Skeuomorphism, which imitates real-world textures and physical elements within digital interfaces, had its heyday in the early 2000s before falling out of favor with the advent of minimalism. Designers are now embracing skeuomorphism once again as a way of creating more comfortable, familiar, and engaging digital user experiences.

In exploring the long-term prospects of this revival of skeuomorphism, we’ll consider the origins, decline, and resurgence of skeuomorphism, highlighting its role in bridging the gap between the physical and digital realms in modern UX design. Read More

Have you ever heard your product team make any of the following statements? “We don’t need to test; we know what our users want.” This product is easy enough to learn and use, and we don’t have the time or resources for testing.” We’ve all heard such claims before. Unfortunately, this presents a typical dilemma: We race to meet deadlines at the expense of creating an excellent user experience because we’ve skipped the testing process. Fortunately, there’s a way to overcome these issues.

Testing is not something we should ignore. It helps us fail faster and get input from our users regarding our product’s usability. It also saves us time and money in the long run. RITE evaluation is a game changer in usability testing and iterative design that increases the efficiency and effectiveness of testing. In this article, you’ll discover how this revolutionary technique can transform how we verify digital products to deliver a seamless user experience from concept to execution. Read More

A clunky Web site or app user experience compromises an organization’s ability to engage their intended audience and generate revenue through their platform. Visitors explore a platform to seek answers to their questions or find viable solutions to their problems. Therefore, the best way to engage your target audience is to design a visually appealing, functional platform that facilitates their access to relevant information and functionality.

However, offering a seamless user experience might not be easy because you could encounter various challenges. In this article, I’ll discuss best practices for identifying and solving UX design problems. Let’s dive in. Read More

Voice user interfaces (VUIs) such as Siri, Alexa, and Google Assistant have become some of the most useful products in common use. These products have become a very important part of numerous people’s daily lives.

These unique VUI devices and the powerful systems behind them enable users to easily interact with a variety of digital devices and apps using just simple voice commands. An efficient voice user interface can be easy to use, responsive, and even proactive.

If you’re still considering how these technological innovations can help human beings, continue reading this article to find out. Read More

In the quest to keep users engaged, many businesses rely on a mix of popular retention hacks and best practices. These might include frequent push notifications, loyalty programs, or gamification features. While these methods can provide some short-term gains, they often fall short in addressing the core issue of user retention.

The problem with these approaches is that they’re based on generalized assumptions rather than specific user data. What works for one app or Web site might not work for another. Each product has a unique user base with distinct behaviors and preferences. Applying generic strategies without understanding the specific user base is like trying to solve a puzzle while blindfolded. Read More

“May I have your attention, please?” This is a common phrase in our everyday lives. Other attention-seeking requests include a supervisor instructing a worker to stay focused, a parent warning a child, a teacher expressing a firm request to students, or an announcement at an airport. Such requests are so common we often miss their deeper meaning. When someone is asking for something from us, our attention is precious. In this article, I’ll explore why human attention is so valuable.

In today’s world of constant distractions, when phone notifications never stop, and information continually bombards us, our capacity for focus has become challenging. When we pay attention and focus, we’re devoting a finite asset that shapes our experiences and influences what we notice and retain. In studying how the human brain focuses and why, we must observe how, in every second of our lives, we are bombarded with numerous stimuli, each competing for our limited attention. We live in a world where everyone wants to grab our attention in some form and hold it. UX designers with knowledge of how the mechanism of attention works can create digital products that connect with users and have a meaningful impact on their lives. Read More

Most online users expect user-friendly designs across all of their platforms when interacting with your brand. However, many businesses struggle to meet these expectations, which leads to poor user experiences. Disregarding users’ expectations during your UX design process not only leads to frustrated users, but can also cause the loss of potential customers, result in users abandoning your Web site or app, and tarnish your brand reputation. The stakes are high, and these consequences are real.

Given the high cost of alienating potential customers with confusing user interfaces, leveraging the use of Gestalt principles of human perception is crucial. These principles are not just theoretical concepts but practical tools that can empower UX designers to create easy-to-use designs that meet your audience’s psychological needs. Gestalt principles can explain how people categorize similar elements, identify patterns, and comprehend sophisticated images when viewing user interfaces and other objects. Read More

UX researchers now have the important job of ensuring that generative artificial-intelligence (GenAI) products deliver real value to actual people. This involves addressing unique challenges that are inherent to the current state of GenAI technology—challenges such as managing unpredictability, inaccurate outputs, and new interactions—ultimately ensuring that this technology is worthy of human trust. Given this reality, how can UX researchers successfully navigate this new frontier?

Based on our experience leading UX research for GenAI products across a variety of personas and use cases, we’ve identified a few things that you can do to become better prepared to conduct or lead UX research for GenAI products. Remember, you represent the human user and might be the only voice representing the user in creating a completely new experience! Read More

Artificial intelligence (AI) is increasingly playing a greater role in a variety of business sectors. The domain of UX design is no exception. Although some developers and UX designers have lingering skepticism about AI, they are embracing AI because of the many benefits it offers.

In fact, a recent survey by HubSpot shows that about 49% of UX designers are using AI to experiment with new design strategies or elements. What role does AI currently play in UX design? Will AI replace UX design or UX designers? Continue reading to find out what UX designers can expect from AI tools. Read More