DID YOU KNOW A POOR USER EXPERIENCE
COULD BE COSTING YOU CUSTOMERS, EVERY DAY?
Every executive now acknowledges the Web as a cost-effective, two-way communications tool, but how truly effective is your site in reaching and engaging your target audience? People come to your Web site to find an answer. Do they find it? Do they buy? Since they have choices and can go elsewhere, your challenge is to know that you satisfy the visitor's need—and know how to translate this satisfaction into a quantifiable Return on Investment (ROI).
THE PROBLEM: Design Issues Continue to Hamper Success.
For too many companies, the people charged with building the Web site do not recognize the difficulties of use, or they don’t understand the requirements of outside users. They don't know how new visitors--prospective customers—behave, because they don’t take the time to perform a few important tasks. As a result, many sites are built from the perspective of the company, not the customer.
THE SOLUTION: The Correct User Experience.
By following 6 simple rules and with the right expertise, you can dramatically improve your site’s user experience—and therefore your bottom line.
Rule #1: Have real usability goals.
Rule #2: Know your audience.
Rule #3: You are not your user.
Rule #4: Earn—and keep—the right to customer information.
Earn the right to your Web visitor’s information. State your privacy policies and honor them, too.
Rule #5: Consider the Ease of Input.
And compensate—help them with their spelling errors and allow them to return, easily, to the previous page.
Rule #6: Step back.
USABILITY IS A CRITICAL COMPONENT OF SUCCESS.
Some decision-makers think “user experience” is a fluffy concept, but it has real costs and real benefits; measured in hard dollars and cents. Sites and applications driven by effective user experience cost less and engage customers more effectively. Engaging online customers will keep them coming, save off-line customer service costs and drive revenue growth.
Usability experts on the team at Definition 6 challenge everyone to take the right approach from the very onset of the project, assuring that the design gives users what they really need, before any graphics or programming is begun. This upfront effort and time spent in usability improvements reap revenue growth, while avoiding false starts or driving customers away.
Contact Definition 6 today, to determine how the right user experience can ©2006, Definition 6, All Rights Reserved.
Create a profile of typical visitors and develop their personas, to enable a comparison of a predicted click path with the actual, real-life user through visitor pathway analysis. Then, know exactly what you want each user to do. Determine how you will define and measure your Return on Investment (ROI), based on the actions you desire each user to take.
Three key factors will determine your success in reaching your profile customer:
Many times, we are selling to a demographic other than the one we personally represent. Perspective is important. In order to reach your audience and get them to respond the way you want, think like your user--not like yourself.
Make a claim and stick by it. Will you respond within 24 hours? Do you have a money-back guarantee? Because many online vendors have little or no traditional interaction with their customers, it is critical to set expectations and honor them.
We all hate filling out long, complex forms. Make entries easy. Autofill, ask only for what is needed and offer to save your customer’s preferences. Be clear about what information is required to complete the transaction—be that a complex sale or a simple contact us form.
Once your beta site is ready, step back and evaluate the basics:
Transform your Business.