Visual Design Principles and Methodologies

While interaction design establishes defining behaviors, gestures, and responses, it is visual design that brings those elements to life. The key to successful visual design for touch panels is a design that subconsciously teaches the user. The user can visually see where to touch or slide without explicit instruction. This is challenging because while visual design should add beauty and branding to the experience, it should never distract from the content. Designing for touch panels means creating an extensible design vocabulary with specific attributes, a language of shapes, forms, colors, and controls that help visually guide users through tasks to meet their goals. A well-designed user interface is built on principles and a development process that center on users and their tasks. The following guidelines provide practical ways to embody the visual design principles.