how usability can improve your website
TRANSCRIPT
How Usability can Improve your Website
Juliet Richardson - Head of Usability
Measuring online success
Conversion / Revenue
Engagement / Loyalty
Education / Information
Online self-service
How can usability help?
In order to measure improvement, we need to first define the measures of success. This will vary depending on the type of website, but there will always be some clear key online performance indicators for your organisation.
Trustworthy
Appropriate
Quick
Easy to Use
Killer Content
Success Online
There are five key aspects to get right to achieve success online and improve KPIs. These are valid whatever the type of website, whether e-commerce, informational, charity or other.
People often multi-task while online
It needs to be quick or they will give up!
2.5 minutes
6.5 minutes(actually 15 steps)
Quick
Ensuring that things can be done quickly doesn’t just apply to online transactions, but to any goal that a visitor to your site may have.
Don’t make your customers think!
Make it into an exam and they’ll go elsewhere
Easy to Use
There are lots of books, websites and patterns to follow to make sure your site is usable and to help you avoid the worst mistakes. Easy to use does not just refer to form design, but to all aspects of your site, such as using labels in the navigation that are easy to understand and content that is easy to read.
You need to keep your customers coming back
Great products, services or information that they can’t get elsewhere
Killer Content
This one speaks for itself - if you don’t have great, unique content, why would people visit your site or bother to come back? Content can be information, products, reviews, recommendations, etc, etc.
Trustworthy
This is the page for entering credit card details during B&Q’s checkout. They have not really thought about what will make people feel confident about filling in this form. For example, it is very hard to find the total amount and there is no breakdown to show how much of this is the delivery charge. Other essential information such as how to return an item is missing.
Trustworthy
New Look have provided lots of reassuring details throughout checkout, such as a helpline, the items in the basket, the amount being paid, information about returns and so on.
Even the big names are getting this wrong
People will abandon shopping because of trust issues
- Not being able to find customer support
- Being forced to register
- Credit card security concerns
Trustworthy
Trust is a really essential aspect of site design. It’s all about knowing your audience and what will help to make them feel safe and confident. Again, although the example shown is e-commerce, trust is an important aspect of any site - for example, if you’re providing information, people need to know that it’s up-to-date and from a trusted source.
Appropriate
Lots of people love Apple’s design, but it’s all about being appropriate for the audience.
Appropriate
Wiltshire Farm Foods has lots of design features that will appeal to their audience (older people), such as the large basket, the “how to” guide and the “scroll for more” button.
Appropriate
This design for National Autistic Society is based on research into one of their key audience groups - people on the autistic spectrum. Providing lots of information in a straightforward and predictable layout will support this audience.
A matter of opinion (your audience’s opinion!)
Helps build engagement
Appropriate
Design is about providing an appropriate design for your audience, not just something that you think looks “cool”.
Trustworthy
Quick
Easy to Use
Killer Content
Success Online
Appropriate
It’s not easy
Following the “rules” only gets you so far
Analytics isn’t the whole picture
Design isn’t everything
It’s obviously not easy to achieve success online - lots of people are failing... Analytics only tells you what people are doing, not why. If you don’t know the reasons why people are coming and what they want to achieve, it’s hard to interpret the data.
How usability helps
User research: Get to know your audience
83% increase in KPIs on average** Jakob Nielsen, 2008 (http://www.useit.com/alertbox/roi.html)
Appropriate Killer Content Trustworthy
Usability testing: See what is and isn’t working
Quick Easy to Use Appropriate
Who they are - not who you think they are
- Their goals
- Their expectations
- Their likes and dislikes
- Their behaviour
- Their environment
Understanding your audience
Developing a good understanding of your audience segments will help you prioritise their different needs and ensure that each type of visitor can easily achieve their own personal goals.
Usability testing
See how people use your site in a controlled setting
- Identify issues
- Explore solutions
- Observe real behaviour
- Benchmark User Experience
View an example clip...
Thank you - questions?
Juliet Richardson - Head of Usability
0117 929 7333