Web usability refers to the ease of use of a web page or web application. It is measured in three main factors: efficiency, the user correctly satisfies the need of their search; effectiveness, the user manages to quickly achieve their goal; and satisfaction, the user felt at ease when browsing the website.
Web usability is currently becoming one of the most important factors to achieve a better SEO positioning, therefore, knowing the keys to improve it is essential.
why is usability important for a website?
- It achieves more traffic.
- It increases the duration of visits to the page.
- It reduces time and costs for the user and the company that owns the website.
- Transparency, agility and a much more accurate handling of information.
- It improves the experience and satisfaction of visitors.
- Greater communication and feedback is achieved with all internet users.
- Decreases the bounce rate.
- It builds user loyalty, retaining them and getting them to visit the website again.
- It makes it easier for visitors to recommend the site, thus generating additional visits.
- Increases sales through the website.
what are the keys to improving the usability of your website?
- Clear identity: It is very important that you are clear from the beginning about the message you want to convey and that it reaches the user in a clear and concise way. The person accessing your website must easily find out who you are and what you are offering .
- Prioritise availability: Make sure that your site is always available and that its hyperlinks and other functions serve their purpose well.
- Good accessibility - good accessibility means that users, whatever their knowledge, can access and understand the website without any problems.
- Open an "about us" section, which concentrates relevant information about the company, such as its history, mission, vision, values, etc., and adds credibility to your website.
- Loading speed: If your website is slow and takes a long time to load, users are more likely to abandon it .
- Site security: If your site appears as "not secure", your potential customers will not trust you to leave their personal data .
- Easy navigation: Being able to navigate easily and intuitively from the first moment users enter your website is very important for them to feel comfortable exploring and want to come back soon. A very clear example of smooth navigation is being able to easily access the home page or the previous page .
- Clean and attractive design: To win over users it is essential that the design of your website is attractive and intuitive. Having an interface that attracts the attention of your target audience and allows them to find what they are looking for easily, will give you a better chance of success.
- Business philosophy: Having a design based on the philosophy of your business that your users can identify with will help you create a solid brand identity .
- Be responsive: Nowadays, the computer is no longer the primary medium for browsing the internet, so make sure your website adapts to any type of screen in order to offer the best possible user experience. This web design technique is known as responsive.
- Encourage interaction: To get the user to interact with your website and go to the section that brings you conversions, you must guide them through clear and attractive messages, as well as introducing buttons that call to action or CTA (Call To Action).
- Quality content: Create useful content for your visitors and structure and organise it according to a defined hierarchy for all texts. The spelling and grammar of your content is also very important.
- Titles: Remember to add clear titles and that the content fulfils the promise of the title.
- Key information on the home page. The home page should help the visitor to find, quickly and easily, what they are looking for on your site. In addition, adding information on the home page both about your company (such as your logo and name) and what you offer, whether it is sales, content, information, etc. makes it easier for the user to know who you are and whether it will meet their needs when browsing your site.
what is a web usability test?
A web usability test is a test that is done to an application or web page in order to determine what is the user experience when browsing a website. They can be done using paid tools or done by yourself with users whose personal profile is similar to your buyer persona.
The best known way to do a web usability test is to select a minimum of 5 users and assign them specific tasks to do within your page, either reading content, register, make a purchase in the online shop, etc. Then, ask them to make a recording with the tour and go describing everything about your site, its appearance, ease of performing the assigned task, comfort, among others. Finally you can give them a questionnaire about what they think is the purpose of the company, how they found the information obtained, the scannability, what are their recommendations for improvement.
Remember that web usability is key to improve the visibility of your business in Inbound Marketing and the fact of providing a good experience to your users will make them want to come back, thus increasing the possibilities of sales.
