Archetypes
Universal, symbolic patterns and images that derive from the collective unconscious, used in design to create meaningful and resonant experiences. Useful for creating designs that tap into universal human experiences and emotions.
Universal, symbolic patterns and images that derive from the collective unconscious, used in design to create meaningful and resonant experiences. Useful for creating designs that tap into universal human experiences and emotions.
A central location where data is stored and managed. Important for ensuring data consistency, accessibility, and integrity in digital products.
The observed tendency of humans to quickly return to a relatively stable level of happiness despite major positive or negative events or life changes. Useful for designing experiences that maintain user engagement and satisfaction over time.
Guidelines and principles designed to ensure that AI systems are developed and used in a manner that is ethical and responsible. Crucial for building trust and ensuring the responsible use of AI technologies.
A reading pattern where users quickly scan for specific markers or keywords within the content. Important for optimizing content for quick search and retrieval.
The collection of all the backlinks (inbound links) pointing to a website, used to assess its authority and influence in search engine rankings. Essential for understanding and improving SEO strategies.
A metric that measures how engaged users are with a product, often based on usage frequency, feature adoption, and user feedback. Crucial for assessing user satisfaction and identifying areas for improvement in the product experience.
Digital Asset Management (DAM) is a system that stores, organizes, and manages digital assets, such as images, videos, and documents. Essential for maintaining and leveraging digital content efficiently in product design and marketing.
The tendency for people to overestimate their ability to control events. Important for understanding user behavior and designing experiences that manage expectations.
A Gestalt principle stating that elements with a distinct visual feature (e.g., a unique color, size, or shape) capture attention and are perceived as a focal point. Crucial for designing interfaces that direct attention toward visual elements that signal and enable forward progress.
A cognitive architecture model that explains how humans can learn and adapt to new tasks. Useful for understanding user learning and behavior adaptation, informing better user experience design.
The study of computers as persuasive technologies, focusing on how they can change attitudes or behaviors. Important for designing systems that effectively influence user behavior ethically.
Measurements that track the effectiveness of each stage of the funnel, such as conversion rates and drop-off points. Crucial for identifying areas of improvement in the customer journey.
The organizational structure and dynamics of teams within a company, designed to enhance collaboration and delivery. Important for optimizing team performance and project outcomes.
A cognitive bias where people wrongly believe they have direct insight into the origins of their mental states, while treating others' introspections as unreliable. Important for designing experiences that account for discrepancies between user self-perception and actual behavior.
The high-level structure of a software application, defining its components and their interactions. Essential for designing robust, scalable, and maintainable digital products.
A user-centered design process that involves understanding users' needs and workflows through field research and applying these insights to design. Essential for creating designs that are deeply informed by user contexts and behaviors.
A research design where the same participants are used in all conditions of an experiment, allowing for the comparison of different conditions within the same group. Essential for reducing variability and improving the reliability of experimental results.
A data visualization technique that shows the intensity of data points with varying colors, often used to represent user interactions on a website. Essential for understanding user behavior and identifying areas of interest or concern in digital product interfaces.
The practice of developing artificial intelligence systems that are fair, transparent, and respect user privacy and rights. Crucial for ensuring that AI technologies are developed responsibly and ethically.
A cognitive bias where individuals strengthen their beliefs when presented with evidence that contradicts them. Important for understanding user resistance to change and designing strategies to address and mitigate this bias.
Drivers, Approvers, Contributors, and Informed (DACI) is a responsibility assignment framework that clarifies roles and responsibilities. Essential for making clear and effective decisions in collaborative environments.
The process of fundamentally changing how a service is delivered to improve efficiency, user satisfaction, and overall effectiveness. Essential for enhancing service delivery and aligning it with modern user needs and expectations.
A cognitive bias where users believe they have explored all available content, even when more is present. Important for designing interfaces that clearly indicate the presence of additional content.
Must have, Should have, Could have, and Won't have (MoSCoW) is a method used to prioritize features or tasks. Crucial for effective project management and ensuring focus on essential features.
A theory of emotion suggesting that physical and emotional responses to stimuli occur simultaneously and independently. Important for understanding user emotions and designing empathetic user experiences.
The tendency to overvalue new innovations and technologies while undervaluing existing or traditional approaches. Important for balanced decision-making and avoiding unnecessary risks in adopting new technologies.
The drive to perform an activity for its inherent satisfaction rather than for some separable consequence. Crucial for designing experiences that engage users through inherent enjoyment and interest.
A research technique that explores the context in which users interact with a product, service, or environment to understand their needs and behaviors. Crucial for gaining deep insights into user contexts and designing more relevant solutions.
