The pyramid rule of information interaction design

Editor's note: This paper is from the July 8 #36 Krypton Open Day Beijing station, Zhou Heng technology operations director Peng's speech, in the article Peng described their pioneering process in the interactive design of the pyramid rules. Zhou Heng Technology is an emerging user experience design company to provide customers with customized user experience design and mobile Internet software design and development related to the entire process of service.

The idea of the pyramid method comes from McKinsey, a famous American modern management consulting firm. The general meaning is that everything can be summed up in a central point, and the central argument can be supported by several level arguments, which can also be supported by several level two arguments, such as stretching, like the pyramid.

Of course, you can also say that this argument originated from China's Laozi, because he had in the "moral Sutra" said: Tao One, life two, two birth three, Sansheng all things.

For the interactive design of the information of the general display type, our view is that the core of the design is not only the expressive form of enriching information, but also the speed and precision of its being perceived continuously.

In response to this point of view, we use the method is: the focus of information display and interaction of the main task to show priority, and then according to the user in this interface to stay on the time to give more details, we call this method "information interaction design Pyramid Law"

The following type of layout of the site you must also have images, is an open website, there will be a big flash, first loading, and then appear a sound-light electricity but unintelligible flash a play, the lower right usually has a small English word, written skip.

The tragedy is that we usually see this after a long and patient wait, and the reaction is this.

Because most of the time we really don't know what they're trying to tell us, they just feel like they've wasted too much of the day.

If you want to enable users to receive information effectively, it must be from the perception of the information characteristics of people to talk about. Generally speaking, people's perception of color is larger than graphics, and the speed of the perception of graphics is greater than language and text, good design, responsive to the human perception of speed, the use of pyramid rules to show the hierarchical level, so that information can be more quickly, or more accurate communication.

The reception and interpretation of information is actually a process from fuzzy to accurate, from qualitative to quantitative. Good design pays attention to the process of people perceiving information and the psychological experience at different stages of perception.

So now we're seeing more and more information-display websites become like this. After entering the site, the first thing to see is the big picture and the theme text, and then there are more details of the entrance.

Speaking of which, let's give a recent example. As you all know, Apple has recently launched its Retina-screen MacBook Pro, in order to introduce the features of the product and promote sales, let's look at what Apple has done on their official website (link to the page).

Next, let's use pyramid rules to analyze this page.

If we stay on this page for only three seconds, we see only one core selling point-the retina screen, and an emphasis on the main task-to buy. If the viewer happens to be a brain residue like me, it might just jump up and point to the blue buy now.

But people usually want more information when they are interested. Well, when we're going to spend a little more time on this page, like three minutes, we can see the four main selling points of this machine: the retina screen, the full flash architecture, the body is thinner and faster. This is the second stage of the pyramid.

What if you don't think this information is enough? Well, you can click through the four main selling points below to learn more than half an hour of browsing until you fully understand the characteristics of this new machine. Here, I have compiled a Retina screen MBP characteristics introduced by the mind map, we can see the more into the bottom of the pyramid, we get more information, the more details are rich.

For layered information display, we usually first consider the color trend of the overall page, at the same time to focus on the first level of information, the two-level information for the thumbnail display, providing three level of information interactive display or provide access. This part of the work needs to focus on information and data visualization, emphasis on the first time to convey the core information, do not let me think.

When designers do information architecture, in addition to care about the display of information, but also pay attention to the user's psychology and behavior, so as to design a series of interactions.

Let's take a look at how Apple does it from an interactive perspective.

First, the pyramid of the top, that is, the core of the main task is to buy. If the user's will is very strong and direct, then in the first time, you can find the focus and emphasis of the purchase now, if the user is only interested, the desire to buy is not very strong, then the first should be layered multi-channel to get more information, And then lose no chance to enhance the user's willingness to purchase through value-added services and smart help, after users have strong enough will, according to the user's own situation, provide and recommend more channels to ensure that the final deal.

For user behavior, we should first focus on the user's main task, and then need to pay attention to different types of users at different stages of psychological characteristics, the timely emergence of help, to provide users with multiple choices instead of taking the initiative to make decisions for users.

The pyramid rule of information interaction design is not only the method we use to judge the excellence of an information interaction design, but also a guiding principle for us to do such design.

In view of the relationship of time, here I can share with you only such a small, yet practical trick. If there is a chance, maybe we can discuss the magnificent strokes such as "the Tathagata's palm".