February 28, 2007

Right-hand navigation

Our site uses a right-hand navigation, rather than the traditional left-hand navigation. We've tested this extensively and the results have always been very positive. Experts tell us to move the navigation to the left. Should we listen to experts or our users?

If you’ve done extensive testing of your website with the correct types of users and the right sample size, and the users had no trouble with right-hand navigation, then trust the user data over expert opinion.

While it’s true that left-hand navigation is more common and more expected than right-hand navigation, remember that standards and guidelines merely provide a starting point for design. In absence of data to support going against a standard, the standard should be followed. However, we’ve seen several instances where, because the user audience was different from “the norm” or because of other causes, a standard wasn’t the best answer.

Filed under: Content, Design | Permalink

February 20, 2007

The 3-click rule

Is it important that users be able to get to any content in a website within 3 clicks?

We hear at least weekly of companies enforcing the “rule” that users must be able to get to any page in the site within 3 clicks. There are several problems with this rule.

One problem is scalability. In very large or complex websites and web applications, the rule just doesn’t scale. If your website has several hundred or more pages, to expect users to be able to get to any one of those pages in 3 clicks means you may be overloading the global navigation structure, the number of links on a page, or other mechanisms for getting from page to page. Trying to make sense of all of that information at once takes users a long time.

The 3-click rule also is what we call a false metric. Making pages accessible within 3 clicks has no inherent value as a metric to the users of a site or to your business goals. What might matter, though, is efficiency (how quickly users can complete their tasks) or how easily users can find what they need. Do users have to call tech support or use other resources that cost the company money to find the information they need?

In a wonderful paper called Designing for the Scent of Information, User Interface Engineering notes that what users do expect is that every click makes them more confident they’re on the right trail to get to the information they need. As long as users are confident they’re heading in the right direction, then they are not likely to abandon the site if it takes a click or two more to get where they’re going.

Filed under: Design, Content | Permalink

December 19, 2006

Instructional text on the page

When is instructional text on a page appropriate? When it is appropriate, how much is too much?

Instructional text should not be used to fix issues inherent in the design or content. First, discover and fix the issues that you can, then look at instructional text as one possible solution for what’s left over.

Begin by asking what elements on the page cause problems for the users. You can get this information from a combination of sources: usability studies, technical support calls, trainers who train new users, salespeople in the field, etc. Once you have the answer, ask yourself what can be done to fix the issues you identified. For example: Can the layout be changed to reduce clutter and make more obvious what the user is supposed to do next? Can field labels be changed so that they use language the user will understand?

For the subset of issues that cannot be fixed by changing the design or content, consider instructional text on a case-by-case basis to determine whether it’s the right solution. Also consider other solutions such as hover help, field-input examples, and small pop-up windows. In cases where you believe instructional text on the page might be the best answer, keep it short—no more than a sentence or two—and test it with users to determine whether the language and terminology are appropriate and helpful.

Filed under: Content, Design | Permalink

November 27, 2006

Horizontal Scrolling

How do you design a transactional page that requires horizontal scrolling? Do you freeze the left frame like Excel, or use tabs?

It is almost never appropriate to design a page that includes horizontal scrolling. In several studies conducted by Expero staff, horizontal scrolling caused many serious usability issues. For example, in one study, users repeatedly failed to see important row actions within a page that scrolled horizontally—there was just too much information on the page for the user to see what they needed to do.

When data begins to scroll horizontally, one approach is to show only a subset of the data in the page. You can use “details” links to show more data on a secondary page, or you can use “drawers” that will open up more information when the user explicitly selects the control.

Another suggestion is to have view-only pages that can show more information, and take the users to a form-like page to edit information. The different views are each optimized to present data in the most appropriate way for viewing or editing.

Test any pages that contain horizontal scrolling with your users to benchmark any usability issues. Redesign the pages to eliminate horizontal scrolling and see whether there are differences in such metrics as number and severity of usability issues, or time to complete tasks.

Generally, redesigning the page to eliminate horizontal scrolling will improve the user experience.

Filed under: Design | Permalink

October 17, 2006

Forms vs. tables for data entry for a large number of fields

Aside from creating logical sets of fields, how else can we improve the usability of forms with a moderate to large number of fields? Is there a threshold between using a form and using a table?

There are many things to consider when designing forms or tables with a large data set. The first is your users and how they will use the form. If the data entry is single-use for consumers or other untrained users, it may be best to use a form instead of a table. On the other hand, if it is for trained users for whom efficiency is critical, or if it is for maintaining a data set over time (especially if users are likely to change only a subset of data at a time), then a table may be better.

Tables also can make sense where the data are not sequential, such as entering player statistics for sports. Tables can be easier to scan, and Help can go on the row/column headings if needed.

If the data entered are unique from field to field, such as tax data, then consider using multiple pages or tabs to break out the data on a form. If the data are sequential, then tabs are a good way to go. If users may go back to the form to change or edit information over time, a read-only view could be shown displaying all information, with different sections editable as needed.

Filed under: Content, Design | Permalink