subject: Website Usability And User Experience [print this page] Website Usability And User Experience Website Usability And User Experience
The roles of websites continue to expand right along with consumer expectations. An engaging and user-friendly site can determine the success of your online venture. Failure to deliver an expected user experience could cost you new leads and sales.
Testing the usability of your website is the best way to prevent a bad user experience. Using visitor feedback forms can also help improve your website's design and ease of use. This will increase your site's visitor retention and your bottom line.
How long your visitors decide to stay on your home page or navigate your site's Web pages is measured in seconds. These are the key factors to keep in mind when evaluating your website's usability
Messaging
Your site has to effectively describe who you are, what you do, how you are different from other websites online, and why you are better than your competitors. Good messaging will lead your website visitors to calls to action more than a confusing website.
Content and Readability
The formatting and grammar of your Web content should be accurate and descriptive. Make sure your site copy compels your visitors to act. Consistency is also important; underlined text, for example, has become the universal display method of hyperlinks. This system helps people to recognize links in the text. Bold text can represent titles and italics can represent emphasis.
Navigation and Arrangement
Your website has to be easy to navigate and perform simple and complex tasks. Wherever possible, reduce the number of steps needed to perform a call to action. Arrangement can be just as important as the content on your site. If your site copy is great but isn't easily accessible, it would only frustrate your visitors. One way to improve your website is by looking at other successful websites and how they are set up.
Effectiveness Of Calls To Action
Set up your website for users to do what is expected. Performing a call to action should not take too long and keep your most important offers easily accessible.
Response Time and Performance
As stated before, visitors to your site give your home page only a few seconds before deciding to navigate your site further or to leave your website completely. Properly formatted HTML, CSS, JavaScript, PHP, or any other online programming language you may use can make the difference between a slow-loading website and a Quick-Draw McGraw. Cross-browser testing with Firefox, Internet Explorer, Google Chrome and Safari is also important as different browsers can display your website in different ways.
Accessibility For Disabled Users
If your company or organization is an Equal Opportunity Employer it should be accessible to users with disabilities. Keeping your website compliant to the needs of the disabled will reflect the corporate culture of your company or organization.
Your Web content should be evaluated by your company or organization's typical website visitor. This can be done with a usability test or using a third-party testing tool or service. Online website usability tests let you collect feedback from hundreds or even thousands of users at a time. Keep things simple and structured because maintaining your site will have to be done for the life of your Internet business.
