Most UX psychology principles are so built into our psyche that we don’t notice them – unless they’re not there.



But every color, font, line and button serves a purpose.



Small-scale, everyday design might not be as dramatic as billion-dollar marketing campaigns. But that doesn’t mean it should be any less thoughtful. And understanding the psychology behind what makes people tick is fascinating – and free.



Here are some key psychological principles that form the solid basis for well-designed forms.



15. Compare costs and benefits

Every decision we make – from taking out the bins to getting engaged – goes through an automatic cost-benefit analysis in our minds. Are the costs of a task worth the benefits of its completion?



It’s a designer’s job to ensure that perceived benefits always outweigh costs.



Of course, cost vs. benefit is subjective, and form-filling usually stems from obligation, rather than an activity respondents hope to gain something from. We can’t ensure benefit, unless we offer our respondents a reward. But we can minimize costs.



Some key strategies for minimizing costs for your respondents:

16. Chunk text

+1-919-555-2743 vs 19195552743.



Which telephone number sticks in your brain? The first one, of course. That’s because it’s been chunked.



Chunking is a handy memory technique: we use it for our bank PINS, social security numbers and locker codes. It refers to the process of arranging information into ‘chunks,’ making the content easier to retain, process and recall.



Research claims that three is a magic number to help people absorb and recall information. So use it when you can: for paragraphs, lists, key steps…

17. Define formatting requirements

If at all possible, avoid arbitrary formatting rules. But if they are a necessary evil, spell them out in red marker pen. When filling out a form, no one likes guessing games. Password requirements, syntax rules, numbered spacing: if a field requires a certain input, make it visible.



Hicks Law

If I’m throwing a dinner party, I’ll always opt for buying my ingredients from a small local grocer rather than a sprawling supermarket. That’s because having too many options often feels paralyzing. That’s Hicks Law: it states that, as our number of choices increases, so does our time spent trying to make a decision.



Applied to UX, Hicks Law is an ode to deliberate elimination: limiting navigation choices and giving users clear but restricted options. Because as design flexibility increases, its usability decreases.



Less really is more.



Some ways of putting Hicks Law into practice:

18. Cut ruthlessly (again)

What purpose does that link serve? Or that button on the top right? If it’s not adding, it’s taking away. Every word of copy, every picture, bell or whistle that isn’t 100% necessary will decrease your form’s conversion rate.



Neil Patel was able to increase his contact form submission rate by 26% simply by removing a single field.



As Truman Capote once said, ‘I believe more in the scissors than I do in the pencil.’

19. Reduce the need for typing

Typing is the most time-consuming and intensive aspect of online forms, and it often leads to errors – especially on mobiles. Replacing text boxes with buttons and sliders and using autocomplete will reduce effort and increase conversions.

20. Shorten your form with conditional logic

According to Marketing Insider Group, 78% of internet users say personally relevant content from brands increases their purchase intent. And marketing campaigns are 83% less effective when the experience is irrelevant to the user.



So, thank goodness for conditional logic!



Conditional logic (or ‘branch logic’) simplifies complex processes by allowing additional instructions based on a particular response – or, “if this, then that.” In the context of a form, a respondent would only see questions that apply to them on the basis of their previous answers.



Using conditional logic will reduce the time it takes to complete your form by not displaying questions that are irrelevant to a user, making them less likely to abandon the task ahead (stat about abandonment).



Yes, this sounds like common sense – but most forms parrot the same questions to every user, no matter who they are. And using conditional logic is a win-win, because by clearly defining user segments, you capture cleaner, more useful data.



Dual-Coding Theory

I say: tree.

You see: trunk, green leaves, branches.



Our brain is clever like that: it associates visuals with words.



That’s the key principle behind Dual-Coding Theory, which states that memory has two disparate but connected systems, one for verbal information (‘tree’) and one for visual information (trunk, green leaves, branches).



When something is ‘coded’ in two ways (visual and verbal) there is a higher chance of it being understood and remembered than if it is coded in only one way (visual or verbal).



In other words, pairing words with images make them easier to remember. Children’s books make the most of this. Here are two ways of putting Dual-Coding Theory into practice when designing a form.

21. Visualize the information

Our brains process visuals much faster than text. Using cues like icons, imagery, shapes – whatever helps to illustrate your point – will make the user experience more intuitive.



Form design should be consistent, but that doesn’t mean it can’t integrate little moments of surprise. By using non-standard visual UI elements – like clickable images and toggled sliders – you can make form-filling more enjoyable and intuitive.

22. Consider the colors

Did you know: 90% of our initial judgement of a product is based on color alone?



In fact, according to marketing guru Neil Patel, color is “85% of the reason you purchased a specific product.” The right combination can improve readership by 40%, comprehension by 73%, and learning by 78%.



You don’t need to be a designer to figure out which color schemes and contrasts work best. Handy programs like Adobe Color CC and Paletton exist to help you choose a palette that reflects your company’s image.



23. Make your form beautiful

Shallow creatures that we are, we’re conditioned to believe that attractive design is better in other ways, too: faster, smarter, easier to use. That’s called the ‘aesthetic-usability effect.’ A beautiful interface increases our patience and loyalty and even makes us more sympathetic to design problems.



38% of people will stop engaging with a page if the content or layout is unattractive. In other words, if your web forms aren’t beautiful to look at (and easy to fill out), they’re a waste of time.



Sure, beauty is in the eye of the beholder. But a simple interface, clean font, and sleek styling will win you (form) beauty pageants.

Here’s a quick tip on how to create an attractive form with the right color scheme:

The Endowed Progress Effect

We are more motivated to finish a task if we can visualize the progress we’ve already made towards it. When we think we have a headstart, it reduces that amount of perceived work, making us more likely to go the extra mile.



That’s known as the ‘Endowed Progress Effect,’ summed up by American professors Joseph C. Nunes and Xavier Dreze as “a phenomenon whereby people provided with artificial advancement toward a goal exhibit greater persistence toward reaching the goal.”



Some examples of applying the Endowed Progress Effect to forms:

24. Stagger questions from easy to hard

If you can release questions from easy at the beginning of the form to hard at the end (without sacrificing logical order), users will speed through the initial stages of the form. This, in turn, will trigger the streak effect: the satisfaction generated by quick progress and a sense of momentum, that makes users reluctant to break the streak. Meaning they will continue and are more likely to hang in when the form becomes more demanding.



25. Illustrate the progress

Reflect user’s advancement at all times. The closer respondents feel to their goal, the more likely they are to push themselves towards it. If your form is multi-page, indicate how many pages they have left to complete.



A study from Clutch confirms that 90% of people prefer web forms that use progress bars to manage their expectations about completion time.

