Tag Archives: Usability;User Experience;

Remote Usability Testing – What, When, and How?

by usabilitydotcom

Situation: As a national leader in your field, you understand user experiences may vary based on their roles and functions of using the site or product. For better insight into the needs and pressure points of the site and gather ideas on how to address those concerns, you would like to do some usability testing in California , Texas, and New York but as usual, you have a strict budget and a short time frame to complete a study. What should you do? 
In the past, companies have had very few options that would answer these questions and allow them to coordinate a study of this size quickly or frugally, outside of the standard usability test or web analytics study. However in recent years, usability professionals have utilized web conferencing software and a host of communication devices to develop remote usability testing as an alternative to conducting standard “on location” usability tests.
When is remote testing appropriate?  

Remote usability testing is a methodology that allows moderators to gather feedback about a website, software product, or wire frame via an online meeting space or web conference forum. Remote usability testing is most beneficial to clients who:

  • Are interested in multi-market studies
  • Have a tight deadline
  • Have user groups that are more difficult to schedule
  • Limited budget

It has been our experience that remote usability testing is currently the most cost efficient alternative to standard usability testing as it allows clients more flexibility in project scheduling, access to geographically dispersed users groups, and is recourse to replace or schedule difficult user profiles. Using the scenario above, this article will compare remote usability to a standard domestic usability study that includes one or all of the factors above. Please see International Testing Volume 46 for remote testing considerations specific to international testing.

 

What are the advantages of Remote Testing? 

  • Cost Savings: Typically, in addition to the standard cost of a usability test, multi-market tests require facility rental fees ranging from $1200-$1800 per day and travel expenses of the moderator(s), often including airfare, car rental, food, and hotel expenses. In a remote usability experience, moderators conduct the study in house and eliminate facility rental and travel expenses.
  • Shortened project timeline: When conducting a multi city study, a large percentage of time is spent coordinating facility reservations and traveling between locations, increasing the standard 3 week life cycle of a project upwards of 4 or 5 weeks (partly dependent upon the number of locations tested). By conducting the sessions remotely, there is no need to coordinate with facility schedules or allocate additional time to travel between testing sites. Moderators will usually host and conduct the sessions from their own usability labs, and again, eliminate the need to rent a space or make travel arrangements.
  • Geographically dispersed user groups: There are a number of companies who have developed websites and products for a smaller population of people who are usually not centrally located. As previously discussed, trying to conduct usability testing in all locations is expensive, time consuming and not often possible.  Through the use of web conferencing software, moderators are able to circumvent the need to get all the participants in one location. So as in the case of the previous example, instead of scheduling facilities in 3 states over the course of two weeks to assess the needs of 3 different markets, 12 participants can be tested in the span of a week, remotely to gather a fuller representation of the each user group.

 

Disadvantages of remote testing:

  • When viewing a video of participant reaction is important:  While remote viewing software will capture the desktop activity, clients are not able to see a capture of the participants.  To alleviate this as an issue, consider requiring participants to own and have the ability to operate a webcam to use during the session.  However, keep in mind this may require more setup/prep time with each user and slightly longer sessions are in order.
  • When secure content is of high concern:  Though remote sessions are conducted in private online meeting spaces, moderators are unable to guarantee users are viewing the session without observers in the room.

Decision: Remote usability testing, when executed correctly, provides companies a cost-effective and time-efficient alternative to get valid user feedback without the added burden of travelling to multiple locations, renting additional facilities or dealing with recruiting challenges. For these reasons, an increasing number of companies in recent months are opting to conduct remote usability testing in lieu of the standard usability test.
For more information about usability testing and other solutions, please visit http://www.usabilitysciences.com/services.

A Time to Share

by usabilitydotcom

In these competitive times of the online world, optimizing web pages for Google and other search engines is often not enough.  Many sites have already added another successful tool to their online marketing toolbox – and it has to do with something we (or most of us) learned to do as children – sharing with others.

Commonly, we see ‘Email’ and ‘Print’ options on web pages, but ‘Share’ icons are gaining popularity on a variety of site types.  By providing ‘Share’ icons, site visitors can link the content within the page to their social networking page on sites such as Facebook, Digg, and Twitter (just to name a few).  This is an effective and easy way for visitors to share content with others and as a result, increase the chance that your site will be visited by a greater audience.

