Journey guide · 20 related patterns
Checkout concentrates price, add-ons, urgency, identity and the final payment action. Review should begin with the state carried into the basket and finish only when the order, receipt and account state agree. A control that appears clear in isolation can still be misleading when a fee arrives late, a removed item returns or the final button does more than its label predicts.
The patterns below are review prompts, not automatic findings. A useful journey review keeps ordinary persuasive design, usability problems, current legal tests and possible future DFA policy separate while preserving the evidence needed to examine each question.
Review the complete sequence
Capture the state before a material choice, the controls and information available at that choice, the immediate result and any later account or billing consequence. This prevents a clear-looking screen from being assessed without the steps that give it practical effect.
Pattern directory
Journey tags identify where a mechanism may be observable; they do not mean it appears in every product or only at that stage. Follow the detail links for two concrete comparisons, boundary cases, legal context and evidence questions.
The user selects a represented action or offer but receives a materially different outcome that favours the business. The label describes a recurring design mechanism; whether a particular implementation is harmful or unlawful depends on the complete journey, audience, evidence and rules within scope.
2 visual examples
See examples in context: Bait and switchDistinct products, services, permissions or purposes are grouped under one choice so the user cannot readily understand or select them separately. The label describes a recurring design mechanism; whether a particular implementation is harmful or unlawful depends on the complete journey, audience, evidence and rules within scope.
2 visual examples
See examples in context: Bundled optionsMaterial guidance is presented in a language or level of complexity that makes informed choice materially harder for the target user. The label describes a recurring design mechanism; whether a particular implementation is harmful or unlawful depends on the complete journey, audience, evidence and rules within scope.
2 visual examples
See examples in context: Complex or inaccessible languageOption labels use shame, guilt, fear or asymmetric emotional framing to move the user away from the outcome they would otherwise choose. The label describes a recurring design mechanism; whether a particular implementation is harmful or unlawful depends on the complete journey, audience, evidence and rules within scope.
2 visual examples
See examples in context: ConfirmshamingA visible countdown applies time pressure, particularly where it resets, is personalised without disclosure or has no corresponding consequence at zero. The label describes a recurring design mechanism; whether a particular implementation is harmful or unlawful depends on the complete journey, audience, evidence and rules within scope.
2 visual examples
See examples in context: Countdown timerA mandatory or foreseeable charge is omitted, obscured or revealed only after the user has invested effort in the transaction. The label describes a recurring design mechanism; whether a particular implementation is harmful or unlawful depends on the complete journey, audience, evidence and rules within scope.
2 visual examples
See examples in context: Drip pricing and hidden chargesParallel options are presented as if one were hierarchically primary, giving a business-favoured option materially greater visual or interactive prominence. The label describes a recurring design mechanism; whether a particular implementation is harmful or unlawful depends on the complete journey, audience, evidence and rules within scope.
2 visual examples
See examples in context: False hierarchyA control does not let the user reasonably predict its material outcome before activation. The label describes a recurring design mechanism; whether a particular implementation is harmful or unlawful depends on the complete journey, audience, evidence and rules within scope.
2 visual examples
See examples in context: Feedforward ambiguityAccess is conditioned on accepting optional or separable data uses, communications or permissions as one bundled choice. The label describes a recurring design mechanism; whether a particular implementation is harmful or unlawful depends on the complete journey, audience, evidence and rules within scope.
2 visual examples
See examples in context: Forced or bundled consentThe user must create an account, or is led to believe one is required, to complete a goal that could plausibly be provided without it. The label describes a recurring design mechanism; whether a particular implementation is harmful or unlawful depends on the complete journey, audience, evidence and rules within scope.
2 visual examples
See examples in context: Forced registrationInformation relevant to the decision is absent or presented so ineffectively that it is unlikely to inform the user at the decision point. The label describes a recurring design mechanism; whether a particular implementation is harmful or unlawful depends on the complete journey, audience, evidence and rules within scope.
2 visual examples
See examples in context: Hidden informationA transaction creates or continues recurring liability without effective, timely disclosure of the subscription, renewal and exit consequences. The label describes a recurring design mechanism; whether a particular implementation is harmful or unlawful depends on the complete journey, audience, evidence and rules within scope.
2 visual examples
See examples in context: Hidden subscription or forced continuityA proprietary currency makes the real monetary cost or remaining value unnecessarily hard to understand. The label describes a recurring design mechanism; whether a particular implementation is harmful or unlawful depends on the complete journey, audience, evidence and rules within scope.
2 visual examples
See examples in context: Intermediate currencyA textual deadline or temporary-reservation claim pressures action, particularly where the deadline renews or its stated consequence does not occur. The label describes a recurring design mechanism; whether a particular implementation is harmful or unlawful depends on the complete journey, audience, evidence and rules within scope.
2 visual examples
See examples in context: Limited-time or reservation claimA claim that few units remain applies purchase pressure, especially where inventory basis or persistence is unsupported. The label describes a recurring design mechanism; whether a particular implementation is harmful or unlawful depends on the complete journey, audience, evidence and rules within scope.
2 visual examples
See examples in context: Low-stock claimA relevant alternative within the current decision is hidden, blocked or made materially harder than the business-favoured action. The label describes a recurring design mechanism; whether a particular implementation is harmful or unlawful depends on the complete journey, audience, evidence and rules within scope.
2 visual examples
See examples in context: Obstructed alternativeA business-favoured option with a plausible adverse consequence is active before a deliberate user choice. The label describes a recurring design mechanism; whether a particular implementation is harmful or unlawful depends on the complete journey, audience, evidence and rules within scope.
2 visual examples
See examples in context: Preselection and defaultsA more expensive or profitable option is made the practical focal choice through preselection, visual prominence or obscured lower-cost alternatives. The label describes a recurring design mechanism; whether a particular implementation is harmful or unlawful depends on the complete journey, audience, evidence and rules within scope.
2 visual examples
See examples in context: Pressured upsellingA business-favoured request repeatedly interrupts the user after decline, dismissal or non-response without a durable way to stop it. The label describes a recurring design mechanism; whether a particular implementation is harmful or unlawful depends on the complete journey, audience, evidence and rules within scope.
2 visual examples
See examples in context: Repeated promptingA paid or consequential item is added to a basket or transaction without a clear, deliberate and specific user choice. The label describes a recurring design mechanism; whether a particular implementation is harmful or unlawful depends on the complete journey, audience, evidence and rules within scope.
2 visual examples
See examples in context: Sneak into basketEvidence base