How the delete button is key to designing a great Interface for your product.
For 9 years, we’ve been designing Interfaces for small internet startups and billion dollar juggernauts. Each project is different and has a unique objective. We have, however, found a single practice that contributed the most to crafting a great User Interface:
The art of removing as many things as possible.
A great product, concentrates on the essentials. It does not burden the user’s brain by letting it process things that don’t help him/her get their desired results.
A great product is functional, it’s not a piece of art. The best products are stripped down to their core essentials, enabling their users to get to where they want to be, as fast as possible.
The reason why the physical light switch on the wall is still a better option than a smart bulb that you control via an app on your smartphone, is because of the single action one has to take to light up the room.
In design, the absence of stuff is fundemental to craft a simple product.
If you have a product, go through the exercize of hitting delete on as many things as possible. On every page, figure out what the core objective is and eleminate everything that doesn’t help your user get their as fast as possible.
Designing simple products is not easy.
But it’s not black magic either.
It’s about having the guts to hit the delete button as many times as possible, after you’ve spent the time adding things you thought were neccesary.