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Satisfying site design: myexperience.com

Contents: essay start | 'case study' | introduction | myexperience.com | goals and perceptions | armchair exploring | lostmyway.com

The argument for designing a user experience

A survey of several thousand World Wide Web users in 1999 highlighted that perception and overall experience had become important issues for many. Results taken from the 10th Annual GVU WWW User Survey (Kehoe et al. 1999), identified quality of information (10%) and ease of ordering (9.7%) as important to more online shoppers than security (9.3%). Failure to find what they were looking for was the main reason (26%) for a dissatisfying experience when purchasing online.

Three years prior in the same survey, most users indicated that censorship and privacy, followed by navigation, were their main concern (Kehoe & Pitkow 1996). The increase in ranking of issues related to goals and expectations is an indication of the importance more users are starting to place on receiving a satisfying experience from using a Web site. Illustrating the importance of perception on Web users, the GVU survey indicated 9% of respondents didn't make purchases because they'd heard that it was not reliable, trustworthy or secure, although only 1.9% had actually had a bad experience with Web purchasing (Kehoe et al. 1999).

In the fictional example of Ken trying mynewcar.com.au for the first time, his underlying perception of the site is likely to be poor because of two primary reasons. Firstly - it did not satisfy his goals. He wanted some specific information, the ability to compare features of two models of cars and perhaps the opportunity to contact some credible source afterwards to obtain further information and confirm his decision on which car to buy. However the site, through its design, put a number of obstacles in his way - primarily through poor navigation. Ken knew what he wanted to find, the site in all likelihood had that information available, but it was not structured in such a way to meet his goals. Secondly - the site did not meet his expectations. He was lead to the site through marketing (radio advertising in this case) which promised him benefits (ie: 'take the worry out of finding a new car') through a range of features (ie: 'the simplest way to search for the car you want). Not only were the promises made by the marketing not met, but in fact the actual experience Ken received from the site was the opposite to that promised. As far as mynewcar.com.au is concerned, Ken's perception of the site is poor and he is unlikely to return.

User experience and perception are critical issues to Web site design and influence and affect many other issues relating to site usability, function and navigation - some which will be explored later in this essay. While survey results suggests an increasing focus by users on the importance of receiving a good and satisfying experience from a site, there is also a growing body of empirical argument that supports the analytical trends. Information designer Jennifer Fleming argues that designers of many Web sites have been approaching the primary issues the wrong way by focussing on technology and navigation features designed to make the site work, rather than issues which directly impact the user's experience, such as enabling them to achieve their goals (Fleming 1998b, p. 2). A core theme of her writing is based on the argument that a clear understanding of a user's goals and expectations will directly affect the ability to design a user experience which is fulfilling. She argues that a number of obstacles can stand in the way of creating an effective experience, from tangible examples such as navigation which inhibits a user reaching the content or feature they are looking for, to more intangible examples such as a user feeling unsettled because they are 'lost' or 'stranded', frustrated because they are being forced to wait too long, or nervous about privacy and security (Dery 1994, Fleming 1998b, Kehoe & Pitkow 1996).

Cognitive psychologist Dr. Donald Norman concurs with Fleming in suggesting the overall experience a user takes from a site is more important than the usability of that site. He believes people forget usability ­ it is secondary - and that they will accept poor usability if they get what they need ­ if their goals are met and if the total experience is great (Rhodes 1999). They will also reject perfect usability if not rewarded with a useful or engaging result. This would appear an important concept in the theme of site functionality because it suggests that if acceptance of usability is moderated by overall experience, then the understanding of user goals and perceptions become critical to the successful function of the site. The requirement for understanding goals, market and user diversity through profiles and scenario planning is explored in more detail in the next chapter.

It can be argued that designing user experiences not only influences the need for effective navigation and tools which help users achieve their goals, but it also influences the overall structure and concepts behind a site. Dr Jakob Nielsen, usability expert and author of Designing Web Usability: the Practice of Simplicity, suggests site structure should mirror user tasks, not company structures ((Nielsen 1999, pp.184-185). Nielsen argues that too many sites reflect either the company structure and its goals - the example of mynewcar.com.au with a homepage talking about the company, its business relationships and its future plans represents this point. Under Nielsen's core premise, the home page of mynewcar.com.au should have promoted the primary features and benefits provided to users, such as comparison guides, assistance with searching for a particular car and associated important content such as advice on financing, insurance and negotiating a better deal. Information about the site plans and linked dealers would have been prioritised lower in the site hierarchy because while it provides information important to the company executives and business partners, it does not assist users in achieving their primary goals and therefore creating a satisfying experience. Nielsen argues part of the online problem may be that traditional concepts used to decide usability features in software engineering do not effectively translate to Web sites - suggesting that with software users pay first and experience second, where as with Web sites they experience first and then pay second (Nielsen 1999, pp. 10-11).

There are views that diverge from the importance of creating an experience. Information designer Edward Tufte suggests that in designing information, it is the information which is more important, not the experience (Tufte 1990, p.18). He says that the data should speak for itself, and frowns upon the prevalence of cosmetic decoration in information design. While it can be argued that this purist view appears to place the function of the content ahead of the requirements of the user - and therefore indicates lack of consideration for the target audience - it should be placed in context that Tufte in 1990 was talking about the display of single pieces of visual information, not design of Web sites or user interactions. In fact Tufte suggests in his book Envisioning Information that the point is to discover design strategies that reveal the complexity and detail of content, rather than criticise the data for its complication, or even worse criticise the viewer for lack of understanding. (Tufte 1990). Despite his stance on the focus of information design, he advocates some responsibility towards the audience.

There is a raft of support for the premise that Web site design must firstly concern itself with creating a satisfying user experience based on meeting perceptions and allowing users to achieve their goals. Founder of popular online retailer Amazon.com - Jeff Bezos, in an interview in 1998 on the future of the Web (Bayers 1999, pp. 114-121) suggests that changing consumer culture and motivations will force these changes upon the internet, particularly in terms of how it functions and meets the needs and expectations of people using online services. In the Bezos vision for the future, internet information design will by necessity be dictated by the users, and not the owners, of the Web sites which provide services.