14 mobile UI mistakes to avoid at all costs

According to Joe Natoli

1. Not designing for context of use.

2. Not designing for user focus.

Focus is enabled (or disabled) by the Law of Similarity.

1. Speaking language users don’t understand.

2. Hiding evidence of state changes.

3. Not communicating error cause + correction.

If an error message isn’t understandable or helpful, it serves no purpose.

1. Not leveraging users’ learned behaviors.

Use depends on interaction consistency.

1. Placing obstacles to value.

Every obstacle is an invitation to quit.

1. Failing to expose value and signal progress.

Every click or tap should deliver value — or signal progress.

1. Creating unnecessary steps in a process.

Users need visible evidence that the task they came to perform exists.

1. Prioritizing registration instead of adoption.

2. Asking to receive without giving.

Users won’t give anything if it’s unclear how doing so benefits them.

1. Making a sloppy first impression.

Visual and functional flaws breed user mistrust.

1. Not testing thoroughly enough.

Test, test, test and test AGAIN — across multiple devices.

1. Serving the wrong party’s priority.

The UI should respect and enable what the user came here to do.