Beyond Click Counts: Designing Purposeful Steps

Overview

In the world of product development, there is a common misconception that the best user experience is the one with the fewest clicks.

We design for user productivity, not machine efficiency.

How Many Clicks?

I have often been pushed to minimise steps, assuming that less friction automatically equals a better experience. While this is a good starting point, it is not a universal law.

Research by the Nielsen Norman Group found no evidence linking click counts to user success or satisfaction. Instead, two factors matter much more.

Information Scent

This refers to how clearly a label or button indicates where the user is going. If the path is clear, users don't mind the extra clicks.

Clarity Over Redundancy

Fewer clicks are beneficial only when they eliminate redundant tasks. Examples include auto-filling forms or skipping unnecessary confirmations.

When More Clicks Build Better Products

Building Trust Through Verification

In a project involving archival metadata, an attempt to fully automate the process initially failed. While automation reduced the number of steps, archivists felt they had lost control. By re-introducing a verification step, the system built trust. Users wanted to see how the system was processing their data, even if it meant more clicks.

Case Study

The Archivist's Dilemma

In a previous project, I aimed to streamline the workflow for archivists by automating the ingestion and publication of metadata. My primary goal was "efficiency" — to automate as much as possible and free the archivists from manual labour.

During concept testing, we hit a wall. While the system was technically faster, the users felt a loss of agency. They didn't just want the work done; they needed to see how the system was processing their data. To solve this, we intentionally re-introduced an extra verification step.

Even though this meant adding more clicks, those clicks served a vital purpose: they built trust. By giving users a moment of control over the automation, we ensured accuracy and user confidence.

This experience highlighted a critical tension: in high-stakes environments dealing with complex data or financial transactions, "frictionless" design can often lead to a "trustless" experience.

Reducing Cognitive Load via Chunking

Cognitive load is the amount of mental effort required to complete a task. When a screen is too dense, it overwhelms the user.

Chunking

This is the process of breaking a single, overwhelming page into smaller, focused screens. Breaking down complex forms allows users to process one thing at a time, which often outperforms a single "efficient" scrollable page.

Preventing Errors

For high-risk actions like data deletion or large money transfers, "one-click magic" can be dangerous. Dedicated review steps: showing amounts, fees, and accounts will boost user confidence and significantly reduce errors and disputes.

Scenarios

Efficiency vs. Accuracy

The following table illustrates why a "more clicks" approach often leads to better business outcomes.