One Small Nudge, a Giant Impact

One Small Nudge, a Giant Impact

Has anyone ever seen a fly on the toilet bowl in a urinal? (Sorry, this question is mostly directed to men…) If so, what did you do when you noticed it? You probably aimed straight at it. And without even thinking about it, let’s understand why.

This fly illustration, which first appeared in the restrooms of Amsterdam’s Schiphol Airport, is one of the iconic examples of a phenomenon called Nudge, subtle, almost unnoticed pushes that encourage us to behave differently. No sign, no warning, no rule. Just a little fly placed in exactly the right spot.
 And the result? An 80% drop in "misses" outside the urinal! Without saying a word, without forcing anything, just placing something small that nudges most of us to choose more wisely.

What is Nudge?

A Nudge is a small, subtle, non-coercive change in the environment where a decision is made. Nudge has a few basic principles:

• It encourages a specific action without eliminating other options.
• It’s transparent and non-invasive.
• It's quick and easy to implement, often very cost-effective.

Nudge doesn’t rely on financial incentives, it doesn’t alter the range of choices, and it doesn’t require significant effort from the user or designer. It simply nudges gently in the right direction.

For example: In schools, when fruits were placed at eye level in cafeterias, fruit consumption significantly increased. No one prevented the children from choosing chips or chocolate milk, they simply improved the visibility and accessibility of the fruits. This is a small nudge, a minimal change in the choice structure that contributes to a significant outcome.

Thinking Slow, Acting Fast

1. The concept of Nudge is grounded in a deep understanding of how we think. The theoretical basis comes from the revolutionary book "Thinking, Fast and Slow" by psychologist and Nobel laureate Daniel Kahneman, summarizing research he conducted over decades, often in collaboration with Amos Tversky.

   Kahneman describes two systems of thinking:
   System 1: fast, intuitive, automatic.
   System 2: slow, logical, conscious.

   Most of the choices we make during the day go through System 1. It’s easy, fast, but not always accurate or rational. Nudge works precisely on this mechanism; it designs the context so that the desired choice feels natural, even obvious.

   In 2008, economist Richard Thaler and legal scholar Cass Sunstein took Kahneman’s theory and turned it into an actionable guide in their book "Nudge". This book builds upon Thinking, Fast and Slow, applying psychological insights to the real world, with examples from various fields: health, economics, safety, government, and more.

   Thaler and Sunstein defined a new approach called "Libertarian Paternalism", an approach that aims to promote people's welfare without infringing on their freedom of choice. Paternalism (Parental care) combined with Libertarianism (freedom to act as one chooses) keeps all options open, including the bad choices, which is why it’s considered libertarian. According to this approach, we won't stop a person from smoking, eating unhealthy food, or wasting their pension savings. Still, we’ll try to guide them towards what is considered the better choice.

Default is King

One of the most powerful examples of Nudge is the use of Defaults. When we buy a new phone, most of us don’t change the ringtone and leave the settings as they were. The same happens when filling out forms, granting app permissions, choosing insurance, or deciding on a pension plan. Typically, what’s set as the default stays. This is a particularly strong nudge because it uses our laziness and the overload of decisions around us. And the impact of this can be enormous.

For example: Organ donation policy. In countries where you have to opt-in by selecting "I agree to donate" → the consent rate is low.
 But in countries where everyone is automatically considered a donor unless they opt out → the consent rate is almost 100%.

Amazing, right? But this also raises criticism. Nudge is also a sensitive tool, and we need to be careful. Is it right to assume that everyone wants to donate their organs? Is it ethical to use the public's indifference or cognitive laziness to influence such an important decision? Doesn’t designing a clever environment risk turning into manipulation? The power of Nudge is also its weakness. It operates "under the radar". That’s why it’s important to ask who decides what the right choice is and to ensure that using these tools serves the user, not just the system or the business.

So Where Does UX Come Into All This?

Everywhere! As user experience designers, we create interfaces, forms, buttons, the order of information, defaults; every decision like this creates a nudge. Sometimes without us even realizing it. We can lead the user to a thoughtful choice, without telling them what to choose, simply by designing the right path.

Smart interface design is essentially architecture of choice: which button stands out more, what is the default setting in the form, where will a message appear, which text remains small and hidden. Every little detail we decide on shapes the behavior of our users. We’re not just building the function – we’re also building the way to it. And therefore, our responsibility is twofold: to create pleasant, efficient, flowing experiences, and to ensure that our nudges are aimed at the user’s benefit, not just business metrics.

Dark Patterns

The balance between encouragement and manipulation is very delicate. Especially in the digital world, where we can measure, analyze, and influence every click and every movement, the responsibility grows even larger. Here, the ethical question of digital nudging arises. A more familiar concept in the world of digital interface design is Dark Patterns, which refers to using techniques that seem innocent but are actually meant to deceive the user. For example, hiding the cancel button or phrasing text in a way that leads to an unwanted consent, or even automatically selecting things that lead to a higher final payment. These are not nudges, but manipulative designs that harm trust and the user experience.

Therefore, it’s crucial for any designer to pause before using nudging techniques and ask themselves:

• Is my nudge transparent?
• Does the user understand how they are being influenced?
• Is their autonomy maintained?

How to Design a Good Nudge?

User experience design is the daily engineering of behavior. Therefore, a thoughtful and responsible use of nudges is a critical tool in creating good, smooth, effective, and ethical experiences. To summarize, here are three tips that can help:

• Transparency above all. If it’s not clear what’s happening, it’s not a nudge, it’s a trick!
• Leave a genuine choice. Nudge doesn’t erase other options; it just makes one of them more accessible.
• Honest intention to help. Don’t make the user buy, click, or agree, help them choose wisely.

So, the next time you see a little fly on a urinal… you’ll know that someone thought about you and how to nudge you in the right direction, without you even noticing.

Want to incorporate smart and precise nudges into your product?

At Firma, we can help you do exactly this by identifying needs, analyzing pain points, and genuinely thinking about your users. We specialize in creating personalized experiences that guide users to make the right choices, while maintaining transparency, autonomy, and ethics.