Module 4: Checkpoint 9—Terminology

Conformance: Desirable

Requirements

Standardise terminology across action buttons and links within an application.

Benefits of conformance

  • Reduced cognitive load.

Risks of non-conformance

  • Loss of trust (appears amateurish).
  • User confusion.

Implementation advice

More information

Where an application adopts a particular terminology for its buttons, that terminology must remain constant across the remainder of the application.

Correct implementation: Buttons with the same behaviour across different steps/screens have been labelled consistently. “Submit” is used to complete the process (at the end of the final step); “Continue” is used for all other steps.

Correct implementation: Buttons with the same behaviour across different steps/screens have been labelled consistently. "Submit" is used to complete the process (at the end of the final step); "Continue" is used for all other steps.

Incorrect implementation: Buttons with the same behaviour across different steps/screens use different terminology. “Submit” is used to complete the process (at the end of the final step), but “Continue” and “Next” have been used to represent the same behaviour on different screens.

Incorrect implementation : Buttons with the same behaviour across different steps/screens use different terminology. "Submit" is used to complete the process (at the end of the final step), but "Continue" and "Next" have been used to represent the same behaviour on different screens.