Howto/firstfridays

1. Howto.gov/firstfridays Why the bestgov sites use User-Centered Design Jonathan Rubin First Fridays Usability Program

2. User-Centered Design Takeaways • UCD saves money and improves websites • Gov’t and top companies already use it • UCD = good customer service • Use early and often • First Fridays can help teach you about UCD Howto.gov/firstfridays

3. 1. What is User-Centered Design? Howto.gov/firstfridays

4. You are not your users Target Audience You Howto.gov/firstfridays

5. User-Centered Design = • Focusing on needs, wants, and limitations of target audience of a product at each stage of the design process. Howto.gov/firstfridays

6. Design User Testing (Usability) Planning Requirements Surveys Focus Groups Personas Interviews Content Organization Tasks Prototypes Usability Testing Expert Eval. Interviews 508 Testing User-Centered Design Research Howto.gov/firstfridays

7. 5 E’s of Usable Products • Effective • Efficient • Engaging • Error Tolerant • Easy to Learn • - Whitney Quesenbery (2004) ‘Balancing the 5Es: Usability’ Howto.gov/firstfridays

9. Here!

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12. Rooted in: Cognitive Science - 1930s Human Factors and Ergonomics- WWI "Scientific Management" - 19th cen. Scientific Method User-Centered Design: Not a soft science Howto.gov/firstfridays

13. Stanford Carnegie Mellon Univ of Michigan NYU Penn State University of Wisconsin-Madison Fortune 500 companies with UCD teams Walmart Apple GE GM Ford Google, etc. UCD degrees at 60+ Universities Howto.gov/firstfridays

14. From 2013 Survey: # UCD staff Howto.gov/firstfridays Howto.gov/firstfridays

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16. Benefits of good design Increase User success on tasks Site visits Customer Satisfaction Decrease Time to complete tasks Volume of emails / help calls Development Costs Howto.gov/firstfridays

17. UCD = Good Customer Service

18. Poor design = budget overruns Three reasons websites go over budget: Requests for changes by users Users can't accomplish key tasks Lack of communication with users - Lederer & Prasad, ‘Nine Management Guidelines for Better Cost Estimating’ CACM 35 (2). Howto.gov/firstfridays

19. The user is always right. If there is a problem with the use of the system, the system is the problem, not the user. - IBM usability expert Dr. Clare-Marie Karat Howto.gov/firstfridays

20. For developers and manufacturers, the advantages of creating usable products far outweigh the costs. The rule of thumb: Every dollar invested in ease of use returns $10 to $100. - IBM "On User-Centered Design" Howto.gov/firstfridays

21. 2. Usability Testing 101 Howto.gov/firstfridays

22. Design User Testing (Usability) Surveys Focus Groups Personas User Requirements Interviews Content Organization Tasks Prototypes Usability Testing Expert Eval. Interviews 508 Testing User-Centered Design Research Howto.gov/firstfridays

24. Usability Testing (aka User Testing) Setting a series of tasks for people to complete and noting any problems they encounter – Andy Budd Howto.gov/firstfridays

25. Usability is like oxygen - you never notice it until it is missing - Anonymous @jonathan_rubin

26. What you need to do a test • Something to test (site, poster, service, etc.) • Tasks for people to do Howto.gov/firstfridays

27. Top Tasks – Why they’re here • Learn about your services • Find your contact information • Register for a class • Purchase something • Leave a comment • Get a rate quote Howto.gov/firstfridays

29. What’s on a testing script • Give intro and ground rules • Questions about user • Sign release (if recording) • Easy Tasks • Harder tasks • Post-test questions (optional) • Thanks and incentive (if any) Howto.gov/firstfridays

30. Active Listening / Think-Aloud Protocol • Silent, Traditional, or Coaching (we’ll use this) • Designed to get unbiased data • Tester does 90% of talking • Ask Open Ended Questions (if any) • Be unbiased: Don’t let on if they are right or wrong Howto.gov/firstfridays

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35. 4. Website Best Practices Howto.gov/firstfridays

36. Most common website problems Users can't understand purpose of site Top tasks difficult to complete Too much text / information not prioritized Confusing or obscure terms Navigation not consistent Howto.gov/firstfridays

37. Website Best Practices Clear starting point Have cream rise to the top Make search simple Plain Language Consistent navigation Howto.gov/firstfridays

38. 1. Give a clear starting point Howto.gov/firstfridays

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41. 2. Make cream rise to the top Howto.gov/firstfridays

42. Can’t find info via any means or know where to begin 5. Difficulty with top tasks

43. Can’t find info via any means or know where to begin 5. Difficulty with top tasks

45. 3. Use Plain Language Howto.gov/firstfridays

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48. 4. Make search simple Howto.gov/firstfridays Howto.gov/firstfridays

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