News-related sites were some of the first to offer ‘Share’ icons, but we have begun to see them on all types of sites, as well as in email advertisements.  Figure 1 below is an example of an email sales announcement from Gymboree, a children’s clothing store, and it includes options for customers to share the information via a number of social sites.  The social site icons are referenced with ‘Share with your friends!’ and display near the bottom of the email.

Figure 1 – Gymboree Email Sales Advertisement with ‘Share’ Icons

In the usability studies we have conducted with sites that offer ‘Share’ icons, it is typically those users who are members of one or more social sites that quickly understand how to use the icons.  However, they can be foreign and unknown to visitors who do not participate in social sites, and therefore should be defined, at least subtly.  In Figure 2 below, USAToday.com provides a discreet ‘What’s This’ link directly beneath the ‘Share’ icons.  By clicking the ‘What’s This’ link, a small pop-up window displays and provides a brief explanation of the icons; therefore, users can learn about the icons and how they work if they so choose.

Figure 2 – News Article on USAToday.com with ‘What’s This’ link

Some best practices for presenting ‘Share’ icons on a web page are demonstrated in Figure 3 and Figure 4 below:

  • Do not devote prime screen real estate to the icons or allow the icons to get in the way of what the user is trying to accomplish.  Placing the ‘Share’ icons on the right side of the content or directly below the content will ensure users are not hindered by their presence.
  • Provide the icons in context, such as on an article or announcement page.  Displaying them on your Homepage is not necessarily appropriate.  For example, a real estate company’s website might use ‘Share’ icons on a Property Listing page or a hospital might provide ‘Share’ icons on Birth Announcement pages.
  • Do not overwhelm your visitors with too many icons.  As the number of social sites continues to increase, it is becoming more common (and necessary even) to place all of these icons behind a single ‘Share’ link to avoid icon overload.  If you’d like to provide more than 5 social networking site icons, consider using a single ‘Share’ or even ‘Bookmark & Share’ icon and upon mouse roll-over, display a fly-out box with all the community icons.
  • Finally, place the ‘Share’ icons in close proximity to the ‘Email’ and ‘Print’ links or combine all of them into a single ‘Share’ link as previously recommended.

Figure 3 – News Article on CNN.com with ‘Share’ Icon Collapsed

Figure 4 – News Article on CNN.com with ‘Share’ Icon Expanded

As social sites continue to gain popularity and more sites adopt the use of ‘Share’ icons, they will become as common and as well understood as a ‘Home’ link.  In fact, according to a survey by the Pew Internet Project (August 2011), 65 percent of Internet users in the United States aged 18 or over now use at least one online social network.   So, it may very well be time to invoke your site’s good manners and share!

Best Practices for Mobile Site Checkout

by usabilitydotcom

With the constant evolution of smart phones and mobile devices, users are expecting more efficient and intuitive functionality from mobile websites. This is especially true for those mobile sites designed for touch screen devices.

According to a 2009 whitepaper from Gomez, Inc., almost 75% of mobile web users expect to complete a simple transaction in a minute or less before giving up and exiting the site. This is due to a variety of reasons such as interruptions from everyday life, incoming phone calls, and changing network strength when on the move.

Customers are continually frustrated when attempting to make a purchase on a mobile website, especially when they invest a lot of time and energy researching to find the perfect item, only to struggle when going through the checkout process. Sometimes their frustration stems from a number of factors, and other times it is something as simple as not having a guest checkout option. So, how can mobile site managers make the customer experience of their mobile checkout process more intuitive and enjoyable? We conducted an internal study of mobile websites to find out.

We looked at the mobile websites for Amazon.com, BestBuy.com, Target.com, and BarnesandNoble.com with a focus on their Add to Cart and Checkout processes. Users were asked to search for and purchase a DVD of their choice on some of the most commonly used smartphones, such as the iPhone 3Gs/4G, Android (Droid X/Evo), and Blackberry Curve. From this study we have compiled what we consider to be some of the most important factors to consider when improving the checkout process on your mobile site.

