Jakobs Law

Jakob's Law is based on the idea that users have built expectations and mental models from their cumulative experience on the web. They transfer these expectations to new sites and products that appear similar. Therefore, by following common design patterns and conventions, designers can create interfaces that are easy to use and understand for users.

Jakob's Law does not mean that designers should copy or imitate other sites blindly. It means that designers should leverage existing knowledge and familiarity to reduce the learning curve and cognitive load for users. It also means that designers should avoid unnecessary friction and confusion by using consistent and intuitive elements, such as navigation, buttons, icons, labels, etc.

Why is Jakob's Law important?

Jakob's Law is important because it helps designers create user-friendly and satisfying experiences that meet the needs and goals of users. By aligning with users' expectations and mental models, designers can:

• Increase usability: users can easily find what they are looking for and complete their tasks without frustration or errors
• Increase engagement: users can enjoy the content, message, or product of the site and stay longer or return more often
• Increase trust: users can feel confident and comfortable with the site and its credibility and reliability
• Increase conversion: users can be more likely to take action or make a purchase on the site

How to apply Jakob's Law?

Jakob's Law can be applied by following these steps:

1. Research your users: understand who your target users are, what their needs, pain points, motivations, behaviors, preferences, etc. are, and how they use similar sites or products
2. Research your competitors: analyze how other sites or products in your domain or industry work, what design patterns and conventions they use, and what their strengths and weaknesses are
3. Design with familiarity: use common design patterns and conventions that match your users' expectations and mental models, such as layout, navigation, typography, color, icons, etc.
4. Test with users: validate your design decisions by getting feedback from real users, using methods such as usability testing, user interviews, surveys, etc.

These steps are not fixed or rigid; you can iterate and refine them as needed. You can also use different tools and techniques to support each step, such as personas, journey maps, wireframes, prototypes, etc.

Examples of Jakob's Law

Jakob's Law has been applied by many successful sites and products across different domains and industries. Here are some examples:

• Amazon: the e-commerce giant uses familiar design patterns and conventions for its product pages, such as product images, ratings, reviews, add to cart button, related products, etc.
• Netflix: the streaming service uses familiar design patterns and conventions for its home page, such as categories, thumbnails, titles, genres, recommendations, etc.
• Google: the search engine uses familiar design patterns and conventions for its search results page, such as links, snippets, images, videos, maps, ads, etc.

Conclusion

Jakob's Law is a principle that states that users prefer your site to work the same way as all the other sites they already know. It helps designers create user-friendly and satisfying experiences that meet the needs and goals of users. It can be applied by following common design patterns and conventions that match users' expectations and mental models.