6 Highlights from “100 THINGS Every Designer Needs To Know About PEOPLE”

If a font is hard to read, the meaning of the text will be lost

There are many fonts that are easy to read. Any of them are fine to use. But avoid a font that is so decorative that it starts to interfere with pattern recognition in the brain.

Takeaways• SERIF = good• SANS SERIF = good• Unusual or overly

decorative != good

People are more motivated as they get closer to a goal

Reward Card

Reward Card

Kivetz, Ran, Urminsky, O., and Zheng, U. 2006. “The goal-gradient hypothesis resurrected: Purchase acceleration, illusionary goal progress, and customer retention.” Journal of Marketing Research 39: 39-58.

Takeaways• D(distance) inv. to M(motivation)

• Illusory progress ≈ actual progress

• Motivation plummets after goal reached

People want more choices and information than they can process

60% 40%3% 31%

Iyengar, Sheena. 2010. The Art of Choosing. New York: Twelve

#choices vs #sales

# choices

sample ratesalesrate

Takeaways• 4 choices at once• For more, break up

into steps

It’s easier to recognize information than recall itManBat

RiverCan

CampFish

BallFire

• Man• Bat• Skunk• River• Snake• Can

• Glove• Camp• Fish• Ball• Fire• Bear

Takeaways• Use context clues• Try to no require

users to remember

People process information best In story form

• Medtronic annual report

• Antoinette• Medtronic

helped her• Links

financials and mission

• Makes less boring

Takeaways• Dry+Story=Less Dry• Stories help process

& remember• Stories imply

causation

People expect online interactions to follow social rules

Takeaways• All online

interactions are social interactions

• Be too forward and they might walk

For more info, see“The Brain Lady.”• Susan M. Weinschenk• Ph.D. in Psychology• 30 years applying psych to tech• Author, “Neuro Web Design: What

makes them click?”• Whatmakesthemclick.net