A Simple Introduction To Website Usability

This is an introduction to website usability, which will help web designers who work for private or public bodies. These professionals should always aim to make the projects that they work on valuable to the people who will need them. If this is not done, people who visit for information or just to browse will not have their needs met.

In this modern environment, it is essential to give consumers value for their time. If someone goes to a site, they expect to be rewarded with something that is of value to them. Professionals who build pages for their clients must be aware of what the people they serve require. Otherwise, they will not be able to construct something that satisfies their needs.


Ensure That Your Site is Accessible

Wherever you read an introduction to website usability, professionals will usually stress the fact that pages you build should also be accessible. If users try to get onto them and they keep getting error messages they will quickly become frustrated. A small percentage will try again at a later time. Some may even complain by contacting you by email or phone. This is good because you will know that there is an issue. However most of them will go elsewhere for the goods or services that they require, or voice their disappointment on a social network.

If you are building a site you must make sure that you check it to make sure that is works the way you think it should. Test if from a wide range of devices. Some people will use traditional means, such as s desktop or laptop to access the web pages. However in these times it is also likely that contemporary devices such as cellular phones with Internet capabilities will be employed.

You must design the site in such a way that any user can see it properly, no matter what gadget they are using. PDAs and several other instruments have internet capability, so you should see how your pages look on all of them. If you are involved in eCommerce, your clients will lose money when you build something that viewers cannot navigate easily by using the tool of their choice.

Make Sure That the Pages are Useful

Search engines try every day to find ways of ensuring that the results that are shown in response to user requests are those that provide answers to their questions. Sites which have a low bounce rate, or encourage visitors to stay on them for a longer time, will gradually rise higher and higher through the rankings. It is vital for you to provide useful information to the people who pass by.

Give adequate responses to the questions potential customers will have. If someone enters a search phrase related to the best laptops for people who spend a lot of time at sea, they expect you to mention a few brands and the features that make this suitable for this situation. If you do not provide that, then the guests will move on and enter the same exact phrase in the search bar. This will indicate to the search engine that your page is not informative.

Government Involvement in Usability Issues

Sometimes government agencies provide an introduction to website usability. They do this in order to ensure that there is a standard for all their agencies to follow. They do not want members of the public to complain that they cannot conduct business properly because of problems with their sites.

Right across the world, municipal authorities are spending time and money on developing sites that make it easier for citizens to conduct their business online. The DMV allows drivers to find all types of information related to unpaid tickets, driving schools and license suspensions online. Tax authorities make it possible for residents to file their returns online every year. Other groups make it easy for citizens and foreigners to request visas or immigration documents.

All of this must be supported by sites that function well. They must be able to support a high volume of user traffic and not crash. They must also provide sufficient security, since often times persons must provide confidential data. Several are also built to receive credit card payments. If you have read an introduction to website usability before, you will notice that subjective satisfaction is one of the keys elements that are used to measure success. Well built pages inspire confidence in consumers. Those that have interruptions in the process or do not make it simple for users to do what is required will make clients uncomfortable.


About the Author

Online Clock are the creators of the world’s most popular web-based alarm clock. They have been successful precisely because website usability is a topic that they take very, very seriously. Stop by the OnlineClock.net website today to see how effective a simply designed web application can be!


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