2.3 Designing for Your User
Your intake form needs to make sense to a parent.
Who Is Your User?
Your user is not you. Your user is a parent who:
- Is filling out the form at 9pm after putting the kids to bed
- Is on their phone, not a laptop
- Has already filled out three other forms today for school, soccer, and the dentist
- Wants to feel confident that you are professional and organized
Design for Tired People
Every design decision should pass this test: would a tired parent at 9pm understand this immediately?
Labels
- Bad: "Name" — whose name?
- Good: "Student's First Name"
Instructions
- Bad: no placeholder text
- Good: "e.g., Math, Reading, SAT Prep" in the subjects field
Length
- Bad: 15 fields on one page
- Good: 7 fields, all visible without scrolling on mobile
Confirmation
- Bad: nothing happens after submitting
- Good: "Thanks! We received your information and will be in touch within 24 hours."
Mobile First
Open your form on your phone right now. Check:
- Can you fill out every field without zooming?
- Are the tap targets (buttons, input fields) large enough?
- Does the submit button show without scrolling past the last field?
- Does the confirmation message appear clearly?
Small Changes, Big Impact
Work with your AI assistant to:
- Improve field labels based on the principles above
- Add helpful placeholder text to every field
- Make sure the form looks good on a phone screen
- Improve the confirmation message
Trust Signals
Parents are trusting you with their child's information. Small things build trust:
- A clean, professional design (no broken layouts or weird colors)
- Clear language (no jargon)
- A confirmation that their submission was received
- Your name or business name visible on the page
Next: 2.4 Maintaining and Evolving — the long game.