Experience Principles

High-level principles to guide the design and decision-making process.

Show me the way and let me explore

• Make it easy to search, view, and export the data
• Show me what the data can do
• Let me draw my own conclusions
• Get into the details when appropriate

Put everything in context

• Help me understand what I’m looking at
• Anticipate my questions
• Explain caveats and limitations in plain language
• Be upfront about what’s there and what’s not
• Show me what’s changed

Make it relevant to me

• Show me national trends and what’s happening in my area
• Update the data and the website as quickly as possible
• Be as accurate and thorough as possible
• Help me understand why UCR matters and how it works
• Show me the data in interesting ways that I can customize

Let me participate

• Make it easy to share, print, or link to
• Tell me how to get involved
• Give me clear paths to ask questions and report errors
• Help me build on top of available crime data