10 Reminders for Usability Web Design to Make Site Visitors Adore You

No matter how hard you try, there is always something wrong with your website. There is always a critic. I have a friend outside the USA who thankfully alerts me of my 404 error pages, which I appreciate, even though I told him over the weekend he was making me scream at my own inability to be perfect.

You don't want to be caught with your pants down when trying to present a professional site. Since my work permits me to see a great deal of websites and Internet applications, I can note common problems. This list is not about the common ones. This list is for repetitive web design practices that drive site visitors crazy because we keep driving them crazy.

Here's what we do:

1. There is not enough persuasive or value oriented information to convince visitors to stay on the page. I compare this to car shopping. Automobile's in a showroom have a sheet of paper taped to the window that lists every detail you could possibly imagine about that particular car. How often do you actually stand in one spot, directly in front of the window, squinting to read the tiny words on the page? Usually you are spotted by eagle-eyed car salespeople who leap to your side and begin telling you all the reasons why the car is cool. They ask what you had in mind too, and from there, start to narrow down matches that fit your requirements. Write as if you are a car salesperson for your homepage. Cut a deal. Introduce the manager. Offer a test drive.


2. Don't place 100 links to the inside pages from your homepage. It is not a playground where you run screaming out onto the area trying to beat the first person to the swing set. A homepage should be married to your site requirements and especially your visitors' top tasks. This could be price checking, searching for part numbers or clearance items, finding your contact information or finding the only baby items that are not pink or blue on the planet.


3. Quit talking about yourself so often. Nobody cares how great you are. What they do care about is what you have for them that's worth their time and money. If you're the All Powerful Oz, you can slip that in, but just remember that even OZ lied to Dorothy. If you need help with your ego, try the We We Monitor.

Feedback and email newsletter forms are some of the funniest things I've witnessed on the web. Why would you demand a phone number from someone who is just letting you know your links are broken? If you want general feedback or better yet, sales leads, your form should scream trust. Start by trusting that if site visitors want you to call them, they'll enter their phone number. Requiring one is something managers tell you to do. Ignore them. Consider your prospects that desire email contact only or impress them with customer service clues with a choice of either email or phone contact. Never require a phone number for free newsletter signups, but if you insist on this unheard of practice you invented, offer a sample of the newsletter that requires that phone number and by all means, tell us why you want to call us.

4. If your navigation only goes forward, you didn't learn to dance properly. The actual steps are:
   
   
   • Move forward
   • Move back if your partner doesn't like that move
   • Continue forward if your partner really liked where you landed and trusts where you want to go next.
   
   In other words, don't rely on the "Back" button to go backwards. Guide your visitor's steps backward, forward and side to side with breadcrumb navigation, embedded text links, buttons or links that continue a task's forward momentum. Design navigation to be fluid and effortless. Your visitors should be able to glide along the dance floor and not get lost or spun around into dizzying loops.


5. Application functionality. If you only knew what exists out there in web site land. For example, there was a travel site for camping that only lets you book hotel rooms because the campgrounds weren’t programmed into the options anywhere. There was the application with many parts in the process, however, no matter what link or button was pushed, it only landed on one of those parts. An application is only intuitive if you program its brains properly.


6. Mystery links confound visitors. Non-descriptive labels force us to guess where we will end up. While I love a good game of hide and seek as much as the next person, when I think I know where you're taking me and you take me somewhere totally different, I stop letting you drive.


7. Related to this are Absolute Shock Links. These are navigation links that take you to PDF files without any warning. Since it takes time for the computer to go pull Adobe out of the kitchen, rev it up, load the file and then I swear you have to resize the thing from 200% down to something that doesn't make you get the shakes reading, well, you can see how a little warning is appreciated. The other form of visitor link shock treatment is linking to a totally new domain, with new layout and brand new navigation and no way back because it opened up a new window and cut off all ties to where you were. At least, if you plan on dumping your visitors off somewhere new, work out a nice little warning system and arrange visitation time with the Mothership site.


8. If you want to capture someone's attention, do it above the page fold. Large monitors didn't signal the end of browser laziness. We still like an incentive to use the mouse to scroll, hover or click. If half the page is needed to describe how to use a contact or sales lead form, what is doing business with you like?


9. If you have a FAQ, there had better be a good reason for making your visitors go to a page that displays a long list of questions and answers. They want you to answer the question when they have the question. I remember when I used to show horses and entered jumping classes that required me to memorize the course I'd need to guide my horse around. I could never understand why they didn’t put directions inside the show ring itself that said "Turn left here", "Weave around these scary high jumps" and "Slow down, the judge usually stands about here." A FAQ is nice for backup if you have a complicated process, but user instructions during the actual task are far more considerate and easy to remember.

