a predictive model of human movement primarily used in human-computer interaction and ergonomics. It estimates the time required to move to a target based on the target's size and distance. In the context of the video, Fitts's Law is crucial for designing user interfaces where the placement and size of interactive elements like buttons and links should be optimized for ease of access and interaction, ensuring they are neither too small nor too far apart to cause user frustration.

💡Hick's Law

Hick's Law posits that the time it takes to make a decision increases with the number and complexity of choices available. The video emphasizes the importance of minimizing options to prevent cognitive overload, especially in scenarios where quick decisions are necessary. It suggests breaking down complex processes into simpler steps and highlighting suggested options to guide users effectively.

💡Jacob's Law

Jacob's Law, also known as the Law of Internet User Experience, states that users prefer websites that operate in a manner consistent with other sites they are familiar with. The video uses this law to argue for the adoption of established UI patterns and UX practices, advising against the creation of unique navigation systems that could confuse users by deviating from the norm.

💡Miller's Law

Miller's Law, often referred to as the magical number seven, plus or minus two, suggests that the average person can only keep about seven items in their working memory at one time. The video uses this law to advocate for the simplification of content and options within a design, encouraging designers to challenge the necessity of every element and to categorize information to enhance user retention and decision-making.

💡User Experience (UX)

User Experience, or UX, is the overall experience a user has while interacting with a system, including a website or an app. The video's main theme revolves around improving UX by adhering to certain design laws that make interfaces more intuitive and efficient. UX is the central focus of the script, with each law discussed directly impacting how users interact with and perceive a design.

💡Touch Targets

Touch targets refer to the elements on a touch screen interface that users can interact with, such as buttons or links. The video script highlights the importance of ensuring these targets are large enough to be easily tapped without causing accidental presses on adjacent elements, which is a direct application of Fitts's Law in the context of mobile design.

💡Cognitive Load

Cognitive load is the amount of mental effort being used in working memory during the process of learning or problem-solving. The video mentions reducing cognitive load by simplifying choices and breaking down complex flows, which is a key aspect of applying Hick's Law to improve decision-making processes in UX design.

💡Progressive Disclosure

Progressive disclosure is a design technique where information is revealed to the user in a step-by-step manner, reducing the initial cognitive load. The video script suggests using this technique to guide users through complex processes, such as onboarding or checkout experiences, by gradually presenting relevant options and information.

💡UI Patterns

UI patterns are reusable solutions to common design problems. The video script encourages designers to look to established UI patterns for inspiration, especially when creating interfaces that users are expected to navigate intuitively, in line with Jacob's Law.

💡Categorization

Categorization in UX design involves organizing content or options into groups to make it easier for users to understand and process information. The video script uses Miller's Law to emphasize the importance of categorizing items to manage the number of choices presented to users, helping to maintain an optimal cognitive load.

Highlights

Fitts' Law states that the time to acquire a target is a function of the distance to and the size of the target.

For effective UX, ensure touch targets like buttons and links are large enough and spaced appropriately.

Place important call-to-action areas where they are highly accessible and easy for users to find.

Hick's Law suggests that decision time increases with the number and complexity of choices.

To reduce cognitive load, minimize options and break complex tasks into smaller steps.

Highlighting suggested options can guide users and simplify decision-making.

Progressive disclosure is a technique to reveal options as users step through a process.

Jacob's Law emphasizes that users prefer sites that work similarly to other sites they are familiar with.

Adopt UI and UX patterns from other successful designs to make your product intuitive.

Avoid making users learn new mental models for navigation and interaction.

If you must deviate from the norm, ensure the change is minimal and doesn't confuse users.

Miller's Law indicates that people can hold about seven items in working memory at one time.

Challenge content and business ideas to reduce the number of options users need to consider.

Categorize and sub-categorize items in design to manage the number of choices presented to users.

Avoid filling pages with superfluous content just to reach the 'magic number' of seven items.

These four laws are considered the most important in UX design, but there are many more to explore.

The video is inspired by the 'Laws of UX' website, which provides examples and implementations of these laws.

