It’s likely the case that the design of your product isn’t so terribly unintuitive that it needs to be covered with labels, warnings, instructions and disclaimers.
It’s also probably the case that you’re product design isn’t perfect, and does require some labeling. (although striving for zero labels is exactly what you should be doing).
No, you’re design is somewhere in between, so how much labeling is just enough?
You need sufficient labeling that the novice doesn’t feel lost, but not so much that the expert feels patronized.
Who are your novices? How much labeling do they need?
Who are your experts? How much labeling will they endure?
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Article by chris loughnane
Chris is Design Engineer + Sustainability Advocate at a Boston area design consultancy and has written 150 sweet posts for the Product Development Notebook.
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