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Interface
Design and Usability Testing are two of the
most important issues surrounding Web page design. The two
subjects are so closely related that it is hard to concentrate
on one without understanding the other. The reason is that the questions and issues you
need to address when doing usability studies are the same
questions and issues that you should be addressing when you
begin the design process for a web site.
Information
Architecture
Interface
design and usability testing have become so important to building
effective web sites that there is a growing field of study
called "Information Architecture."
Interface
Design
"A
means for human beings to interact with computer-based
tools and messages."
Aaron
Marcus - Information Architect
(Aaron Marcus Web Site)
In the pursuit of the latest
technologies, people are often left out of the equation.
Many times, when web sites are designed, the agenda is hijacked
by the technophiles who are more interested in the newest
technologies or the different departments in an organization,
who end up wanting the site to be designed around the corporate
organizational chart with their department taking priority.
Jakob Nielsen, the most
widely quoted web guru on interface design, lists the latter
as one of the "Top Ten Mistakes of Web Management".
Usability
testing is the only method to ensure that this does not
happen.
Usability
Testing
What
is usability testing?
Usability
testing is the only way to measure if a site design is "User-Centric". It
is the best way of knowing whether the site has been designed with the user
in mind.
The
primary purpose of the testing is to:
Find problems by asking testers a series of questions and
designing tasks for them to accomplish.
Make
changes to improve the site as it goes through the design
process.
Successful
Web sites address the needs of their users.
They provide them with:
Tools
Information
and/or
Entertainment that is relevant to their lives.
Deliver
with:
 Interfaces
void of cumbersome graphics and visual effects.
User-Centric
Philosophy
The
"Special
Interest Group on Computer Human Interactions"
(SIGCI) believe the most effective way to accomplish this is by adopting a
"User-Centric" philosophy
which "puts the user at the center of the design process."
Goals
of User-Centric Design
Make the web user's experience:
productive
efficient
pleasing
stress
free
How These Goals are Accomplished
Put the user in control
Be
respectful of their skill level
Be
consistent in how it operates
Organize
the information logically so it is easy to follow and understand
Why
is Testing Important?
Statistics
By
the end of this year they expect that:
Choice
Users have an enormous choice of where they spend their time
and if they don't find what they are looking for fast they leave
and usually don't come back.
Testing shows that users cannot find what they are looking
for ½ the time.
Internet
Shopping
According to the Boston Consulting Group who recently conducted
a study on internet shopping:
4
in 5 shoppers in Canada and the U.S. have experienced at
least one failed transaction.
1
in 3 of those people say they refuse to buy from that site
again.
12%
refused to buy online again.
6%
of those boycotted the sites bricks and mortar affiliate
after their online transaction.
Although the reasons for the failure rate were many, the most
common were user-interface issues:
The Web page took too long to load (48%)
The site was too confusing (45%)
Making the purchase was too complicated and it took too
long.
Some of the other reasons why usability testing is important
are:
Web
Site Design Mantra
Simple
Consistent
Relevant
Intuitive
Fast
Simple
Is
the information laid out in a neat and organized fashion?
Do
the graphics and multi-media elements bring added value
to the web page?
Is
only the information that is relevant included?
Consistent
Have
you made sure that you labeled the wording in your content,
buttons and links consistently?
Are
the navigation bars and the overall structure and layout
the same from one page to another?
Relevant
Users rated this the most important factor above usability
and exciting design when determining what sites they liked
the most.
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"The
internet is a tool for communication, it is really less about technology
than it is about people." 
Helps
you avoid time consuming and costly revisions down the
road.
