Businesses are full of metrics. Increasingly those metrics quantify the user experience (which is a good thing). Collecting consistent and standardized metrics allows organizations to better understand the current user experience of websites, software, and apps. It allows teams to track changes over time and compare to competitors and industry benchmarks. The idea of quantifying
Being sure there’s enough money in your checking account to pay bills is stressful enough. The complexity of your banking website shouldn’t add to that stress. To compete for your business and reduce the cost of maintaining physical branches and staff, banks continue to offer more online features and improve the experiences on desktop and
What forms do I need to file my taxes this year? How much is a National Park Pass? How do I renew my passport? Federal government websites are helpful for a wide variety of activities, from mailing a package to booking a camping site to filing taxes. Many federal branches have begun to computerize their
A benchmark study tells you where a website, app, or product falls relative to some meaningful comparison. This comparison can be to an earlier version, the competition, or industry standard. Benchmark studies are often called summative evaluations as the emphasis is less on finding problems and more on quantitatively assessing the current experience. To quantify,
For most people, going to the doctor isn’t fun. Is the doctor in your network? How much will the visit cost? What if a CT scan is ordered? And when the bill comes, what the heck does EOB mean? What does or doesn’t your insurance cover? A visit to your health insurance website should help,
In Benchmarking the User Experience, I write about the importance of a regular plan for quantifying the user experience of your websites, apps, or devices. This involves collecting metrics, usually at both task and study levels. But the point of benchmarking isn’t just to collect metrics to put on a dashboard, it’s to ultimately improve
Where do you get your news? Do you think it’s objective? Do you trust it? Fewer people are relying on print (newspapers and magazines) and even TV for their news. Print subscriptions continue to decline and almost half of Americans report getting their news online, nearly the same as TV news. Despite the evolution of the
This Valentine’s Day around $2 billion will be spent on flowers. A lot of that ordering will be online. Poor online experiences mean shoppers will abandon an order and go somewhere else, or not return when they need to purchase flowers again. Having a strong user experience will ensure customers can find the right arrangement,
Benchmarking is an essential part of a plan to systematically improve the user experience. A regular benchmark study is a great way to show how design improvements may or may not be improving the user experience of websites and products. After you’ve decided you’re ready to conduct a benchmark, you’ll need to consider whether to
As the world continues to go mobile, there’s a huge demand for both mobile devices and cellular plans from mobile carriers. A lot of that buying happens online. Having a good online experience for wireless carriers ensures customers select the right device and plan. If customers can’t find the right device or have questions about
