Research
Principles extracted from a design review by Rio Lou, Head of Design at Cursor. Previously a founding designer at Notion and product designer at Stripe and Asana.
February 2026
Core Framework
Every visitor asks these in order: What is this? Is it for me? Does it work? Is it credible? If they have to work hard to answer any of them, you've lost them.
Answer "what is this" in the hero within 5 seconds. Identify your audience explicitly. Show the product working. Social proof comes last, not first.
One main CTA per scroll section. Never compete with yourself. There's always a priority: message, then CTA, then proof.
Kill distractions. Be specific about what clicking does. Let people play before signing up. Hide sticky CTAs until after the hero.
More content, not less. Talk to users in their language. Headlines are what people actually read. Show old world vs new world.
Don't describe yourself by referencing other products. Avoid jargon. Who it's for should be prominent, not buried. Six words is never enough.
One clear message that communicates what you do in 5 seconds. If you use an aspirational headline, back it up with a literal sub-headline.
Don't start with negatives. One product, one name per page. Your company name should be more prominent than investor badges.
Details matter above the fold. Consistency across pages. When unsure, go safe: system fonts, clean layouts, minimal decoration.
Misaligned elements and inconsistent borders signal sloppiness. If marketing and product look different, it feels like two companies.
Motion steals attention. Be intentional. Don't animate before the user reads the hero. Don't hijack scroll.
Continuous motion on content you're trying to read is bad. Logo carousels should stream continuously, not snap between states.
What to Avoid
Purple gradients (the #1 AI slop signal)
Multiple CTAs competing above the fold
Jargon-heavy headlines with no plain-language backup
Describing yourself only via other products
Pricing before the user understands the product
Signup walls before any interaction
Scroll hijacking and auto-animating elements
Screenshots too small to understand
Source: YC Design Review with Rio Lou (Head of Design, Cursor). Principles extracted and adapted for the Dry Ground AI engineering team.
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