Articles

Kathryn Whitenton

Kathryn Whitenton is Nielsen Norman Group's Director of Digital Strategy. She works with clients to evaluate the user experience and information architecture of websites in a variety of industries including technology, telecommunications, and media, as well as corporate intranets. She has conducted usability research, eyetracking user research, and studies of users on mobile devices in the United States, Europe, Asia, and Australia. Her user studies have included general audiences as well as specific consumer types, business segments, children, and seniors.

@kwhitenton

Articles and Videos

Website Forms Usability: Top 10 Recommendations
May 1, 2016May 1, 2016 | Article: 6 minutemins to read
Follow these well-established — but frequently ignored — UX design guidelines to ensure users can successfully complete your website forms.
Website Logo Placement for Maximum Brand Recall
February 21, 2016Feb 21, 2016 | Article: 4 minutemins to read
Users are 89% more likely to remember logos shown in the traditional top-left position than logos placed on the right.
Voice Interaction UX: Brave New World...Same Old Story
January 31, 2016Jan 31, 2016 | Article: 7 minutemins to read
Although voice interaction is markedly different from graphical user interfaces, classic usability principles are still critical to the quality of the user experience.
Menu Design: Checklist of 15 UX Guidelines to Help Users
November 29, 2015Nov 29, 2015 | Article: 4 minutemins to read
For both applications and websites, users rely on menus to find content and use features. Use this checklist to make sure your menus do their job.
Mobile Faceted Search with a Tray: New and Improved Design Pattern
July 26, 2015Jul 26, 2015 | Article: 5 minutemins to read
Displaying faceted-search controls on mobile devices in a ‘tray’ overlay is a new effective solution to the challenge of showing both results and filters on small screens.
Overuse of Overlays: How to Avoid Misusing Lightboxes
May 25, 2015May 25, 2015 | Article: 14 minutemins to read
Poorly implemented overlays and lightboxes are not only frustrating for users, but can also be disastrous for conversion and task completion. Use the five W’s – Who, What, When, Where, and Why – to determine whether an overlay is truly the most appropriate design solution, and how you should implement it.
Change Blindness Causes People to Ignore What Designers Expect Them to See
March 29, 2015Mar 29, 2015 | Article: 4 minutemins to read
People often overlook new visual details added to an existing image. This affects the usability of many design elements, from error messages to navigation.
Top 3 IA Questions about Navigation Menus
January 4, 2015Jan 4, 2015 | Article: 6 minutemins to read
The number and order of navigation categories, and use of hover menus for touchscreens are frequently asked questions that arise when organizing information on a website or application.
Image-Focused Design: Is Bigger Better?
September 28, 2014Sep 28, 2014 | Article: 4 minutemins to read
Large images are visually appealing, but they can harm the overall user experience if they aren't appropriately prioritized.
Bad Intranet Navigation Labels: 3 Workarounds
May 11, 2014May 11, 2014 | Article: 3 minutemins to read
Many intranets are saddled with poorly understood labels. If you can't change them, add context to make these labels more transparent to users.
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