There are many, many variables that impact one’s overall
enjoyment and effectiveness when using an internet site or application,
and these must be accounted for when planning and executing usability
related testing and reviews.
During the ‘dot-com boom’ it seemed
that usability received top-billing, by default, as the e-commerce
community pulled out all stops to avoid ‘user abandonment’
prior to a consumer completing a transaction. And while this is
a valid concern, the lack of internet based usability and providing
an efficient user-experience has a much broader and long-term
potential effect on your customers or users.
Substantial time and resources can be saved
if iterative testing is conducted throughout the development of
a site from the ground up; however, many of our clients do not
and will not have this luxury. Therefore we are commonly brought
in to test or review revisions to features that are being considered
or have recently been implemented, and we often conduct comparative
testing of an existing interface and the proposed redesign. This
can enable the site to retain the ‘best’ aspects,
when growing into added content or functionality.
In summary, it’s never too early or late
to conduct a review or user testing of your site. We can plan
for this to occur in a lab environment, at your location, or at
the location of your customers.
Case Study Summary:
Alucid recently concluded user testing
of newly added functionality to an industry leading news and media
website. This particular site is utilized by media professionals
and journalists for the purpose of accessing program schedules
and details and/or downloading photographs and bios of the program’s
actors, anchors, or characters. This internationally accessed
site had recently undergone revisions to the GUI, added functionality,
and increased available content. This evaluation involved eight
(8) respondents who represented two (2) distinct demographic profiles
and usages of the site. Alucid findings and subsequent recommendations
enabled an effective iteration of the interface design, without
encumbering user access to time-sensitive content.
