Usability Interface
The Value of Usability |
by Steve Mackos, Usability Specialist
Reprinted from Usability Interface, Vol 6, No. 3,
January 2000
Editor's Note: Steve asked us to omit the name of the company cited in
this article.
Every year, Company X holds a North American user conference, and this year about 1200
current customers attended. For the last two years I have run a usability lab where we
tested 6 future UI designs with our customers across 12 breakout sessions. I have been
asked to justify the value of continuing our usability lab and here is what I have learned
so far:
- Commitment - showing customers that we are committed to making products
easier for them to use.
- Feedback and opinions - the opportunity to test and interact with
current customers because they give us more real-world feedback.
- Observation - the opportunity for other Company X people to watch real
customers interact with their product first-hand.
- Public relations and customer satisfaction - giving users the feeling
that they are (or can be) a part of the process of designing the user interface, giving
them a chance to influence the products that they use
- Informal learning - giving us the opportunity to learn about our
customers, being able to watch over their shoulders as they work on representative tasks.
- Cost effectiveness - a single traditional usability test with real
customers costs Company X approximately $30,000. The user conference is an ideal place to
talk to users because we can conduct 12 usability tests without these overhead
time/travel/equipment costs.
- Innovation - by testing future product user interfaces, we are
demonstrating a commitment to ongoing innovation and development.
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