Any engagement of our usability services must translate to cost cuts or increased revenue for our clients and it must also be measured. Usability without business impact has no measurable value.
> The Importance of Usability:
Users should not have to think too hard when they are using a website or other interface and they should not have to refer to manuals or follow instructions.
Designers and developers often forget that they are not typical users and are often too close to the application to know whether the average person would be able to navigate it. Website owners also forget that they are experts in their field and typically use jargon and assumptions that can be foreign to their customers. After working on a project for some time it is easy to forget that others are not so familiar with what you do, don't understand your terminology or don't follow your logic.
It is therefore important to take a step back from to time to time and make sure you don't leave your users behind.
Usability testing is an essential aspect of any user-centred approach that puts the user, rather than the interface, at the center of the development process.
According to the International Standards Organization (ISO)...
"Usability is the extent to which a product can be used by specified users to achieve specified goals with effectiveness, efficiency and satisfaction in a specified context of use."
- ISO 9241-11: Guidance on Usability (1998)
> But What Will It Do For Your Business?
Usability testing will tell you where your interface has opportunities for improvement. Acting upon these opportunities will help achieve a high return on your investment.
In general, usability projects deliver massive return on investment. In our experience the average return on investment ratio is approximately 1:10 (for every $1 spent on usability services the return is $10 in a 12 month period).
High levels of usability translate into:
- Improved conversion rates and ‘per customer’ revenue
- Cheaper development, maintenance and technology costs
- Shorter development time
- Higher customer acquisition and retention
- Lower customer churn
- Greater employee productivity
- Stronger brand equity
- Lower training and support costs
- Considerable competitive advantage, and
- Reduced business risk
> Independence:
Allowing an independent third party to evaluate your interactive product is critical to its success. Any professional involved in conducting usability tests or interpreting the results of usability tests must remain impartial.
UsabilityOne provides an objective viewpoint. All experienced web teams know that they need an impartial, third party view on their products as they are building them. That’s why Yahoo!, Telstra, World Vision, Hewlett-Packard, NRMA, Lonely Planet and others come to UsabilityOne for usability solutions. Take a look at our client list for a full list of our other clients.