  • Provide an ‘Add to Cart’ option from the Search Results.
    A Search feature is often paramount on mobile retail websites as several users prefer to search for products instead of clicking through various product-related pages. Also, the ability to add an item to the cart from the search results, instead of only the product page, saves users a click and an additional page load.
  • Place a ‘Checkout’ button at the top of the screen, as well as at the bottom.
    Placing a ‘Checkout’ button at the top of the screen expedites users’ ability to dive into the checkout process as it is easily accessible. Additionally, a button at the bottom of the screen saves users from having to scroll back to the top of the page to checkout if they have multiple items in their cart.
  • Allow users the ability to checkout as a ‘Guest’.
    Customers do not like being forced to register with the site in order to purchase an item. We have heard some customers say they would simply discontinue the transaction or drive to a store to find the same item, simply because they are being asked to register at the beginning of the checkout process. However, it is worth providing users with an option to create an account at the end of the transaction as they have already entered their information. If you offer users the option to create an account at the end of the process, ensure the benefits of registering are displayed.
  • Provide a step/progress indicator throughout the entire checkout process.
    This feature helps manage users’ expectations and lets them know where they are in the process. Customers like knowing where they are and how much further they have to go before completing their checkout process. Lack of communicating the progress may ultimately hurt conversion if users encounter issues during checkout.
  • Provide a field-sensitive on-screen keyboard.
    When clicking in alpha-fields (i.e. First Name, Last Name), display an alpha keyboard. When clicking in numeric fields (i.e. Zip Code and Phone Number), display a numeric keyboard. Email fields should have <.com> and <@> keys. Also, in an address field, begin with a numeric keyboard for the street number and switch to an alpha keyboard after a space is entered to enter the street name. See the examples below:


  • Default shipping address to billing address or vice-versa.
    Regardless of which address information you ask your customers for first, ensure the same address is reflecting on the following step for shipping/billing. Also, ensure a method for editing the address or entering a new address is also present in cases where the billing and shipping addresses differ.

 

 

  • Provide the shipping options on the shipping address page.
    Consolidating these related steps into one page equals one less step in the overall checkout process, expediting the transaction time.

 

 

  • Automatically save the cart contents.
    On return to the mobile site, items added to the cart should persist, regardless of whether or not the user has signed in. If the user is signed in and items are added on the mobile site, allow items to carry over to the html website’s shopping cart, should the user choose to complete the transaction later from their home.

 

 

Implementing these best practices within the checkout process of your mobile website will help to ensure that customers have any easy and enjoyable purchasing experience.

Author: Tony Moreno, Usability Analyst
Contributors: Jeff Schueler, President & CEO
Jason Vasilas, Senior Usability Specialist

A Wrap Up on Gift Checkout

by usabilitydotcom

“Is the sweater I’m sending my daughter going to arrive in a gift box? I have no way of knowing what the gift-wrap looks like.”

“If I want to send 3 items to my dad, is each item going to be individually gift-wrapped?”

“It’s not clear how I can add a personal note to go along with the gift to my mom.”

“I don’t want the invoice to show pricing on it when my friend gets the gift. But there’s nothing on the site to tell me how that would work.”

“Would a gift receipt be included with the shipment?”

“I don’t want to give my credit card info before I know what options are available on the site for me to send a gift to my wife.”

The questions and comments above capture some of the uncertainties that site visitors encounter while shopping online to send items as gifts to family and friends. This underscores the importance for retail sites to assess if their checkout process is optimized for gift checkout. To that end, our focus in this article is to examine best practices as they relate to the following:

  1. Availability of gift box/wrap options
  2. Options to add gift messaging
  3. Details about invoicing and gift receipts
  4. Presenting gift options prior to collecting credit card info

Availability of Gift Box/Wrap Options

Ensure site visitors are provided an option to select a gift wrap. An optimal way of incorporating this into the checkout process is to include a ‘gift wrap’ option on the order summary because the summary lists all items ordered, making it easy for users to select gift options for each individual item. Additionally, providing it in the order summary makes it early enough in the process for users to know at the outset of the checkout process that the site offers gift options. An example of how the gift box/wrap options can be presented in the order summary is illustrated by the red highlighted box in the screenshot below from a major retail site:

 

Once visitors click on the ‘gift wrap’ option, provide them the ability to view the types of gift wrap offered and ability to specify gift wrap options for each item in their order summary.

This is illustrated below by the red highlighted boxes. The site presents visitors a visual of the gift wrap options and fields to decline or specify gift wrap options for each item in the order summary.

 

 

Options to Add Gift Messaging

Users interested in sending gifts expect the ability to add a gift message along with their gifts. Below is an example from a site that gives visitors the choice of selecting either a complimentary basic message to be included on the packing label, or a personalized greeting card to be included for an additional charge.

