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UX Design Patterns What, Why and How

UX design patterns provide solutions to common website usability problems. They increase efficiency for designers by providing ready-made solutions in pattern databases. Websites built using patterns are easier for users due to familiarity and functionality. To use patterns, designers determine usability issues, analyze how other sites solved similar problems, and implement the appropriate pattern. Patterns are classified by function, such as input/output, navigation, and content organization. Overall, patterns streamline the design process and improve the user experience.

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Ilja Aradski
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20 views

UX Design Patterns What, Why and How

UX design patterns provide solutions to common website usability problems. They increase efficiency for designers by providing ready-made solutions in pattern databases. Websites built using patterns are easier for users due to familiarity and functionality. To use patterns, designers determine usability issues, analyze how other sites solved similar problems, and implement the appropriate pattern. Patterns are classified by function, such as input/output, navigation, and content organization. Overall, patterns streamline the design process and improve the user experience.

Uploaded by

Ilja Aradski
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
Available Formats
Download as DOCX, PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd
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UX Design Patterns: What, Why and How

The success of a website hinges on the kind of experience it provides to visitors. If a website is a
chore to use as a result of some combination of unresponsive buttons, unintuitive navigation menus,
or unappealing visuals, visitors will start bouncing less than a minute after they’ve arrived.
Conversely, if a website responds well to input, has a sensible layout, and is pleasing to the senses,
visitors will keep coming back for more.
That’s how it works, at least in theory. In practice however, things are easier said than done. There
are a lot variables to consider when designing a website, and getting them right can take a lot of
effort, especially since making UX mistakes can be quite costly. Web designers are well aware of
this, so they had to come up with a number of solutions to make their life a bit easier. And one of
the things they came up with are UX design patterns.
To find out more about these are, what is the benefit of using them, and how one should go about
doing so, take a look at the guide we have prepared in the rest of this article.

What Are Design Patterns?


A pattern is way of arranging elements into a structure. On a subjective level, finding patterns is a
behavioral principle that is crucial for organizing our experience into manageable chunks. To
accomplish this, we often rely on patterns we find in objects surrounding us. The more organized an
object, or a collection of object is, the easier it is for us to spot a pattern. These principles apply in
all domains of experience, including that of using a website. In this context, patterns are a way of
designing and arranging website elements so that they conform to user expectations. UX design
patterns in particular are a way of solving website usability problems. User experience design
patterns are closely related to user interface design patterns, with the difference being that the latter
are more focused on technical side of things, whereas the former are more concerned with the
experience itself.

Why Use Design Patterns?


UX design patterns are useful both for web design companies, and for website visitors. The benefits
tend to overlap to a certain degree, which is understandable since they are based on the same
underlying logic.
For designers, UX patterns have two major benefits. One is the increased efficiency of the design
process. Instead of coming up with new solutions for UX related tasks and issues, designers can
simply search a pattern database such as ui-patterns.com to find a ready-made one. These patterns
can also include implementation details, further increasing the efficiency of UX design. The other
major advantage of using UX patterns is streamlining communication between designers. UX
patterns are kind of language which designers can use to describe particular problems and solutions
to each other, instead of framing them in more subjective terms which might be unintelligible to the
other party.
From the users’ perspective, websites built according to UX design patterns are preferable to others
for three reasons. The first is the enjoyment factor. UX design patterns rely on psychological
principles for their effectiveness at producing positive experiences, so users are guaranteed a
baseline of satisfaction. The second is the familiarity factor. Whether they know it or not, users are
already accustomed to certain patterns in UX design, and if a website conforms to them, they will
have an easier time finding their bearing while visiting. The third is the convenience factor. A
website designed according to UX design patterns is built with functionality in mind, so users can
easily accomplish whatever they came to do, whether it is accessing content, purchasing items, or
simply having fun.

How To Use UX Design Patterns?


The standard approach to implementing UX design patterns consists of four steps:
1. Determine the UX problem that needs to be solved.
2. Find out how other websites have tackled the problem.
3. Use the information gathered in previous steps to find the appropriate pattern in a UX design
pattern database.
For the first step, you need to examine your website for usability issues. This can be accomplished
by doing research on forums and social networks, by conducting user surveys and interviews, and
by using the site yourself. The goal here is to find what particular aspects of your website the users
find annoying, unintuitive, or otherwise problematic. A handy way to determine UX issues is by
asking the following questions:
 Which UX elements are more important than others?
 What can users interact with on my website?
 How do users know they can scroll for more information?
 Which icons should I use for which element?
 How can a user find out if a website function is unavailable?
 How do users know when one section ends, and another begins?
 How do users know where they are on the site?
 etc.
For the second step, you should attempt to analyze websites similar to yours to see how they solved
similar kinds of issues. It is advisable to check bigger, popular websites first, as they are likely to
have encountered these issues, as well as found adequate solutions. Be sure to examine the technical
implementation behind the solutions, which you can do by using your browser’s in-built developer
tools.
For the third step, you should use the information you’ve gathered to figure out the kind of pattern
you need, and then find one on a website such as the aforementioned ui-patterns.com. There you
will find all the details you need to implement your own custom solution.
Once you get a hang of this workflow, it will become second nature to find the right design pattern
for every UX problem you come across. In general, UX design patterns can be divided into a
number of categories.
One method of classification divides patterns into groups based on the website function they target,
and it has 3 categories:
 input and output patterns are based around how the user submits input to the website, and
how the website responds in turn.
 navigation patterns are used for guiding the user around the website, making sure that they
are properly oriented at all times.
 content structuring patterns help you organize your website content so that users can have an
easy time accessing it.
An example of input/output pattern would be how to set up a functional date picker element on your
website. A good date picker should allow users to enter the date manually, or to select from a
calendar interface. It should also provide clear feedback when you select a date.
An example of a navigation pattern would be how to set up infinite scroll on the main content page
of your website. Infinite scroll enables users to consume more content by having it load as they
progress through the website.
An example of a content structuring pattern would be how to create a dashboard for facilitating
effective access to your website’s content. An effective dashboard should reduce the visual clutter of
your website, as well reduce the need to present redundant information.

Conclusion
UX design patterns have been a huge boon to UX designers and developers. They offer a means of
solving common UX problems in an efficient manner, making the process of creating websites that
generate a positive experience fundamentally easier.

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