actionhelps

Actionhelps is a design concept in human–computer interaction describing a pattern for delivering actionable guidance within an interface. An actionhelp provides concise, context-specific prompts and, in some cases, one-click or one-tap tasks that advance a user toward a goal. It aims to translate broad user intents into concrete steps rather than presenting generic help text.

Origin and scope: The term appears in UX design discussions to describe prompt-based assistance that appears at the point of need. There is no universal standard, and implementations vary across platforms, products, and audiences.

Mechanics: Actionhelps rely on context detection through user activity, inferred intent, or error signals. They present actionable prompts that specify exact steps, often paired with micro-actions that perform a recommended task with a single action. They include feedback to confirm completion and are designed with accessibility and privacy in mind.

Applications: They are used in onboarding and feature discovery, task-based tutorials, error-resolution workflows, and accessibility aids in education software or productivity tools.

Advantages and challenges: Actionhelps can reduce cognitive load, shorten task completion times, and improve success rates. Overuse or poorly inferred intent can annoy users, and implementing them requires careful tuning, testing, and attention to localization and inclusivity.

Examples: In a project management app, an actionhelp might display "Add due date to this task" with a one-click option to set a date. In a spreadsheet app, it might offer "Turn on filters" with a rapid-apply action.

See also: contextual help, in-product guidance, onboarding, micro-interactions.