Let’s think about “Don’t make me think” by Steve Krug ! Part -1

Disclaimer : This article is kind of a summary of the first section(Guiding Principle) of revisited version. But I highly recommend you to read this book line by line.

Imagine Steve Krug himself is sitting with you to help you make the most user friendly website. And your conversation just started !

Steve says look kid ! First thing first “I should never have to devote a single millisecond of thought to whether things are clickable or not ! If you can’t make something self evident, you at least need to make it self explanatory and this is applicable to each and every element you create in your website.

Then he starts looking at some random website and asks you what do you think how users see this page full of content, pictures and drama ?

and you say like this :

He says “No” ! In reality : They scan the page -> clicks on the first link that catches their attention like this :

They tend to focus on words or phrases that ‘seems’ to match their

1. Tasks at hand
2. Current ongoing personal interest

People, aren’t meticulous researchers; they’re satisficers (satisfy+suffice) . They choose the first reasonable option that meets their needs.

We should treat most use cases as a mission that can be accomplished in a short amount of time, and limiting the amount of text on a screen is essential to this goal.

Source : Dribble

Steve says the reason why users don’t look for best choice :

1. We’re always in a hurry ! And there’s no penalty as such for guessing wrong.
2. We don’t figure how things work, instead we forge ahead & muddle through. It’s more fun that way !

Now the question comes how to design for scanning and not reading ?

Your website should convey it’s purpose in mere seconds just like a billboard !

• It is important to show navigation for all the potential levels of the site.
• A good visual hierarchy saves our work by preprocessing the page for us, organising and prioritising it’s content in a way that we can grasp almost instantly.
• Stick to the conventions but .. If you can make something significantly clearer by making it significantly inconsistent then chose in favour of clarity. “Clarity triumphs Consistency”.
• Never use same colour for links and headings and always keep your page less noisy ! Always start with removing everything that’s not part of the solution.
• Remember ! Three mindless unambiguous clicks equals one click that requires thought.
• Persistent navigation should be on each page except forms, registration, subscription, giving feedback, checking off personalisation preference.
• If you are guiding your users make sure : You put information in the right place, at the right time and in a format that is noticeable.

Process of visiting a store is similar to visiting a website

Types of users :

Search dominant users : “Where is the search bar?”

Link dominant users : Oh ! almost clicked at all the links that interests to me. Now, let’s go to search bar !

For everyone else it just depends on their mood.

Few questions to ask once you are done with designing (Trunk Test):

1. What site is this ?
2. What page am I on ?
3. What are the major sections of this site?
4. What are my options at this level?
5. Where am I in the scheme of things?(“You are here indicators”)
6. How can I search?

If you can answer all the above questions successfully, you are good to go ! If not “Restart” and see where you are going wrong.

In conclusion, Steve Krug’s principles from “Don’t Make Me Think” emphasise simplicity and clarity in web design. Users prefer clear navigation and tend to choose the first option that meets their needs. By prioritising intuitive design and minimising clutter, we can create websites that resonate with users and provide a seamless browsing experience. I’ll be writing another part of the same book. Stay tuned !