UI-Patterns

> Proven interaction patterns from shipped products. No theory -- real patterns from award-winning sites and successful products.

Scope

Use this skill when:
- You are designing concrete UI elements (hero, navigation, cards, forms, footer)
- You are structuring landing pages and need conversion-relevant patterns
- You are designing pricing tables, testimonials, or CTAs
- You want to ensure your patterns meet established standards

Principles

1. Patterns Follow Expectations

Users have mental models. A hamburger menu opens navigation; a cart icon leads to checkout. Only break expectations with clear added value.

2. Progressive Disclosure

Show only what is relevant in the current context. Reveal details on interaction, not all at once.

3. One Primary CTA per Viewport

Each visible area has exactly one primary action. Everything else is secondary or tertiary.

4. Consistency over Creativity

Within a product, identical actions must look identical. Creative variation between products, consistency within.

5. Mobile-First is Mandatory

Patterns must work at 375px before they are extended to 1440px.

Rules

Hero Sections

• DO: Choose one of the three proven hero variants:
• Statement Hero: Large headline + subline + CTA. No image. For SaaS/tech.
• Split Hero: Text left, visual right. For products with visual explanation.
• Immersive Hero: Full-screen image/video with overlay text. For brands/portfolios.
• DO: Keep the CTA visible above the fold.
• DO: Clear visual hierarchy: headline > subline > CTA > secondary elements.
• DON'T: Sliders/carousels in the hero. Demonstrably low engagement rates.
• DON'T: More than 15 words in the hero headline.
• DON'T: Auto-play video with sound.

Navigation

• DO: Choose a proven navigation pattern:
• Sticky Top Bar: Logo left, links center/right, CTA right. Standard for SaaS.
• Hamburger Overlay: Full-screen navigation behind hamburger icon. For creative sites.
• Minimal Header: Logo + hamburger only. For immersive experiences.
• DO: Auto-hide on scroll down, reveal on scroll up.
• DO: Visually mark the active page in the navigation.
• DON'T: More than 7 main navigation items.
• DON'T: Mega menus on mobile. Use accordions instead.
• DON'T: Navigation without a skip link for keyboard users.

Card Layouts

• DO: Consistent card structure: image top, title, description, meta, CTA bottom.
• DO: Make the entire card clickable, not just the CTA text.
• DO: Hover states: shadow deepening, slight scale (1.02), image zoom or overlay.
• DON'T: Cards without a visual boundary (shadow, border, or background color required).
• DON'T: Cards of varying height in a row (exception: intentional masonry).

Forms

• DO: Single-column layout -- higher completion rates.
• DO: Inline validation on blur, not only on submit.
• DO: Labels above the input field, not as placeholders.
• DO: Errors directly at the affected field, not in a summary message.
• DON'T: More than 5 fields per visible section.
• DON'T: Captchas by default. Use honeypot and rate limiting first.

CTAs

• DO: Filled buttons with contrasting color for primary CTAs.
• DO: Action-oriented labels: "Get started", "Try for free", "Book a demo".
• DO: Visual feedback: hover state, loading state, success state.
• DON'T: More than 2 CTAs side by side.
• DON'T: "Submit" or "Click here" as button labels.

Additional rules (pricing, testimonials, footer): see references/extended-rules.md

Patterns

Detailed pattern descriptions: see references/patterns.md

Anti-Patterns

1. Carousel as primary navigation -- Users rarely interact with slides beyond the first.
2. Infinite scroll without orientation -- Without a page end, there is no closure. "Back to top" is mandatory.
3. Modal on modal -- Nested modals confuse. Maximum one overlay layer.
4. Hidden primary CTA -- When the most important button only becomes visible after scrolling.
5. Toast notification flood -- More than one simultaneously is noise. Queue with timeout.
6. Tooltip as sole explanation -- Mobile has no hover. Tooltips supplement, they do not replace.
7. Fake chat widgets -- Pop-ups that simulate chat but are merely forms.
8. Dropdown for fewer than 5 options -- Radio buttons or segmented controls are faster.

Checklist

• [ ] Hero uses one of the three proven variants (statement, split, immersive)
• [ ] Exactly one primary CTA visible per viewport
• [ ] Navigation has a maximum of 7 main items
• [ ] Active page marked in navigation
• [ ] All cards fully clickable
• [ ] Forms single-column with labels above fields
• [ ] Inline validation on blur implemented
• [ ] Pricing shows 3 options with highlighted recommendation
• [ ] Testimonials with real names, roles, and photos
• [ ] Footer contains legal notice and privacy policy links
• [ ] Mobile navigation as an independent pattern
• [ ] Skip link for keyboard navigation present
• [ ] Loading states for all asynchronous actions
• [ ] Error states for forms and data loading
• [ ] Empty states for lists and dashboards

Cross-References

• design-trends -- Overarching trends that shape these patterns
• visual-direction -- Visual execution of patterns (colors, typography, spacing)
• component-patterns -- Technical component structure for these patterns
• agent-ui-design -- AI-specific UI patterns
• navigation-design -- In-depth navigation patterns
• landing-pages -- Landing-page-specific pattern application
• responsive-design -- Mobile variants of patterns
• accessibility -- Accessibility requirements

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