Usability: What is it and How does it Work

I couldn't find the elevators. "Behind you" laughed the security guard. Sure enough, there they were, tucked behind an elegant facade. I ran my hands over the control panel seeking operating buttons. Suddenly the doors opened. . . . I know not why.

Usability refers to the overall ease and comfort with which a visitor can complete a task. In the past few years it has become an important topic in software, web design and emailed marketing campaigns.

Without trying to constrain creativity too far, things are more usable when they are

• Familiar, following well-known patterns and methods: buttons have beveled edges, underlined text can be clicked.
• Easy to learn. Where it veers from the familiar, it is consistent and memorable.
• Patterned. Linear, shallow patterns are the simple to learn and make navigation efficient. More involved patterns work if they are consistent and recognizable.
• Replicable. The visitor sees familiar patterns at every visit.
• Satisfying. Hard to measure, the visitor leaves with a sense of accomplishment

Testing for Usability

The simplest way to test usability is to ask people to try your design. Do they make mistakes?Can they find information and complete tasks? Do they get frustrated?

Testing potential visitors through many iterations of a design is costly, but compare this with the cost of completing a project that fails when released to its public.

Tto perform a usability study we may need access to Subject Matter Experts and Systems Engineers, a list of the site's goals and expected capabilities. From there we can

• Script scenarios
• Develop questionnaires
• Recruit end users and generate schedules for testing
• Testing the graphical user interface (GUI) both in the lab and "in the field" (where your users will be)
• Present findings with actionable recommendations.
• Work with team members to prioritize recommendations and generate feasible solutions.

Success by design.

As needed we can help with

• Designing usable Graphical User Interfaces (GUIs)
• Documenting designs in a structured and traceable manner.
• Creating mockups and prototypes of user interfaces.
• Developing style guides to ensure consistency and a common look and feel to all products and pages