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What is usability?

Usability measures the quality of a user’s experience when interacting with a product or system—whether a Web site, a software application, mobile technology, or any user-operated device.

In general, usability refers to how well users can learn and use a product to achieve their goals and how satisfied they are with that process. Usability, as defined by Joseph Dumas and Janice (Ginny) Redish, means that people who use the product can do so quickly and easily to accomplish their tasks. Usability may also consider such factors as cost-effectiveness and usefulness.

A key methodology for carrying out usability is called User-Centered Design.

What does usability measure?

It is important to realize that usability is not a single, one-dimensional property of a user interface. Usability is a combination of factors including:

image source:

www.usability.gov

Ease of learning – How fast can a user who has never seen the user interface before learn it sufficiently well to accomplish basic tasks? Efficiency of use – Once an experienced user has learned to use the system, how fast can he or she accomplish tasks? Memorability – If a user has used the system before, can he or she remember enough to use it effectively the next time or does the user have to start over again learning everything? Error frequency and severity – How often do users make errors while using the system, how serious are these errors, and how do users recover from these errors? Subjective satisfaction – How much does the user like using the system?

Why is usability important?

Millions of Web sites offer users information, goods, services, and entertainment. But many of these sites are difficult to use, don’t work properly, and ultimately don’t attract or keep users. By following a usability engineering process, users’ abilities to find information and satisfaction with Web sites improve significantly.

Why is Web Usability critical to SEO?

Search engine optimization and usability go hand in hand when it comes to automotive website design, as well as for Web marketing in general. Having the onsite design that attracts the search engines will also attract users, and having a design that a search engine spider won’t get lost in means that a user won’t get lost either.