Finally, don't despair. Web site surfers are often the most incredibly patient and forgiving people, especially if you offer something they want. Just remember to show them where you put it.

About the Author:

Usability Consultant, Kimberly Krause Berg, is the owner of UsabilityEffect.com (www.usabilityeffect.com), Cre8pc.com (www.cre8pc.com), and Cre8asiteForums (www.cre8asiteforums.com/). Her background in organic search engine optimization, combined with web site usability consulting, offers unique insight into web site development. Copyright 2007 Cre8pc.com. All Rights Reserved. Reprint rights by Permission of the Author

Hand Visitors the Keys to Your Web Site

Recently, I wanted to use my car but couldn't find my car key. The last I'd seen it, I was handing it to my daughter, two days ago.

First, I 'texted' her in school, so she wouldn't get into trouble for having a cell phone with her. She typed back, "u hv." Then, I called my husband, who has amazing psychic abilities an hour away from home. He has no idea where my car key is. Fortunately, I had a spare key and of course, later in the evening, my daughter found the original key sitting by her computer, buried in the world's scariest Teenager's Room.

It took all day to solve the missing car key mystery. I stuck with the search because I like my car and like to drive it.

Do you ever hope your web site visitors feel the same way about your web site? Have you driven it around the countryside before offering them the keys to it?

I've Come to Drive Your Web Site

I recently visited a web site that was redesigned. It looked professional and attractive. It was ready for visitors, but perhaps not me. My goal was to find out where the products were and secondly, how to order them. However, the first big whammo! object on the page was a video of a person talking about a product.

This isn't a bad thing. But I'm new. I've just nestled myself into the homepage car seat. I want to look around, play with the radio, adjust the rear view mirror, figure out where they'll let me put my coffee mug and by golly, is that a sale item over there?

I don't want to watch a video yet and their's takes up a huge chunk of homepage real estate, above the page fold. I'm sure it's very nice and I'm sorry for scrolling past it. I came with a mission in mind. Did they build a site for me to carry out my task?

Farther down the page, I finally discover the Way To Our Products click path. I click the link, which takes me to another page with a search function and after a few tries at getting the right search criteria down, I finally arrive at a product I'm interested in. It's been 10 minutes, but YES! I've made it down their web site driveway.

It's a good thing I want to drive their web site because after 10 minutes of figuring out where they put everything, I'm thinking I want to drive a sports car.

Navigation for web sites, especially large sites, is never easy to map out. It takes planning and consideration for visitors’ goals. It has to help visitors complete a task. On this particular web site, which was very attractive, they didn't put a "How to Order" button or link on the product page.

I had no car key. I couldn't start their web site engine. All I was able to do was play "pretend driver" and imagine I was doing something on their web site, because that's about all they designed it to let me do.

The moral of this story?

The next time you design a web site, its okay to take it for a joy-ride. You've earned that right. But, make sure you throw the keys to other drivers and let them take it on the highway or down the street to Starbucks. These people are your user testing hero's.

Trust me when I say that many of them crave bumpy roads and purposely love to drive web sites like maniacs, just to see what that baby can do.

But, remember to get your keys back when they're finished.


About the Author:

Usability Consultant, Kimberly Krause Berg, is the owner of UsabilityEffect.com (www.usabilityeffect.com), Cre8pc.com (www.cre8pc.com), and Cre8asiteForums (www.cre8asiteforums.com/). Her background in organic search engine optimization, combined with web site usability consulting, offers unique insight into web site development. Copyright 2007 Cre8pc.com. All Rights Reserved. Reprint rights by Permission of the Author

Usability and SEO - Red Light, Green Light

By Kim Krause Berg

Another article has appeared on the topic of SEO and Usability and how these two different skill sets benefit each other. The latest, Usability and SEO. Which comes First?, written for Search Engine Watch by Eric Enge, caught my eye because he wrote:
"What I want to emphasize here is one key point: Usability comes first, and SEO comes second."
It's funny to hear that statement coming from a professional SEO.

In the late 1990's, when I offered search engine optimization services, I didn't get the call for help until the web site was launched and swimming for dear life in the search engine pool. In those days, there were lots of search engines. SEO came last, after the design and after people were intended to use it. If they ever found it, that is.

During the past ten years, acceptance by companies to work search engine marketing techniques into their web site pages has vastly improved. User centered, persuasive design, on the other hand, are still whispers in the wind. Will it take another ten years for usability and accessibility to be as justified as marketing a web site property?

