The International Organisation for Standardisation (ISO) defines the term ‘usability’ as follows: “…the effectiveness, efficiency and satisfaction with which a specified set of users can achieve a specified set of tasks in a particular environment” (ISO Standard 9241). In layman’s terms, then, usability is really about creating a good user experience. In this article, we’ll take a look at how – in business terms - getting it right can make the difference between success and failure.
What does usability have to do with my website?
In the online business domain, you only have one chance to get it right. Making your website usable is the key to success – in other words, it’s less about what you’re selling, but more to do with how you’re selling it. If you ignore how users engage with your site, you can be sure they will ignore you.
Nowhere is this more apparent than with e-commerce. Leading usability consultancy Webcredible recently rated UK retailer John Lewis an exceptional 91% for web usability, an increase of 10% on last year. Looking at the top UK high street retailers, the 2010 Online Usability Report (now in its fifth year) highlights greater understanding amongst retailers over the importance of the check-out process and associated charges. Providing as much information on charges as early as possible encourages users to complete the process. The research also highlighted areas for improvement, such as a failure to track viewed items, simplifying the shopping process. Believe it or not, a large number of those websites also failed to place a prominent ‘Proceed to checkout’ link on each page. (source: http://www.webcredible.co.uk/about-us/pr/john-lewis.shtml).
Creating a great user experience will result in more sales, more credibility and increased brand value. No matter what business you’re in, creating a web presence represents a significant investment of both time and money. Incorporating usability into your web strategy is a sure-fire way of ensuring a healthy return on that investment.
Usability vs. increased marketing expenditure
A recent case study by Coast Digital highlights how focusing on usability as opposed to advertising can yield a dramatic turnaround in results. A high-profile shoe retailer had decided to increase their online marketing efforts in an effort to boost sales. On the consultant’s recommendation, a usability review was commissioned to identify areas for improvement. By adding, amongst other improvements, a site/brand search and product finder tool, the company experienced an incredible 250% upturn in online sales.
Google Analytics
So what if you can’t afford the services of a digital consultancy? Google Analytics offers a surprisingly deep, user-friendly way to monitor user activity. Better still, it’s free to use. Sales and conversion tracking; user-defined benchmarks; e-commerce tracking; automated alerts and the ability to segment and monitor your traffic – it’s all there. Whether you’re new or an advanced user, GA offers as much or little information as the average user could possibly need.
Usability basics
Starting with a simple list of usability basics, take an hour out of your day to complete an objective review of your own site:
- What are you selling/promoting? Is the purpose of your site clear?
- Is your Unique Selling Proposition (USP) clear?
- Is your site easy to navigate – i.e. with concise top and secondary-level navigation?
- Does each page contain a clear call-to-action?
- Are all relevant links present and working?
- Payments – is the checkout process clear and, more importantly, working correctly?
- Frequently asked questions (FAQ)
- Privacy Statement
As part of the exercise, take the ‘user journey’ from beginning to end – you may be surprised at what you find. Never take your site for granted and keep in mind that a website is a living entity, subject to anomalies and malfunctions in much the same way that we are.
AIDA
Whether you’re writing a sales letter, creating web content or writing your latest company newsletter, try to keep in mind the defining principles of web marketing:
- Attention - use bold headlines (ideally featuring a keyword) to grab the user’s attention
- Interest - generate interest showing that you understand your audiences’ needs
- Desire - your product or service is the solution. Make them want it.
- Action - most importantly of all, provide clear instruction on what you want them to do next!
As you can see, great usability is a fine balance of message vs. delivery. Whatever you’re selling – sell it right, and the rest will fall into place.
