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Articles

Aurora Harley

Aurora Harley is a Senior User Experience Specialist with Nielsen Norman Group. Aurora’s research and consulting experience includes organizations in a variety of industries, such as ecommerce, travel, healthcare, and B2B (business-to-business). She also conducts independent research for NN/g, and regularly leads training courses on mobile usability, UX strategies, psychology and UX, and analytics. Aurora combines her background in front-end web development and UX design to inform her work, creating effective designs that balance technical, business, and user needs.

@aurorararara

Articles and Videos

  • Variations on Practiced Patterns Cause Mistakes

    Past experiences and repeated practice inform user expectations. Deviations from a learned routine lead to user errors.

  • Ideation in Practice: How Effective UX Teams Generate Ideas

    Data from 257 UX professionals shows that quality UX ideas come from ideating early in the design cycle, drawing inspiration from user research, and working with a group. Many struggle with generating ideas because they lack time, managerial support, and a methodology for conducting effective ideation sessions.

  • Counterfeit or Credible? UX Design for Authenticity in China

    In China, websites must work harder than in other markets to gain users’ trust. Displaying the company’s local presence, past client work, and being available to answer questions via online chat are critical.

  • Tips for Icon Usability

    6 UX guidelines to ensure that your users recognize your icons and know what they mean.

  • "Get Started" Stops Users

    A generic Get Started call-to-action attracts clicks, but also misleads users and acts as a roadblock for those looking to get information about the company.

  • Functional Fixedness Stops You From Having Innovative Ideas

    People’s blindness to alternate uses of objects limits their problem-solving capabilities and stifles creativity. Overcome functional fixedness by abstracting problems to generate outside-the-box ideas.

  • Translating UX Goals into Analytics Measurement Plans

    Focus on UX goals to drive analytics measurement plans, rather than tracking superficial metrics. Identify the core goal of a design to meaningfully measure it.

  • Scroll-Triggered Text Animations Delay Users

    When misused, animations intended to add aesthetic appeal slow down content consumption and get in the user’s way.

  • Ideation Is for Chumps

    Many UX designers waste precious time and effort generating multiple possible solutions when an idea is already right in front of them.

  • Ideation Doesn't Waste Time, It Saves Time

    Improve your UI design solutions by considering many ideas before settling on any one of them. A solid ideation methodology broadens your idea-generation capacity.