Product UX Expert Core Principles Reduce Cognitive Load — Minimize mental effort required for every interaction Accessibility First — WCAG 2.2 AA is the baseline, not an afterthought Evidence-Based — Decisions backed by user research, not assumptions Anticipatory Design — Predict user needs before they ask Ethical Design — No dark patterns, transparent data practices Mobile First — Design for smallest screens, enhance for larger Quick Reference Nielsen's 10 Heuristics
Heuristic Key Question
1 Visibility of System Status Does the user always know what's happening? 2 Match System & Real World Does it use familiar language and concepts? 3 User Control & Freedom Can users easily undo or exit? 4 Consistency & Standards Does it follow platform conventions? 5 Error Prevention Does it prevent errors before they occur? 6 Recognition over Recall Is information visible, not memorized? 7 Flexibility & Efficiency Are there shortcuts for experts? 8 Aesthetic & Minimalist Design Is every element necessary? 9 Help Users with Errors Are error messages helpful and actionable? 10 Help & Documentation Is help available when needed? Cognitive Psychology Cognitive Load Types Intrinsic Load — Complexity inherent to the task itself Extraneous Load — Unnecessary complexity from poor design (eliminate this!) Germane Load — Mental effort for learning/understanding (support this)
Key Laws Hick's Law — More choices = longer decision time → Limit options to 5-7, use progressive disclosure
Miller's Law — Working memory holds 7±2 items → Chunk information, use visual grouping
Fitts's Law — Larger, closer targets are easier to click → Make primary actions big and accessible
Jakob's Law — Users expect your site to work like others → Follow established patterns
Von Restorff — Different items are more memorable → Highlight CTAs with contrast
Serial Position — First and last items remembered best → Put key info at start/end of lists
Gestalt Principles Proximity — Close elements are perceived as groups Similarity — Similar elements are perceived as related Continuity — Eyes follow smooth lines and curves Closure — Mind completes incomplete shapes Figure-Ground — Elements seen as foreground or background Common Region — Elements in same area are grouped
Heuristic Evaluation Process 1. Define scope — What screens/flows to evaluate 2. Select evaluators — 3-5 UX experts (80%+ issues found) 3. Independent review — Each expert reviews alone 4. Apply heuristics — Rate severity for each issue 5. Consolidate — Merge findings, remove duplicates 6. Prioritize — Rank by severity × frequency 7. Report — Actionable recommendations
Severity Rating Level Severity Description 0 Not a problem Evaluator disagrees it's an issue 1 Cosmetic Fix only if extra time available 2 Minor Low priority, causes friction 3 Major High priority, significant impact 4 Catastrophic Must fix before release Issue Template
Issue: [Brief Description]
Heuristic: #N - Name Severity: 0-4 Location: Screen / Component / Flow
Problem: What's wrong and why it matters to users.
Evidence: Screenshot or recording link.
Recommendation: Specific fix with before/after comparison.
User Journey Mapping Journey Map Structure ┌─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┐ │ PERSONA: [Name, Goals, Context] │ ├─────────┬─────────┬─────────┬─────────┬─────────┬──────────────┤ │ Stage │ Aware │ Consider│ Purchase│ Use │ Advocate │ ├─────────┼─────────┼─────────┼─────────┼─────────┼──────────────┤ │ Actions │ Search │ Compare │ Signup │ Onboard │ Share/Review │ ├─────────┼─────────┼─────────┼─────────┼─────────┼──────────────┤ │ Touch- │ Search │ Website │ Checkout│ App │ Social │ │ points │ Ads │ Reviews │ Email │ Support │ Email │ ├─────────┼─────────┼─────────┼─────────┼─────────┼──────────────┤ │ Emotions│ 😐 │ 🤔 │ 😟 │ 😊 │ 😍 │ │ │ curious │ hopeful │ anxious │ relieved│ delighted │ ├─────────┼─────────┼─────────┼─────────┼─────────┼──────────────┤ │ Pain │ Too many│ Info │ Complex │ Unclear │ No referral │ │ Points │ options │ overload│ forms │ next │ program │ ├─────────┼─────────┼─────────┼─────────┼─────────┼──────────────┤ │ Opportu-│ Clear │ Compare │ 1-click │ Progress│ Share │ │ nities │ tagline │ table │ signup │ tracker │ incentive │ └─────────┴─────────┴─────────┴─────────┴─────────┴──────────────┘
Touchpoint Analysis For each touchpoint, evaluate:
- Entry Point — How do users arrive?
- User Goal — What are they trying to accomplish?
- Friction — What slows them down?
- Emotion — How do they feel?
- Drop-off Risk — Where might they abandon?
- Opportunity — How can we improve?
Accessibility (WCAG 2.2 AA) POUR Principles Perceivable — Can users perceive the content? ✓ Text alternatives for images ✓ Captions for video ✓ 4.5:1 color contrast ✓ Resizable text (up to 200%)
Operable — Can users operate the interface? ✓ Keyboard accessible ✓ No keyboard traps ✓ Skip navigation links ✓ Sufficient time limits ✓ Focus visible (new in 2.2!)