Happiness, Engagement, Adoption, Retention, and Task (HEART) is a framework used to measure and improve user experience success. Important for systematically evaluating and enhancing user experience.
A cognitive bias where individuals or organizations continue to invest in a failing project or decision due to the amount of resources already committed. Important for designers to recognize and mitigate their own risks of continuing unsuccessful initiatives.
The simultaneous pursuit of differentiation and low cost, creating a leap in value for both the company and its customers, often associated with Blue Ocean Strategy. Important for developing strategies that can open up new markets and create significant competitive advantages.
A planning method that starts with defining a desirable future and then works backwards to identify steps to achieve that future. Important for strategic planning and setting long-term goals in design and development.
A product that significantly changes the market or industry by introducing innovative features or a new business model. Important for understanding market dynamics and identifying opportunities for innovation.
The process of testing product ideas and assumptions with real customers to ensure they meet market needs. Essential for reducing risk and ensuring product-market fit.
A search method that seeks to improve search accuracy by understanding the contextual meaning of terms in a query rather than just matching keywords. Important for understanding modern search algorithms and optimizing content accordingly.
The tendency for people to value products more highly if they have put effort into assembling them. Important for understanding user satisfaction and product attachment.
A cognitive bias that causes people to attribute their own actions to situational factors while attributing others' actions to their character. Essential for helping designers recognize their own situational influences on interpreting user behavior and feedback.
A problem-solving method that explores all possible solutions by examining the structure and relationships of different variables. Useful for generating innovative design solutions and exploring a wide range of possibilities in digital product development.
The principle that the more a metric is used to make decisions, the more it will be subject to corruption and distort the processes it is intended to monitor. Important for understanding the limitations and potential distortions of metrics in design and evaluation.
A system of design variables used to maintain consistency in a design system, such as colors, fonts, and spacing. Crucial for ensuring uniformity and scalability in design across different platforms and products.
The study of how people make choices about what and how much to do at various points in time, often involving trade-offs between costs and benefits occurring at different times. Crucial for designing systems that account for delayed gratification and long-term planning.
A design approach that predicts user needs and actions to deliver proactive and personalized experiences. Crucial for creating seamless and intuitive user experiences.
The main brand in a brand architecture that houses sub-brands or extensions. Crucial for providing overarching brand identity and consistency across sub-brands.
A recommendation system technique that suggests items similar to those a user has shown interest in, based on item features. Important for providing personalized recommendations and improving user satisfaction.
The process of overseeing and coordinating the development, testing, and deployment of software releases to ensure they are delivered efficiently and effectively. Essential for managing software development cycles and ensuring successful product releases.
Human-Computer Interaction (HCI) is the study of designing interfaces and interactions between humans and computers. It ensures that digital products are user-friendly, efficient, and satisfying.
Design strategies aimed at preventing user errors before they occur. Crucial for enhancing usability and ensuring a smooth user experience.
Numeronym for the word "Virtualization" (V + 12 letters + N), creating virtual versions of physical resources, such as servers, storage devices, or networks, to improve efficiency and scalability. Crucial for optimizing resource use and improving scalability.
The process of identifying user needs and market opportunities to inform the development of new products or features. Crucial for ensuring that products are user-centered and meet real market demands.
The practice of dividing a customer base into distinct groups based on common characteristics. Crucial for targeting marketing efforts and personalizing customer interactions.
A web-based interface that allows customers to find information and perform tasks without needing assistance from a customer service representative. Essential for improving customer experience and reducing support costs.
The process of triggering particular aspects of a person's identity to influence their behavior or decisions. Important for designing personalized and effective user experiences.
A method for organizing information based on five categories: category, time, location, alphabet, and continuum. Useful for creating clear and effective information architectures.
A dark pattern where users' activities are tracked without their explicit consent or knowledge. Designers must avoid this practice and ensure clear communication about tracking to respect user privacy.
The tendency for individuals to recall information that is consistent with their current mood. Important for understanding how mood affects memory and designing experiences that account for emotional states.
Numeronym for the word "Communications" (C + 12 letters + S). Essential for effective collaboration and information exchange.
A professional responsible for overseeing and coordinating multiple related projects to ensure they align with organizational goals and deliver strategic value. Essential for managing complex initiatives and ensuring successful delivery of business objectives.
A user-centered approach to problem-solving that involves empathy, ideation, prototyping, and testing. Crucial for developing innovative and effective solutions that meet user needs.
The practice of linking one page of a website to another page on the same website, improving navigation, user experience, and SEO. Essential for enhancing website structure, user engagement, and search engine optimization.