Objectives

1. VRBO Property Page Usability Test Results Conducted by Jayne SchurickUsability Consultantjschurick@gmail.com(512)306-9373

2. Objectives • In preparation for a major design refresh of the VRBO Property Page, the design team is interested in: • Determining what travelers and owners want and expect on a property listing page • Identifying the most important information that helps travelers make a decision to rent a specific property • Identifying features and presentation preferences on VRBO and competitor websites (Airbnb, Flipkey, and HomeAway)

3. Test Format and Participants • Remote test using WebEx to allow participants to view and control the computer displaying the websites • Conducted December 11 and 12, 2012 • 8 participants: • 4 travelers • 4 owners • All use VRBO and have recently submitted feedback, indicating they are interested in participating in a usability test • The presentation of the 4 websites was counterbalanced, i.e., each participant reviewed the sites in a different order

4. Tasks Find the following information: Cost to rent the property Availability Save property details Share property details Ask a question of the owner Book the property Plus overall impressions of the property page and comparison of all sites (VRBO, Airbnb, Flipkey, and HomeAway)

5. Results Overall, this group of participants preferred VRBO to the other property pages. While they liked some features on the other sites, all were pretty committed to VRBO. Besides the property page options and design, there are other reasons travelers and owners like VRBO: travelers seem to think that VRBO is more flexible for booking short and imminent stays, and many owners feel they get more inquiries and bookings from VRBO. For these reasons, the group of participants tested was somewhat biased in their opinions. However, it is a group that needs to be considered. As one participant said, “people get used to a site and return over and over again.” It should also be noted that, in general, users don’t like change, especially if the changes seem gratuitous, i.e., they don’t fix issues. The following pages present notable findings for each of the 4 property pages. The final pages contain summaries of desired features and design preferences.

6. VRBO Headline color, font, and size make it very prominent and inviting (“romantic,” “homey,” “less corporate”). Green headings have good contrast, making them easy to read and providing clear separation between sections. Property search and location breadcrumb are prominent (note that even though they are similar on HomeAway, they were noticed more on VRBO). Presentation of options on the right (book rental, contact owner, and payment methods) is distinct; however, one traveler said the meaning of book and contact would be clearer if presented as alternatives (eBay analogy to “bid or buy now”). Travelers liked the option to book online; also the option to book or just get a quote. Two owners were concerned about the lack of consistency between properties that offer online booking and those that don’t. One owner thought the links to get a quote and view calendar are hard to see.

7. VRBO Options to contact owner are nice and in the correct order (phone number, email, profile). The detailed quote contains the right information, is nicely laid out, and easy to read. Overall, there was a sense that VRBO requires less scrolling, perhaps because: • Green headings (good contrast) highlight important information. • VRBO includes links to details (Flipkey’s are less obvious and Airbnb’s are minimal). • HA has more information at the top that is unrelated to the property, also bigger controls and more white space. • HA puts detailed pictures toward the top, so once you start scrolling you have to scroll through all pictures.

8. Airbnb Participants immediately noticed that the size and qualify of the photo make this site very appealing (“compelling,” dynamic”). The scrolling of photos is smoother and easier to use than other sites. Some participants noted that the tabs to navigate to details are more “up-to-date” than anchor links. While tab usage is obvious and they look more modern, users can’t scroll to important information, such as the calendar. Participants who used the calendar really liked seeing nightly rates on the calendar. Those who didn’t see or use the calendar noted that there’s no way to see rates other than putting in your dates. Owners didn’t like the street view and the drop-down for the pricing period (per month makes it seems very very expensive). While the site offers a “book it” option, it’s not online booking. Some participants felt cheated, while others liked the simplicity of it.

9. Airbnb The property description table is very clear and easy to read, although “real bed” and “cancellation moderate” weren’t understood. It also might contain a bit too much information, e.g., one participant noted that check-in and check-out times are unnecessary when just researching properties. This table also causes a lot of unused (white) space on the page, making the overall page appear “plain.”

10. Flipkey Of all of the property pages, Flipkey was liked the least. Reasons included: • The headline isn’t prominent or descriptive. • Pictures are small. • Links to details aren’t prominent; several participants said there’s not a link to the calendar. • It’s not clear how to get a quote: arrival and departure dates are low on the page and you have to send a message to the owner. • There’s no option to book online. • The map is small and not recognizable; it’s also not clear that you can click to view a larger map. • Owner information isn’t inviting, no phone number. • Property details (at the top) aren’t laid out well; also “suitable for elderly” is off-putting, seems very narrow (e.g., why that instead of “suitable for families?”). • Site seems very basic; information seems condensed.

11. Flipkey However, there some features on Flipkey that participants liked: • The details on the left side of the page contains good information and the tabular format is a nice presentation, easy to read. • The use of color on the calendar makes availability very clear. • The amenities are easy to read.

12. HomeAway HomeAway has many of the same features and layout as VRBO. The notes below focus only on the features that were noted to be different from VRBO. There were mixed reviews about the pictures; some participants liked the large pictures on the page and others said they interfered with scrolling to details. One participant noted accessibility issues with the expandable links to “About the Owner,” “Why the Owner chose Sonoma,” and “What makes this house unique.” A keyboard-only user can’t get to this information. The same participant said there are possible contrast issues with some of the text. The use of diagonal lines to indicate check-in and check-out dates on the calendar is very clear.

13. Save, Share, and Booking: Signing In None of the participants (8 out of 8) understood or liked that they had to create an account in order to save, share, and use online booking. There were several issues: • They didn’t understand Facebook. All participants thought that signing in with Facebook meant they were sharing their vacation rental search with friends on Facebook. When it was explained that this is just a way of signing in so you don’t need to create a separate account, the response from one participant was “that’s what you say but the next thing you know, it’s on your Facebook page.” Another said that Facebook will use it for displaying ads on her page. • Some sites (VRBO, Airbnb, and HA) make signing in with Facebook so prominent that users don’t see the option to sign in with their email address. Flipkey reverses this, giving equal weight to signing in with an email address and Facebook, and showing the email option first.

14. Save, Share, and Booking: Signing In When the reasoning was explained, participants understood why they would need an account to save and book a property but they didn’t understand why they needed it to share, i.e., send an email to others. • There’s a subtle difference between “sign up with [website]” and “create account.” “Sign up with [website]” implies that you will be marketed to, while users are more likely to understand they they need an account to perform certain tasks. One participant suggested a model like many shopping sites, where you can save products to your cart and create an account only when you’re ready to purchase. Some of the sign-in dialogs don’t include a cancel option. Even when they understood why they needed an account and said they might create one (using email, not Facebook), participants said there are times when you need to go back and check something before continuing. The lack of a cancel option makes this very hard to do…or at least not intuitive.

15. Summary Property page features users like: Location breadcrumb Search options at the top of the property page Rate calculator/”get a quote” Info about taxes, fees, etc. Online booking Calendar last update Payment methods Payment terms Cancellation policy Currency assistant Star ratings and reviews Similar listings, especially if they are for the dates entered Points of interest on the map

16. Summary Design features users like: Attention-grabbing headline (design and content) Minimal scrolling, or the perception of minimal scrolling to details While tabs look nice and are modern, many users still want to scroll to details; therefore, anchor links or buttons are recommended Good separation of sections Good contrast Bullet points instead of text Separation of save and share options from social media links Distinct “look” (e.g., VRBO has it’s own look that is different from the others and users like this)