It's an interesting visual treatment I hadn't seen before. Though subtle, I think it clearly communicates "I am here."

With a task that is performed repeatedly, those extra clicks add up--and can lead to user frustration.

Compare the above approach with adding an item to a wish list on Amazon.com (one click does it):

What is likely effective about this approach is that it also encourages users through the process, communicating that it will be both easy and fun.

Mint.com also uses this approach with their login form, though the feedback is a more subtle "OK" to the right of the field:

This may seem like overkill, but I can see how users would respond favorably to knowing they've completed fields correctly. That way they can submit confidently--without the fear of having the form returned with errors.

Blue Nile has a handy way of answering this question for its diamonds with this chart:

Users can initiate a search for similar diamonds directly from the chart.

In the page above, they've displayed all the values for the first facet (Main Ingredient), which pushes the remaining facets (Meal/Course, Type of Dish, Season/Occasion, Recipe Category, Preparation, Dietary Consideration) down to about 2800 pixels "below the fold."  That's a long way to scroll--and of course it significantly reduces the discoverability of these options.

How could Epicurious have avoided this? One option would be to initially present all the facets closed. This has the disadvantage of requiring two clicks to select a "refine by" option (one click for the facet, one click for the value).

Another option would be to initially display a facet that has relatively few values. My choice here would be Meal/Course:

Another approach is to use more/less links, as shown in this example from Buzzillions:

The top brands are shown initially, with the option to see "more":

One click does it

The fastest and easiest opt out is the "one click" experience. Just click the "unsubscribe" at the bottom of your email and you're done.

Simple single-click.

Single-click with link to re-subscribe.

Two clicks

Several sites used a two-click  "are you sure you want to do this?" approach.  The example below has clear primary action button that is labeled specifically "Unsubscribe."

Three clicks

Slightly more arduous is the requirement to express your preference using a check-box or radio button.

I suspect the example below has a high error rate, with people overlooking the check box before submitting:

The example below, while still requiring a total of three clicks to unsubscribe, probably has a low error rate because the radio buttons are left-aligned with the submit button, making them more discoverable.

Consider the options

A few sites took the "please consider the alternatives" approach to opting out. It requires a bit more thinking (or at least reading through the options.)

Find it yourself

The most frustrating experiences were companies that did not provide an "unsubscribe" link in their email. Instead, they instructed me to log into my account and edit my "communications preferences." In some cases, this was easy to find; in others, not so much.

A certain reunion site makes you hunt down your email preferences, which once found, are presented in a somewhat dizzying array of options.

After de-selecting all the options I was puzzled as to why I was still receiving emails. Alas, the small print:

It can take up to 10 days to process new or canceled subscriptions.
You will occasionally receive emails that tell you about updates to your account or announce [site] improvements...

Some buttons on this page are obvious, for example "Click to Talk." What is less obvious is the function of dimensional-looking yellow bar across the middle of the page. The first set of text ("Looking for more than a ballpark summary?") is not linked but the second set of text ("Contact us now") is.

While dimensional effects can add visual interest, non-clickable "raised" elements have the potential to be confused with buttons. We've seen this in testing where participants try clicking on anything with a beveled or drop-shadow treatment.