Up and Running?
Ask yourself these five key usability questions
from Ilise Benun:
1 Is it intuitive?
- Does your site take
advantage of visitors’ mental models?
- Does it behave consistently throughout?
- How easy is it to use with only partial knowledge of how it works?
- Is it easy to learn?
2 Is it consistent?
- Does it follow conventions
that your users are familiar with?
- Is it obvious from one
page to another that you’re on the same site?
- How quickly can novice users perform realworld
tasks on the site?
3 Is it efficient?
- Does it download fast
enough for your users?
- Does it take three clicks
or less for users to find
the content they’re
looking for?
- Does the site reflect a
clear understanding of
how visitors will use it?
- Can tasks be performed
with keyboard strokes?
- How easy is it for users
to perform more complex
tasks?
- Can common tasks be
completed quickly and
accurately?
4 Is it both supportable
and supportive?
- Does it allow mistakes
to be easily undone?
- Does it provide guidance?
Advice? Tools?
Reference materials?
Access to live help?
5 Is it engaging?
- Do users feel in control?
- Will users enjoy their
experience?
The website of
Bronson Ma Creative combines white
space with smart use
of accent colors. Vivid
green leads the eye
to the most important
feature on each page.
On the home page,
the newsletter button
(GO!) beckons at the
right of the screen.
Although Ma categorizes
his work by
project type, he offers
a visual sampling of
a little of everything
with an introduction
that employs a lively
Flash technique (Flash
is among the services
he offers clients).
“I think since we are in
the business of visual
communication, the
work really needs to
stand out,” Ma says.
“By putting the work
in categories, the user
can quickly identify
where it is. And the
interactivity makes it
interesting to browse.”
Ma carefully manages
accent colors within
his portfolio pages
and employs white
space with artistry so
the colors stand out
to maximum effect
throughout the site.
