Simple examples include highlighting a selection made by the user or filling a field on a form based on a user's selection from a pull down list. Another example is using the sound of a cash register to confirm that a product has been added to an electronic shopping cart. Completed orders should be acknowledged quickly. This may be done with an acknowledgment or fulfillment page. The amount of time it takes to generate and download this page, however, is a source of irritation for many e-commerce users.
Users are quick to attribute meaning to events.
If generating an acknowledgment may take longer than what may be reasonably expected by the user, then the design should include intermediate feedback to the user indicating the progress being made toward acknowledgment or fulfillment. Finally, feedback should not distract the user. Actions and reactions made by the web site should be meaningful. Feedback should not draw the user's attention away from the important tasks of gathering information, selecting products, and placing orders. References 1 AMA Research Reports.