When a user decides to use a product, they initiate a relationship with said product. The most important component of any relationship is trust, including the one that exists between a product and a user of said product. Trust is reciprocal. A user communicates their trust in a product by using it, meaning that the onus lies upon the product to not betray its users' trust.

A product proves its trustworthiness by working. While this sounds obvious, I have all too often used products that have failed to consistently do so. Beyond working, users must be consistently informed that a product is working, which requires said product to communicate that it's working. 

If a user is not clearly informed of what their product is doing, then the product is not much better than one that works. A product that fails to communicate with its users is guilty of lying, a practice which creates division between the product and its users. For a product to be honest with its users, it must do what its users expect it to do. The most notable example of a product that fails to do this is a Norman Door, meaning a door intended to be pushed that has a handle.

I strive to design products that users can trust.

Original Date: June 9, 2023