Understandable — Can users understand the content? ✓ Language declared ✓ Consistent navigation ✓ Error identification ✓ Labels and instructions
Robust — Works with assistive technology? ✓ Valid HTML ✓ ARIA landmarks ✓ Status messages announced
New in WCAG 2.2 (2023-2025) Focus Not Obscured (AA) — Focused element not fully hidden Focus Appearance (AA) — Visible focus indicator (2px outline) Dragging Movements (AA) — Alternatives to drag-and-drop Target Size (AA) — Minimum 24×24 CSS pixels Consistent Help (A) — Help mechanisms in consistent locations Redundant Entry (A) — Don't ask for same info twice Accessible Authentication (A) — No cognitive function tests for login
Quick Checklist
Accessibility Check
Perceivable
- [ ] All images have meaningful alt text
- [ ] Videos have captions and transcripts
- [ ] Color contrast ratio ≥ 4.5:1 (text), ≥ 3:1 (large text)
- [ ] Information not conveyed by color alone
- [ ] Text can be resized to 200% without loss
Operable
- [ ] All functionality available via keyboard
- [ ] Focus order is logical
- [ ] Focus indicator is visible (2px outline minimum)
- [ ] No keyboard traps
- [ ] Skip links provided
- [ ] Touch targets ≥ 24×24px
Understandable
- [ ] Page language declared
- [ ] Consistent navigation across pages
- [ ] Form errors clearly identified
- [ ] Labels associated with inputs
Robust
- [ ] Valid HTML (no duplicate IDs)
- [ ] ARIA roles used correctly
- [ ] Works with screen readers (NVDA/VoiceOver)
Interaction Patterns Micro-interactions Purpose of micro-interactions: 1. Feedback — Confirm user action (button click, form submit) 2. Status — Show current state (loading, progress) 3. Guidance — Direct attention (onboarding tooltips) 4. Delight — Create emotional connection (subtle animations)
Best Practices: ✓ Keep animations under 300ms ✓ Use easing (ease-out for exits, ease-in for entries) ✓ Respect prefers-reduced-motion ✓ Animate properties that don't trigger layout (transform, opacity)
Motion Design Principles Duration Scale: - Micro (fade, state change) → 100-200ms - Small (dropdown, tooltip) → 200-300ms - Medium (modal, sidebar) → 300-400ms - Large (page transition) → 400-500ms
Easing: - ease-out → Elements entering (decelerate into view) - ease-in → Elements exiting (accelerate out of view) - ease-in-out → Elements moving (natural feel)
Form Design ✓ One column layout (no side-by-side inputs) ✓ Labels above inputs (not placeholder-only) ✓ Group related fields visually ✓ Inline validation (after field blur) ✓ Clear error messages with solutions ✓ Show password option ✓ Autofill support (autocomplete attributes) ✓ Smart defaults based on context
Design System Integration Component States Every interactive component needs:
Default — Normal resting state Hover — Mouse over (desktop) Focus — Keyboard focus (visible ring) Active — Being pressed/clicked Disabled — Not currently available Loading — Processing action Error — Validation failed Success — Action completed
Design Tokens { "color": { "text": { "primary": "#1a1a1a", "secondary": "#6b6b6b", "disabled": "#a3a3a3", "inverse": "#ffffff" }, "interactive": { "default": "#0066cc", "hover": "#0052a3", "active": "#003d7a", "focus": "#0066cc" }, "feedback": { "error": "#d32f2f", "warning": "#f57c00", "success": "#388e3c", "info": "#1976d2" } }, "spacing": { "xs": "4px", "sm": "8px", "md": "16px", "lg": "24px", "xl": "32px" }, "radius": { "sm": "4px", "md": "8px", "lg": "16px", "full": "9999px" } }
2025 UX Trends AI-Driven Personalization ✓ Adaptive interfaces based on user behavior ✓ Predictive content suggestions ✓ Context-aware personalization ✓ Real-time UI adjustments
⚠️ Always provide transparency and user control ⚠️ Respect privacy, use on-device processing when possible
Anticipatory Design Design that: - Predicts user needs before they ask - Reduces decision fatigue with smart defaults - Automates repetitive tasks - Surfaces relevant information proactively
Example: Pre-filling shipping address based on previous orders
Ethical Design Practices DO: ✓ Clear consent for data collection ✓ Easy-to-find privacy settings ✓ Honest product representations ✓ Sustainable design (reduce digital carbon)
DON'T (Dark Patterns): ✗ Confirmshaming ("No, I don't want to save money") ✗ Hidden costs ✗ Trick questions ✗ Forced continuity (hard-to-cancel subscriptions) ✗ Misdirection ✗ Roach motels (easy in, hard out)
Evaluation Template
UX Evaluation Report
Overview
- Product: [Name]
- Scope: [Screens/Flows evaluated]
- Date: [Date]
- Evaluators: [Names]
Executive Summary
[2-3 sentences on overall UX health and critical findings]
Methodology
- Nielsen's 10 Heuristics
- WCAG 2.2 AA Compliance Check
- Cognitive Load Analysis
Findings by Severity
Catastrophic (Severity 4)
[Issues that must be fixed immediately]
Major (Severity 3)
[High priority issues]
Minor (Severity 2)
[Low priority improvements]
Accessibility Status
- [ ] WCAG 2.2 A Compliance
- [ ] WCAG 2.2 AA Compliance
- [ ] Screen Reader Compatible
- [ ] Keyboard Navigation Complete
Recommendations
[Prioritized action items with effort estimates]
Appendix
- Screenshot evidence
- User testing video clips
- Competitive analysis
See Also reference/heuristics.md — Detailed heuristic examples reference/accessibility.md — Full WCAG 2.2 checklist reference/psychology.md — Cognitive psychology deep dive reference/journey-mapping.md — Journey mapping templates