Create purposeful interactive content
Design an interaction that helps the audience understand something or choose a useful next step.
Begin with a user question
Identify the question a person is trying to answer. A calculator, checklist or quiz should reduce uncertainty or organise a decision. Choose the simplest format that can do that work. If ordinary text answers the question clearly, additional interaction may add effort rather than value.
Plan the inputs and output
Write down the information the interaction needs and how each input changes the output. Distinguish measured data from assumptions. Explain important limits beside the result. Ask only for information necessary to provide the function, and avoid collecting personal details simply because a form makes it easy.
Make the interaction accessible
Use clear labels, understandable error messages and keyboard-accessible controls. Do not rely on colour alone to indicate a result. Check the experience on a small screen and with long or missing inputs. Provide a useful explanation when the tool cannot calculate a result.
Practice task
Sketch a three-input decision tool on paper. Write one normal example, one incomplete example and one edge case. Define what the user should learn from each result. Test the sketch with a reader before building it, then record which labels or assumptions caused confusion.
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