Usability
When a visitor arrives at a Web site, the usual task he or she wants to do is to find something. Visitors may be looking for the latest news, product info, investor info, contact details etc. For e-business sites it is very important that customers can easily find the product they are interested in.
The time an average user has to spend to complete a desired task determines the usability of a Web site. Easy to use Web sites have sufficient instructions, fast download times and intuitive navigation.
How can you measure the usability of a Web site? Involving one to five test users is enough to find the typical errors. Giving user tasks and observing how users behave is the way to improve Web usability.
Surfers do not have to spend time on badly designed sites. If there is a competitive site that is more user-friendly, they will click there.
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Selected articles from Alertbox:
- Top Ten Web Design Mistakes of 2003, Alertbox, Dec 2003
- Usability for $200, Alertbox, Jun 2003
- Top Ten Guidelines for Homepage Usability, Alertbox, May 2002
- The Top Ten New Mistakes of Web Design, Alertbox, May 1999
- Ten Good Deeds in Web Design, Alertbox, Oct 1999
- Why You Only Need to Test With 5 Users, Alertbox, Mar 2000
Selected articles from Web Techniques:
- Building Web Sites With Depth, Web Techniques, 2 Jan 2001