Competitors in the marketplace are constantly jostling
to be the best. The companies that come out ahead focus on user
experiences and offer an experience that is insightful, intuitive and
intended. Designing for the user, whether a website or the actual
product, just makes sense. No one likes to be frustrated or confused.
In his Web Content 2007 session, Improve Your User’s Experience: Improve Your Bottom Line, Brian Winters, Director of Usability at CareerBuilder.com, advised that companies must first understand what the user wants.
Think
about the context in which the customer will be using your site. What,
ideally, is the user supposed to do? Next, determine a user’s
expectations from the ground floor. They might be different from what
was originally designed. What is obvious to the designer is not always
obvious to the user.
Focusing on user experience is important as it affects the perceived
credibility of the site or product, the profitability, users’ intent to
return, their intent to buy, and probably most importantly, consequent
word of mouth - good or bad.
Improving user experience involves metrics and testing. Where are
users losing interest? What is keeping them from finding what they
want?
Using site analytics,
you can see most anything, from the time spent on a page to the path a
user takes to complete the process of applying for job or purchasing a
product. Testing your site using focus groups, remote users, or the
guys in accounting is invaluable, as it will usually point out road
blocks and bottlenecks in the design. When making changes, measure
their results.
The sooner one focuses on the user, the better the experience will
be from the beginning. Having to change gears once a site or product is
established, while helpful in the long run, may throw customers off
initially.
Becoming synonymous with good user experience is the best that a
company can hope to achieve. The return on investment will be worth it
and your customers will thank you.
