100 Things Every Designer Needs to Know About People (Voices That Matter)

People from different geographical regions and cultures respond differently to photos and Web site designs. In East Asia people notice and remember the background and context more than people in the West do.

Make it easy for people to undo not only their last action, but also an entire sequence.

Try not to require people to recall information. It’s much easier for them to recognize information than recall it from memory.

It’s always a good idea to organize information for your audience as much as possible. Keep in mind the four-item rule from the “How People Remember” chapter.

People use peripheral vision when they look at a computer screen, and usually decide what a page is about based on a quick glimpse of what is in their peripheral vision.

Motivation and purchases plummet right after the goal is reached. This is called a post-reward resetting phenomenon. If you have a second reward level people won’t initially be very motivated to reach that second reward.

If you use color to imply a certain meaning (for example, items in green need immediate attention), use a redundant coding scheme (items in green and with a box around them need immediate attention).

People will build an unconscious mental model of how often an event occurs.

Provide a meaningful title or headline. It’s one of the most important things you can do.