Practical Usability Research Tips Getting Users to Their Target
Content
Darlene Fichter
University of Saskatchewan Library
February 2, 2007
Darlene Fichter
Outline
Scent* Exercise
Type of Pages Exercise
Three indicators that a design will fail
Slides will be onmy web site &
OLA Super Conference site
* Types of Navigational Page & Designing for Scent based on research from Jared Spool from User Interface Engineering & Stuart Card, Ed Chi and Peter Pirolli at Xerox Parc and others.
The eyes only see what the mind comprehends
Confocal micrograph byLudovic Collin
Prepare ourselves
“Chance favours the prepared mind”.Louis Pasteur
Prepare ourselves
“Chance favours the prepared mind”.Louis Pasteur
How Users Navigate: Information Scent*
The options that give the clearest indication (strongest scent) is chosen
*Based on research from Jared Spool – User Interface Engineering & others
Weak Scent
Weak scent slows users down --confusion and “back” tracking
Palo Alto Research Center (Xerox PARC)
iPod ?Books& DVDs
Clothing & Accessories
Computer & Office
Consumer Electronics
Food & Household
Home & Garden
Kids & Toys
Sports & Fitness
Tools & Automotive
Audio & TV
Books
Computing
Fashion
Furniture
Gifts & Flowers
Home & Garden
Nursery
Sports
Toys
Books on Topic X
Article on ID Theft
Information Foraging & Scent
Using mathematical formulas, they are able to look at the way people estimate their success in hunting for information based on “cues” they pick up that they are getting closer to their “lunch”
These cues are called “information scent”
Information Scent Assumptions
People expect the scent to become stronger and stronger
Expect it to progress rapidly
Photo Credit: NYCArthur
How Do People Choose Where to Click?(2)
Make decisions based on:1. What gain can I expect from the information?
2. What is the likely cost to discover and consume that information?
Usually time and effort Visitors are “ruthless, lazy, impatient and
quick”
‘Satisficing” is a fact
If visitors are ruthless, lazy, impatient and quick, what should we do?
In this world, convenience will always trump quality. It's our job as librarians to make quality convenient.
Bruce Newell, Montana ,Talking with Talis Series
Other Factors That Effect The Hunt(3)
Big rabbits aren’t
always better
Nutritious Bite Sized Snacks
Show up front that you’re “nutritious” Have excellent categories that resonate with
users Design your whole site for strong paths
Designing for Scent
Challenges For Libraries (and others)
Direct access to content is not always possible on content rich sites
Implement special types of pages: a gallery or department pages promote a logical approach to
your link hierarchy
Types of Pages(4)
1. Content Pages (Target)2. Galleries3. Departments4. Stores
5. Gallery-level Search Results6. Department-level Search Results7. Search Entry Page
5. 8. Home Page (Landing pages)
Content Pages
Most important page on your site
Library Content Pages
Chart: Percentage of Aboriginal Children That …
Description of MLA
Gallery Pages
Listing of links to content pages
Most critical “link in the chain” of pages
Example Gallery Pages
Which cell phone?
Choosing a Phone
Rogers Phones
Roger’s Phones
Where to find articles on “mirror neurons”?
Biology Article Databases
http://library.ucsc.edu/science/
http://library.ucsc.edu/science/subjects/biology/mcd/index.html
http://www.asu.edu/lib/noble/lifesciences/
Long Gallery Pages
Can work wellCan’t be too long
Departments
Too many phones/resources Need to have a Department page, which lists all
the galleries.
Users somehow understand that a list of galleries is different from a list of content pages Use it to narrow
Rogers Department
Stores
Divide up content on large sites i.e. news World News, Science ?
Store pages link to departmentsUsers rarely bounce between storesOnly works when it’s “obvious” to the
users and you can exclude a lot of content
Do Library Sites Have Stores?
Branches
Gallery-level search results
Similar to gallery pagesCreated by search engine generated
resultsNot handcrafted, not as customized
Department-level search results
Used to divide search results into departments to assist in the winnowing process
“Search within” section of a site or branch library site
Search entry page
Search page or section of page
Home Page (Landing pages)
Orienting users in the right directionLeast important due to search engines
2 Important Functions of Home Page
1. The home page delivers the content to the user that they are seeking
2. Has strong scent to pages user seeks
How the Home Page is Used(7)
According to UIE data, users’ clicks on a home page typically break down like this:
Where People Click
86.8
6.81.3 2.6
0
1020
3040
50
6070
8090
100
Category Links Search Featured Content Other Links
Predictors of Failure
Pogosticking Use of the browser’s
Back Button Use of search
Photo from seanfraga
Pogosticking Happens When
Galleries don’t have enough infoThe most, when you know the least
“We've found this extends to non-e-commerce sites as well: our studies show that users who don't pogostick find their target content 55% of the time, where as those who do pogostick end up only succeeding 11% of the time.”(6)
Order Matters
People expect the most important items to always be listed first in the gallery
Often don't even realize a list is alphabetical
First Items Can Block Scent
“Back” Button
This completion rate falls to 18% if there is a single 'Back' click in the flow of the clickstream recording a user's visit
Down to 2% if there are two uses of the 'Back' button. (8)
Button ofDoom
Library Web Sites
Design for scentCarefully craft gallery pages and
department pagesWatch for the 3 signs for failure with
“scent” Pogosticking, use of Back, use of Search
Darlene Fichter [email protected] library2.usask.ca/~fichter/
References
(1)Information Foraging – Peter Pirolli and Stuart K. Cardhttp://www2.parc.com/istl/projects/uir/pubs/items/UIR-1999-05-Pirolli-Report-InfoForaging.pdf
(2) & (3)Information Foraging: Why Google Makes People Leave Your Site Faster - Jakob Nielsen's Alertbox http://www.useit.com/alertbox/20030630.html
(4) The 8 Types of Navigation Pages - Jarod Spool http://www.uie.com/brainsparks/2005/11/28/the-8-types-of-navigation-pages/
(5) &(6) Galleries – The Hardest Working Pages on Your Site - Jarod Spool http://www.uie.com/articles/galleries/
References
(7) Experiencing CHI 2006: From a Practitioner's Viewpoint: Part II - Pabini Gabriel-Petit. http://www.uxmatters.com/MT/archives/000109.php
(8) 'Back' Button and Search are Kiss of Death to Ecommerce, says Spool http://www.usabilitynews.com/news/article381.asp
Other Resources
I Don’t Think I Click: A Protocol Analysis Study of Use of a Library Online Catalog in the Internet Age – Eric Novotny
http://www.ala.org/ACRLtemplate.cfm?Section=november&Template=/MembersOnly.cfm&ContentFileID=34962
Jared M. Spool. The Right Trigger Words. http://www.uie.com/articles/trigger_words/
