Dmitriy N. Full-Stack Developer

Website usability is your ally in the battle for new clients

The topic of our new article was not chosen accidentally. When we talk about attracting visitors to the site and, as a result, increasing sales and increasing brand awareness, it’s simply impossible not to talk about usability!

What is usability and how to apply it to a website?

If we describe usability in three words, it is the ease of use of the resource. Do you agree that no one wants to wade through the veils of advertising and all kinds of pop-ups in search of information or in an attempt to order something?

The user encounters and visits a great range of sites as they navigate the vastness of the Internet. Additionally, since he gets the chance to compare and pick the finest options for himself, he progressively starts to comprehend what, where, and how should be located on the site.

Signs of poor usability

Now let's list the signs of poor usability that can be found on many websites:

- difficult navigation;

- intricate structure;

- poor arrangement of site elements;

- inappropriate use of advertising.

Ignoring usability might have very negative effects.

Usability issues = dissatisfied customers = claims that the site is not working = visitors leave the site = formation of a bounce rate = search engines do not allow the site to rank well in search results. So something needs to be done about this…

Decision 1: Prototyping

At the earliest stages of project development, it is necessary to think not only about the colorfulness of the design, but also about the structure of the site, about the location of the main blocks.

The development of a resource prototype will help you with this. This will allow you to see the "skeleton" of the project, without being distracted by the external chic of the design and the variety of icons.

Decision 2: Conducting a professional audit

But what if the site already exists and does not bring the desired profit? You don't want to keep losing customers, do you? In order to prevent this from happening, it is important to adapt to them and make your resource as simple, convenient and informative as possible. In the end, for whom are you creating it: for yourself or for dear and beloved clients? We think the answer is obvious.

In order to identify the symptoms of failure, professional auditing is needed.

A website audit will help identify not only obvious site defects (design, structure), but also deeper ones (user behavior, competitor analysis).

General recommendations in the struggle for quality

First, a logical structure: everything must be interconnected and follow one from the other.

Secondly, the resource must have a clear navigation system and interface that will allow you to quickly find any information.

Thirdly, properly organized content: a clear structure, no errors, emphasis, usefulness and information content.

Fourth, an attractive design: a harmonious combination of colors, a lot of high-quality graphic content and interesting elements.

In addition to these recommendations, we would like to provide a list of available and effective online usability testing tools. They will help you find out how your resource meets user expectations.

Choose any: UsabilityHub, UserPlus, Usabilla, СonceptFeedback, Optimal Workshop, Feng-GUI, ClickHeat, WebVisor, SitePolice.

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