Each analysis addresses three parameters:→ Outcome
What common solution was moved away from and what that change achieved: memorability, brand character, or pleasure derived from exploring the site.→ Cost
— for the user (more difficult to find what is needed, longer to adapt)
— for the business (risk of lost conversion)
— for the team (deadlines, maintenance complexity, accessibility)
— for the studio (risk that the client will not accept the decision)→ Validity
Under what conditions the deviation works and under what conditions it breaks the scenario.

Beginning designers see many impressive websites in collections (TGK, Awwwards, reference catalogs), but these collections only present a solution and judge it aesthetically. Rarely is it explained what the value is for unconventionality or when it is appropriate. As a result, the novice either transplants a technique into a context where it breaks the user flow, or they are too afraid to deviate from the template and cannot justify their decisions during a review or to a client.

I consider myself not a «guru, ” but rather a researcher. Every conclusion I draw will be supported by a source (a study, an A/B test, or an interview with a practitioner) or will be explicitly marked as a hypothesis.

After this analysis, the reader can assess any website’s unconventional solution using the «result → price → justification» checklist and apply it to their own project.

→ Segment
Students and emerging web designers (priority)→ Narrow Topic
Researching unconventional design solutions on websites→ Scope of Topic
— websites only, not mobile applications
— at the initial stage, three pattern groups: navigation, homepage structure, and conversion elements
— materials: design studio websites, promotional sites, niche e-commerce stores, and projects.

→ Demand based on open data
— «ux patterns”—averages about 115 searches per month in Russia (range 56–154)
— „Jakob’s Law”—around 143 (range 23–308, peaking in the fall);
— „web brutalism”—around 56 (range 19–88)
— „site references”—around 2,600, which is more than 20 times higher
— In the USA (Google, KeywordTool): „ux patterns”—320, „ux design patterns”—210, „ux patterns library”—50, „ux navigation patterns”—40→ Conclusions
1. The topic is niche in both Russia and the US. This is a feature of the phrasing, not the Russian market.
2. The audience searches for „references, ” not „patterns.“ Therefore, it is better to use „references“ and „examples“ in titles and SEO, saving „pattern“ for describing the content’s scope.
3. Seasonality aligns with the academic year: peaks from September to December, dips from July to August and January to February. This is an indirect argument in favor of students and juniors as the priority segment.
4. Search will not be the main traffic source in the initial months. Accordingly, Telegram will be the primary distribution channel.

→ Competitor Selection Criteria
— Audience overlap (interface designers, primarily beginners)
— Content overlap (examples, breakdowns, web interface patterns)
— Activity in 2025–2026

Competition Criteria

1. «Visual Techniques» (@mozhno)

2. Now How Channel (@nowhow)

A curated collection of websites with excellent design from around the world, running since 2016. Contains sponsored content.

3. «Hellish UX» (@uxfromhell)

Scale: Approximately 48–50K followers (across various aggregators); over 11.5K posts; typically 6–13K views per post (≈15–25% of followers), with some individual posts reaching up to 24K.

Refero

UI Patterns

GoodUI

Design Schools and Studios with Their Own Media

AI Assistants

Review and Translation Channels