What opened my eyes was working in user interface design and discovering that usability came last, AFTER SEO. It was always a pleasant surprise to hear someone on the design team inquire about image alt attributes or fuss over page title tags. Unfortunately, I realized they only knew these things mattered because some of my design team mates owned their own personal web site businesses on the side. It wasn't something the company demanded for itself. They were just lucky the web site designers had their acts together.

User centered design still gets shoved around. As it makes its way into the world of search engine marketing, the experience reminds me of the game "Red Light, Green Light". The caller yells, "Green light!" and everybody runs forward, willy nilly, confident, trying to get to the finish line first. Then, the caller shouts, "Red light!" and suddenly everyone stops. Frozen. They have to hold their position. They can't breathe or giggle, as they wait for their next instruction.

Corporate Blinders

I was recently part of a conversation whereby a man was describing his company's future plans. Presently, they sell products online locally and are now moving into a neighboring country. After this, they plan on going global.

As he describes it, they have no usability person in the entire company. They have search engine marketers. But, they have no idea how to sell online internationally. They don't understand what browsers are popular outside the USA. They don't know how to make forms usable for global customers. User behavior and habits vary by culture, even down to how web pages are read. They assume their present website will work everywhere. I see this constantly and wonder how some corporations survive with such tunnel vision.

Usability is misunderstood and therefore, not even considered a worthwhile investment until sales stop or worse, a lawsuit appears by someone unable to use the site.

It's Not Who Goes First

Whenever I see phrases like "Usability is first, SEO is second" or "SEO is first, usability is second", or "SEO doesn’t need usability", I don't agree with the competition this sets up.
Both disciplines are vital to the air your web site breathes. They are equal sides of the same lung.

Usability, accessibility and search engine marketing practices are united partners because they're focused on the web site visitor. We can all walk up to these customers and shake their hand together.

About the Author:

Usability Consultant, Kimberly Krause Berg, is the owner of UsabilityEffect.com (www.usabilityeffect.com), Cre8pc.com (www.cre8pc.com), and Cre8asiteForums (www.cre8asiteforums.com/). Her background in organic search engine optimization, combined with web site usability consulting, offers unique insight into web site development. Copyright 2007 Cre8pc.com. All Rights Reserved. Reprint rights by Permission of the Author

Web Site Feedback as Your Secret Online Marketing Tool

By Kim Krause Berg

There's a small trick I do with my online order form that helps to identify one of the first problems a web site may have. I purposely don't ask for a business address or phone number right away. I don't want to know what these are. As a web site usability consultant, when I visit a client's web site for the first time, learning how to contact them is my first official task. If I can't locate this information, or it's a pain in the neck to find, I've discovered their first customer service issue.

I wouldn't recommend that you do this with your online business, especially if you are selling products. Your responsibility is to gather accurate information for your transactions immediately so that you can conduct business in an efficient, courteous manner. I, too, have reasons to be more formal, depending on the project. Both you and I have a strong desire to conduct business or provide information in a positive, productive way.

If we do not, how do we know when we've failed? How do we know when we've succeeded? If we don't make the effort to include customers' needs and desires in our interaction with them, and our competitors do, what message does this send? Are you inviting user feedback?

Dear Google, Your Application is Groovy

Search marketers know that local searches are a new arena for promoting online businesses. One way to do this is by informing Google Maps that a business exists. When Google has this information, with data provided by a site owner or their Internet Marketing Consultant, it is more likely a search for your product or service, in your town, will display your business.

I decided to enter my business into the Google Maps application (http://maps.google.com/). There are several steps to the application, with helpful user instructions to guide you. When I reached the end, I had several options for how Google could verify that it was I submitting the data, rather than someone not associated with my business. This extra effort towards accuracy signals a desire to be customer service oriented.

Since I believe in positive reinforcement, I would have liked to have sent a "high five" to Google because I had a good experience using their application. However, on the last screen, there was no place to offer feedback of any kind. I couldn't rate it. I couldn't recommend it to someone. I couldn't send an email. I couldn't answer a one-question quick survey such as "Did you enjoy adding your business to Google Maps?" or "Did you have any problems entering your business and if so, please send us your experience."

I know Google is user centric. This is a missed opportunity for user feedback. It's a missed opportunity to get a pat on the back for a job well done. We all like to hear about when we've done something a site visitor appreciates.

Feedback as User Generated Content

Online customer feedback seems to be tucked somewhere on the last page of site requirements. Forcing visitors to navigate their way through a thick forest of page elements just to locate how to communicate with you creates frustration. Worse, it's a lost opportunity to obtain user generated content for your web site.

User generated content can be a great marketing arm if you understand how to invite feedback and apply it.