Transcripts

there are tons of laws and principles

and best practices of ux design so many

in fact that it could make your little

ux heads spin in circles so in this

video I'm going to share the four most

important laws of ux design that you

need to know

our first up let's talk about fits law

fits law states that the time to acquire

a Target is a function of the distance

to and the size of the target itself a

key idea is to latch onto here are

distance and size that means for our

users to find that button or call to

action or link that you need them to

find it really is dependent on where

it's placed in the page or on the screen

the problem is that if you don't apply

fits law you start placing your call to

actions and important content on the

page in areas that are too far for the

user to really get to or make sense of

or that the button itself doesn't stand

out because it's not big enough we want

to make sure that these important call

to action areas really stand out so

here's a few suggestions on how to use

fits law in your everyday design work

touch targets call to actions buttons

anything that is tappable should be

large enough to actually be tapped or

interacted with if it's too small starts

to frustrate the user your touch targets

a AKA your buttons call to actions and

links should have enough space in

between them so you don't accidentally

click on one instead of the other make

sure there's a good amount of distance

between them and lastly these touch

targets should be placed Somewhere In

Your Design where they are incredibly

accessible and easy for the user to find

next up let's talk about Hicks law Hicks

law states that the time it takes to

make a decision increases with the

number and complexity of the choices

this means the more choices they are the

more that you cognitively overload your

users so don't give them tons of choices

slim it down and give them the most

important choices here's a few ways you

can actually Implement Hicks law and

start using it right now if decisions

need to be made quickly and response

times are something that are actually

critical you need to minimize the amount

of options on the screen available if

you have really complex flows and

complex things you're trying to

accomplish break them into smaller

easier to digest steps and allow the

user to go through step by step so you

won't over reload them you can actually

help users to make decisions not even by

lessening the options but by giving them

a suggested option by highlighting the

option you'd like them to take so for

instance would you like to check out now

or would you like to go back to your

cart or shop some more we want to go

ahead and highlight checkout now we can

use a little trick called Progressive

disclosure to start revealing items or

information or options to them as they

step through the process this is really

great for onboardings and checkout

experiences and numerous other

applications before we move on to the

other laws of ux a quick favor to ask of

you if you could leave a comment down

below just tell me where you're coming

from what your experiences with ux or

just say hi that would be great and

actually help with the algorithm for

other people to see this content if you

find it to be valuable maybe they would

too so leave a comment down below I'd

love to hear from you next up let's talk

about Jacob's law Jacob's law states

that users spend most of their time on

other sites this means that users prefer

your site to work the same way as all

other sites that they already know if

you're trying to accomplish similar

things that other people are trying to

accomplish with their users it doesn't

make sense to create some sort of new

amazing navigational structure or system

that nobody's ever seen before it makes

way more sense to lean on the tried and

true tactics and techniques that other

people have paved the way with here's a

few ways you can actually apply Jacob's

law to your everyday work the more a

like your product or design is to other

products or designs consider taking some

inspiration to some of the UI patterns

and ux patterns that they're using

throughout their work they already know

how to do that why not just make it easy

for your user next up don't make your

users learn new mental models of how to

get from one screen to another or how

navigation works from one area into

another use similar flows and mental

models and structures to make your

applications and Designs make sense if

you have to make a change and deviate

from the norm or the standard that you

can find elsewhere make sure you do it

as little as possible unless you

abstract yourself away so much from

what's usable that you end up confusing

your users so if you have to stray Just

Don't Stray too far and last on the list

let's talk about Miller's law Miller's

law states that the average person can

only keep seven plus or minus two items

in their working memory at any one time

seven items plus or minus a few is the

maximum that people can actually hold on

to and think about it one time before

they start forgetting some of the

options that have just been shown to

them this is a really good time to

challenge content and challenge your

business ideas and strategies because if

you have 50 things that the user needs

to select from do they really need to

select from all 50 of those things

here's a few ways to actually apply

Miller's law into your work figure out

ways to categorize and then

sub-categorize objects or items inside

of your design and if you need to figure

out how to sub subcategorize last little

tip you don't have to use the magical

number of seven if you have less options

go with less that's better don't fill it

out with a bunch of Superfluous content

just because you want to hit seven

challenge yourself to have as little as

possible on the page to make the user's

experience as good as it possibly can be

well that's it those are the four most

important laws of ux design some of you

out there might be saying well what

about this what or what about that one

you missed like I said earlier in the

video there are tons of laws and

principles and best practices in the ux

design these just happen to be the four

I find to be most important this video

was inspired by the website laws of ux

I'm gonna put the link down in the

description where you can explore these

four C examples implementations as well

as tons of other principles best

practices and ux laws so check that out

if you want to learn more I hope you

enjoyed the video if you did make sure

you leave a thumbs up subscribe the

channel and ring that Bell so you know

when more videos like this one come out

I hope you're having an amazing week I

hope you're designing amazing things

making amazing things and using these

laws of ux to make your designs even

better I'll see in the next one