 

When visitors click on the ‘Sample’ link (see red highlighted box above), a pop-up of a sample package label message is displayed, as illustrated below:

 

Additionally, those who opt to add a personalized message are given the option to select a greeting card and a field to include a personal message:

Details about Invoicing and Gift Receipts

Visitors often are concerned that the gift package that is sent out to their friends or family may contain a bill with pricing on it. Visitors expect to see a statement letting them know about the site policy regarding invoicing and gift receipts. It is a best practice to ensure that once visitors are done with selecting their gift wrapping and personal message option, they are presented with a statement informing them that the invoice sent along with the gift package will not include any pricing. Additionally, if business policies allow, consider including a gift receipt with the package and ensure visitors are informed of this in an additional statement.

Present Gift Option Selections Prior to Collecting Credit Card Information

Users want to know what types of gift options are available to them prior to entering their credit card info. Hence, ensure options pertaining to the gifts are presented at the beginning stages of the checkout process. As noted in the first example in this newsletter, a good stage in the checkout process for introducing the gift options feature is the order summary because it is early enough in the process for users to know that the site offers gift options.

Best Practices for Embedding Videos on Your Site

by usabilitydotcom

In today’s fast-paced world, a video can often capture the attention of your audience faster and communicate your message better than unending lines of text or even bulleted lists.  Often, however, if the video is not presented effectively, it could cause user frustration and even embarrassment.

Picture this: You’re sitting in your cube farm and decide to get on your favorite website to check for last-minute holiday deals.  Unbeknownst to you, the website has a really cool video (with audio) which begins to play as soon as you arrive on the Homepage.  As luck would have it, your desktop speakers are on, and lo and behold, your boss walks by just in time to be greeted with the cheerful sounds of Jingle Bells.  This when you were supposed to have been hard at work on that TPS report!

Humor aside, when it comes to using video as a channel of communication, there are certain best practices that can be adopted to enhance and enliven the user experience.

Best Practices

To ensure an optimal user experience, consider implementing the following recommendations when using videos on your site.

Video Content

  • Videos should provide current, relevant content that adds value to the website and visitor experience.
  • The duration of a video should be as short as possible and should last only as long as it takes to convey a message.
  • As a general rule, advertisement and testimonial videos should be shorter, while videos with tutorial content may be longer in order to effectively convey the instructional information.  Video length should be determined by evaluating the subject matter at hand as well as the background of the intended audience.
  • Videos that last longer than a few minutes should be divided into chapters or sections which allow users to quickly navigate to the section of their choice at any point during the video.

Video Display

video display image

  • By default, videos should display in a paused state until the user clicks to view the video.  Prominently display a Play button (as seen in the screenshot above) to direct user attention to the Play option.
  • Video should be embedded within the page rather than opening in a new window.  Opening another window diverts the user from the original navigation path and increases the likelihood of the user not returning to the site.  In the event a video is displayed in a new window, ensure the video window is smaller than the original screen so users realize a separate window has launched.

Video Quality

  • Videos should not appear grainy or choppy.  However, the resolution should not be so high that it requires an extended load time as most users will appreciate a short load time over video quality.
  • The longer a video takes to load, the less likely users will watch the video.

Video Controls

At the minimum, videos should have the following controls, some of which are shown in the screenshot below:

image

  • Volume slide bar displayed with a speaker icon to give clear indication of volume controls (#1 above).
  • Video duration slide bar displaying the elapsed time on the left and time remaining on the right. Users should have the ability to fast-forward or rewind manually using the slider (#2 above).
  • Option to maximize and restore the video window (#3 above).  This option may be more appropriate for entertainment videos or for videos containing great detail.
  • Play and Pause buttons directly below the video or easily accessible upon mouse over of the video.
  • Closed Captioning option or a text transcript of the audio.

Additional Elements

image

Advanced Features

  • Lower Lights feature (seen on Hulu.com as shown above) that dims everything on the page with the exception of the video window.
  • Ability to adjust the video resolution.
  • Options to send a link or embed a video on another page.

International and Multi-Cultural Considerations

  • Race, ethnicity, and accent are perceived differently by individuals in different countries as well as individuals in different regions within the same country.  Therefore, ensure that the individuals presented in the video portray characteristics that correspond to the expectations and worldview of the targeted demographic.
  • Ideally, videos presented on foreign sites should have individuals speaking the native tongue.  If this is not possible, present the original video overlaid with audio in the native tongue.  At a minimum, provide accompanying transcribed text in the native language.

Conclusion

If done incorrectly, videos can frustrate users or be perceived as a waste of time.  However, if done correctly, videos can be a very powerful tool that can provide users with an optimal viewing experience of high value