I have a book addiction, so to help support it, I buy from Amazon's used book dealers who sell at discounted prices. Shortly after a book arrives, inevitably Amazon follows up with an email invitation to answer a quick survey about the service provided by their third party vendor. The survey is simple, often one or two easy questions focused on a rating scale, and in less than a minute it's completed. The only reason I even bother to respond to them is because I know Amazon issues very fast surveys.

They've earned my trust because I know what to expect from them.

Products are purchased from Amazon as well. I bought a herbal product through them that my doctor recommended after knee surgery. Amazon responded with an email containing a link to a product survey. This one permits user feedback in an interesting way.

"We invite you to submit a review for the product you purchased or share an image that would benefit other customers. Your input will help customers choose the best products on Amazon.com."

The survey is two questions. The first asks if you are over 13. The second is a rating where you can assign 1 – 5 stars. This is followed by an opportunity to enter a title for your review, and a huge comment field to write your review. Alternatively, there is a radio button that allows you to submit a video review.

Consumers can link to the product page in their review. You can "tag" your review with keywords or a category label for the Amazon search engine. Accepted reviews appear on the site in 48 hours.

By getting customers involved, a web site opens the door to user generated content. This is also another outlet for creative online marketers looking to place content and promote products.

Reach Out in the Darkness

By appealing to feelings and emotions, you'll increase a customer's desire to contact you. One sure-fire way of grabbing their heart is to suggest you'll take something away that they care about.

You can ask for feedback by presenting questions such as "Should we remove [insert beloved gadget or site pleaser here]?" One popular topic is asking readers if they mind if you include a few ads. The point is that you need not be afraid to take the initiative. Let your visitors know what you may be considering and offer them a chance to respond. If you strike a nerve, their feedback may be unwelcome if they blog about it, or if you're lucky, they'll send praise. Take into consideration whether you want feedback to be public or private.

Sometimes you won’t have a choice.

In the early stages of Danny Sullivan's new Sphinn site for search marketers, I blogged publically about the lack of a place to post usability topics there. My blog post caught the attention of Sullivan and his loyal band of developers. He responded in my blog, and our dialog became a news story. They added a Usability category because the resulting user feedback justified the inclusion.

It didn't stop there. Sphinn readers are encouraged to ask questions, submit ideas for new features and propose solutions to known problems, in the forum-like space. Danny or his staff responds publically.

By enabling most user feedback to be out front, they're creating content. Behind this content is an enormous message from Third Door Media that customer service is a top priority.

Free Candy for Your Feedback

A food shopping chain in my area places customer service directly on the opposite side of the cash registers, where we get fast help. I once had a vegetable my cashier couldn't identify and he yelled across to the customer service desk for help to verify what I told him it was. It used to be that retail stores stuck customer service in the farthest corner away from the action. Do you do this too?

You can turn feedback into a promotion device or funnel it into site enhancements.

1. Be there when they need you. Place your Contact page in your global navigation so that it appears on every page. Increase the font size of your toll-free phone number.


2. Provide a feedback form, but make it short. Be sure to clearly indicate your form is "quick". Some visitors will balk at polls, surveys or forms that require a time investment. Make sure your drop-down menu has an "Other" category. Don't require registration first. Be very clear with visitors about what you intend to do with the feedback.


3. Watch labels. Amazon calls their customer service page "Help", but that word conjures up a FAQ page, not user feedback. If you provide a form, say so with "Feedback Form" or "Your Fast Feedback".


4. Don't make anyone feel insignificant. Amazon has an option to sign-in before offering feedback and in smaller text offers permission for non-members to contact them. However, another link for "Express" feedback is for members. Not all feedback is created equal? Get permission to use any user generated content on your site.


5. Invite product reviews, guest blog writers, paid product reviews, video, audio, snapshots. Turn your customers into your personal sales force by establishing trust. Let them edit or remove reviews later. Link back and pass "link juice".

Lastly provide incentives such as coupons, free shipping, fee discounts and free samples to those who were unhappy with a product. Many companies truly loathe dissatisfied customers and will bend over backwards to please them. Show you want their feedback by encouraging creative opportunities for them to do so.

About the Author:

Usability Consultant, Kimberly Krause Berg, is the owner of UsabilityEffect.com (www.usabilityeffect.com), Cre8pc.com (www.cre8pc.com), and Cre8asiteForums (www.cre8asiteforums.com/). Her background in organic search engine optimization, combined with web site usability consulting, offers unique insight into web site development.
Copyright 2007 - 2008 Cre8pc.com. All Rights Reserved. Reprint rights by Permission of the Author