Label in the users’ vocabulary.
Name content and actions with the terms users use, not internal or technical terms.
Contents 2. Information Architecture & Wayfinding 7. Search & Labeling
How users find what they cannot see.
First, ask yourself
“Can users of your system find information by name, even when they do not know where it is?”
Mission statement
Ensure users locate information directly by providing reliable search and labels that match their vocabulary.
Key heuristics Search & Labeling
- Labels must use the users’ vocabulary, not internal terminology.
- The same thing must carry the same label everywhere.
- Search must be available wherever content exceeds what navigation can expose.
- Search must tolerate misspellings, synonyms, and partial input.
- Search scope must be visible.
- Results must be ranked by relevance to the user’s task.
- Results must show enough context to choose without opening each one.
- Empty results must offer a way forward.
- Search must respect the same permissions and states as navigation.
Executive brief
The system must let users find content by what they call it, not by where it is stored.
Core questions Search & Labeling
“Can users find something they cannot see, using their own words?”
“Do labels mean the same thing everywhere?”
Focus areas
Vocabulary-first
“Whose words do the labels use?”
“Would a new user guess the right term?”
Scope-aware
“What does this search cover?”
“Is it obvious when results are filtered?”
Result-aware
“Can users pick the right result from the list alone?”
“What happens when nothing matches?”
AI-aware
“Is semantic search predictable?”
“Can users tell retrieved results from generated answers?”
UX directives Search & Labeling
Keep labels stable and unique.
Use one label for one thing across the system.
Provide search where navigation cannot scale.
Offer search when content outgrows what navigation can expose.
Make search forgiving.
Match misspellings, synonyms, and partial queries.
Show search scope.
Indicate what is being searched and which filters apply.
Rank by task relevance.
Order results by what the user most likely needs, not by storage order.
Give results enough context.
Show the information needed to choose a result without opening it.
Make empty results actionable.
Suggest corrections, broader scopes, or alternative paths.
Align search with navigation.
Ensure search results respect the same permissions, states, and labels as navigation.
Executive summary
- Search & Labeling is retrieval by name, not by location.
- It lets users reach content they cannot see or do not know the place of.
- The system must label everything in the users’ vocabulary and keep labels stable.
- Search must be forgiving, scoped, and ranked by task relevance.
- Results and empty states must let users choose or continue without guessing.
- Search & Labeling succeeds when users find what they need by naming it.
Success indicators
- Labels use terms users recognize.
- Each item has one label across the system.
- Users find content with imperfect queries.
- Search scope and filters are visible.
- Empty results offer a next step.
One-line summary
Before users can find what they cannot see, the system must understand what they call it.