Choose the right creative design principles

I am often asked how I can choose the right one from the hundreds of ideas I have obtained during the brainstorming. In addition to relying on intuition and experience, there is another way to help us decide and define design principles. Before 2007, we called these principles “design standards” until I saw the article “Popular Computing Studio: Mobile User Experience Design Principles” written by Rachel Hinman.

What are design principles

Design principles describe the core value of a product or service experience.
The writing of design principles should be short and easy to remember. As a designer, you should keep these principles in mind when doing projects. Even if some functions overlap, a good design principle usually has a clear function. Therefore, we cannot define it as “easy to use”. Design principles should not be contradictory.

Google user experience design principles
1. People-oriented-pay attention to people’s lives, work and their dreams.
2. Race against time.
3. Simple and practical.
4. Retain beginners and attract experts.
5. Be brave to innovate.
6. Designed for global users.
7. Based on today, facing the future.
8. Produce visual pleasure and maintain user attention.
9. Live up to people’s trust.
10. A bit of a human touch.

Design principles are only used to help choose ideas, not to generate ideas.
Design principles are just to help people choose ideas. It is not a wise thing to insist on these principles too much in the early stage of stimulating creativity. Although it is a good way to use a physical framework to stimulate creativity during brainstorming, you don’t need to be too limited to this in the initial sketching of ideas. Otherwise, it is difficult for us to come up with a great idea. Sometimes, although an idea does not conform to the design principles, it may bring other designers creative inspiration that conforms to the principles.

What are design principles
1. Based on design research
2. Short and easy to remember
3. Cross-functional
4. Clear rather than “easy to use”
5. Bring differences together
6. Not contradictory

More examples of design principles The design principles of
Google Calendar
1. Fast
2. Visually attractive and pleasant experience
3. Use an extremely simple way to gather information into the calendar
4. The screen is not just a table (but also reminders. Invitation, etc.)
5. Convenient sharing function, so that you can follow all your life in one place

Microsoft Surface design team’s definition of natural user interface
1. Resonance: performance aesthetic principle
2. Non-intermediary: direct use principle
3. Quick and easy: scaffolding principle
4. Intertextuality: intertextual environment principle
5. Intuition: Absolute reality principle

The Microsoft Surface interface should be:
1. Socialization: simultaneous use by multiple users
2. Seamless docking: combination of digital and physical
3. Spatiality: kinematics

Tivo’s design principles
1. It’s entertainment, idiot
2. It’s TV, idiot
3. It’s video, my God
4. Everything is smooth and gentle
5. Not artificial, simple structure
6. Respect for user privacy
7. Same as TV, yes Durable Goods

Based on the above principles, I agree with the following points:

People-oriented-pay attention to people’s lives, work and their dreams.
After all, whether it is a product or a service, the goal is to meet people’s needs in a certain aspect, the material level and the spiritual level. In short, practicality is the core!

Retain beginners and attract experts.
Two of the ten usability guidelines say this: let users always know their state and “time and space”; give users complete autonomy and control.
The most important thing for a non-talking software and interface for beginners is that it is easy to use and easy to use. After all, he wants to use products and services to achieve a certain purpose, rather than learning how to use it; for expert users , Many use tips and routine operations are already well-acquainted. If everything is business as usual, they will have a sense of boredom and no fun of exploration. They want more efficient operation and use, and more new things are waiting for them to explore.

Produce visual pleasure and maintain user attention.
Don’t just think about simplicity, don’t just think about letting users follow the steps you set quickly. Although the clean and simple interface will minimize visual interference, it will also stimulate users. Reduced to a minimum. Therefore, a pleasant and beautiful interface is absolutely essential. No one likes a dull, boring, and colorless interface. The snow-covered land is the cleanest, but also the most lifeless. Moreover, humans are the animals that love the new and dislike the old the most, so they have to change frequently.

It’s a bit of a human touch.
It’s said that the theory of Marketing 3.0 has come out. It’s like this: In the era of Marketing 1.0, there is a seller’s market, and things can be bought because the supply exceeds demand; in the era of Marketing 2.0, it’s a buyer’s market, based on the needs of users. Carry out production to meet the individual needs of users; and the era of marketing 3.0 pursues from products to customers, and then to humanistic care. I mention this to show that spiritual needs are the core. A little care, a little recognition, and a little respect will bring about a longer-term, longer-lasting and stronger relationship.

Intertextuality: Principle
of Intertextual Environment Regarding this point, I have read win7 UXGuide. The correct understanding should be that the performance of software should be consistent with people’s understanding and cognition of the real environment in the real world.

Intuition: The principle of absolute realism.
Software is also a “person”. She has actions, feedback, and interaction. How do people “move” in the real world, and whether the feelings of speed, size, blur, distance, etc. are in line with human habits.

Of course, I think the most important thing is-the most feared by creative
people is habit, habit becomes natural, right and wrong, good and bad, cognition and behavior have been limited to jail, it is difficult to break through, it is difficult to innovate, and the world Nothing is set in stone, and nothing is always right and suitable. So we must jump out of that circle, re-examine, break the routine, seek change and innovation, even if that is wrong!

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