Website Usability - Jasmine Sante

Website Usability
Where to Start?

About Me
• Digital Strategy Consultant
• Strategic Changes
– CMS Selection
– Redesigns
– Migrating websites
– Sunsetting websites
– Integrating new tools & media
Sante Strategies - www.santestrategies.com - @mjsante

Steps in the Process
1) Assess Your Website’s Usability
2) Develop a Roadmap for
Making Fixes

Step 1
Assessing Your Website’s Usability

TACIT – A Plan
Test usability constantly
Assess issues
1.UX best practices
2.Business needs
3.Level of effort required
Create “sets” of fixes
Implement these sets of issues, in iterations
of your site
Test your fixes and updates
AND Repeat Sante Strategies - www.santestrategies.com - @mjsante

Website
Usability
Assessments

Redesigns have a long time
horizon, in a fast paced
technology world

Waterfall Methodology

Waterfall vs Agile
Redesign vs Iterative Enhancements
UX Projects vs Iterative
Enhancements

Disclaimer:
This is applies to websites.
Software, mobile apps and
complex web applications are
different.

Test and Review Usability
1) Talk to customer service
2) Use Usability Best Practices lists
3) Small group testing with tasks
4) Guerilla usability testing
5) Full cycle usability testing
(Analytics too, if you have the expertise:
keyword searches, next page flow, time on
page, visit time of day)

Talk to
Customer
Service

1) Talk to Customer Service
1. Set up a short meeting (30 minutes) *or* just
stop by
2. Ask for the top 10 website issues
3. Ask what they have difficulty with on the site
4. If they aren’t able to answer either question
at the time, email them asking those 2
questions

Use Usability Best Practices

2) Use Usability Best Practices Checklists
1)There are dozens on the internet
2)Pick 1-2 and go through each item
3)Mark them as:
- Done
- Passable
- Issue: Doable & easy
- Issue: Doable & hard

Usability Best Practices - Checklists
TRUST
• Value proposition & trust
• Professional design
• Information hierarchy
• Sense of place (header, breadcrumbs
etc)
• Relevance
• Company Name & Logo
• Site ID
• Page Name
•Footer Details: privacy, help, etc
NAVIGATION
• Eye path
• Clear Navigation
• Navigation via Keyboard
• Search
• Contact Information & Form
PERSONAL
• Personalization in name, currency, etc

Usability Best Practices Checklist
(continued)
DESIGN & CONTENT
• Use of whitespace
• Scannable content
• Color contrast
• Readable
• Images used thoughtfully
• Consistent use of navigation
fonts/design elements
• Use of bullets and lists
• Freshness of content
• Useful information
CONSISTENT
• Clear error messages
• Confirmation after actions
• Use web standards – link color, etc
CALL TO ACTION
• Signup includes statement of value
• Use the simplest form needed
• Forms are labeled
• Clear Calls to Action
• Breadcrumbs
USABLE
• Test forms
• Links & buttons are easy to click
• Swipe and scroll
•Test on mobile, various browsers & older
computers
• Load time

Small Group Testing with Tasks
(and candy)

3) Small Group Testing with Tasks
1)Put together a list of website user tasks
2)Get co-workers, family, friend, etc into a
room with laptops
3)Give them each a set of 3-6 major tasks
4)Have them complete each process - noting
issues in the process
5)Give them treats at the end
6)Merge issue lists into a master list and mark
them as above

Guerilla Usability Testing

4) Guerilla Usability Testing
Set a series of tasks for test users to complete
and noting problems as they occur
1)6-12 participants (can be in small groups)
2)Can be family, friends or strangers
3)They can match your users but not necessary
4)In person or can be recorded
And...repeat as needed

Professional Usability Testing

5) Professional Usability Testing
Set a series of tasks for test users to complete
and noting problems as they occur
• Less bias
• Less work
• More rigor
• More money

Define a Usability Testing
Task

Define a Usability Testing Task
1) Start with a simple task: Buy a subscription.
2) Add details:
•Who are they
•What are they trying to accomplish
•When & where are they when they access
the site (mobile, on the train, at lunch, etc)
•How are they starting (web search, email
newsletter link, going to the site by URL, etc)

Task Example
You are a graduating senior in accounting,
interested in joining an organization for actuaries
as a student. You heard about the Association for
Actuarial Excellence and want to find out how
much it costs to join and if there are any
requirements. You are on your mobile phone,
using your web browser to search.

Usability Testing - Task Reminders
•Be very specific
•Don’t use jargon
•Include information about goals &
background

Step 2
Develop a Roadmap for Making Fixes

Resist Temptation:
Don’t make start
changes during
usability assessment

How to decide “sets”
of usability fixes?

Sticky Note Workshop

Thanks!
Jasmine Sante
@mjsante
mjsante@santestrategies.com
www.santestrategies.com

Website Usability - Jasmine Sante

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