The following user-experience articles published in 2024 were the ones our audience read the most:
- Card Sorting: Uncover Users’ Mental Models for Better Information Architecture
In a card-sorting study, users organize topics into groups. Use this research method to create an information architecture that suits your users’ expectations.
- Open-Ended vs. Closed Questions in User Research
Open-ended questions result in deeper insights. Closed questions provide clarification and detail, but no unexpected insights.
- Generative UI and Outcome-Oriented Design
GenUI promises highly personalized interfaces — a move from designing for many to tailoring for the individual.
- Mental Models
What users believe they know about a user interface impacts how they use it. Mismatched mental models are common, especially with designs that try something new.
- Affinity Diagramming for Collaboratively Sorting UX Findings and Design Ideas
Use affinity diagramming to cluster and organize research findings or to sort design ideas in ideation workshops.
- Homepage Design: 5 Fundamental Principles
Effective homepages are simple and easy to access, communicate the organization’s and site’s purpose, show engaging content, and prompt users to take action.
- NN/g’s Free UX Templates and Guides
Use this curated set of free NN/g templates and guides for inspiration and to accelerate your product development activities and UX career.
- Menu-Design Checklist: 17 UX Guidelines
People rely on menus to find content and use features. Use this checklist to make sure your menus do their job.
- Comparison Tables for Products, Services, and Features
Use this versatile GUI tool to support users when they need to make a decision that involves considering multiple attributes of a small number of offerings. Consistency in content, scannability, and a simple layout are some of the most important qualities of successful comparison tables.
- Design Systems vs. Style Guides
Design systems are a set of standards (like Google’s Material Design or IBM’s Carbon Design System) needed to manage design at scale. Style guides (like content or visual style guides) are just one piece in a design system.
Bonus: Top 5 Articles from Last Year
The following articles were published in 2023 but were so popular in 2024 that they would have earned a place in the above list based on this year’s readership numbers alone:
- Heuristic Evaluations: How to Conduct
Step-by-step instructions to systematically review your product to find potential usability and experience problems. Download a free heuristic evaluation template.
- User Interviews 101
User interviews help you learn who your users are, what their experiences are like, and what they need, value, and desire.
- User Journeys vs. User Flows
User journeys and user flows both describe processes users go through in order to accomplish their goals. While both tools are useful for planning and evaluating experience, they differ in scope, purpose, and format.
- AI for UX: Getting Started
Use generative-AI tools to support and enhance your UX skills — not to replace them. Start with small UX tasks and watch out for hallucinations and bad advice.
- Error-Message Guidelines
Design effective error messages by ensuring they are highly visible, provide constructive communication, and respect user effort.
