- Show contextual tips that are relevant to the user’s task
- Could appear when the mouse is near corresponding controls or when the user has started a corresponding flow
- Implementation methods include tooltips, contextual overlays, or wizards
- Less likely to be ignored because they provide timely information to help users accomplish a task

University of Virginia, Charlottesville

Proactive help comes in two forms, push revelations and pull revelations. The difference between these relies on whether they are individualized to the user’s context and likely to be related to the current user goal.

Two Types of Proactive Help

https://www.nngroup.com/articles/help-and-documentation/

Help and Documentation: The 10th Usability Heuristic

- Occur when an interface provides assistance or help content that isn’t relevant to the users’ goals
- Pushes help content in a relatively random way, with no regard for what the user is trying to do at the moment
- Often ignored by users
- Example: tips or instructional overlays that occur when an application is launched and that inform users of new features

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