Usability relates to how easy it is for visitors to get around your site.
So, when designing a website, ask yourself the following:
- Is there a clear menu tree structure on the left hand side?
- Is there a search facility?
- Is your company name and logo at the top of the page?
- Are there clear contact details for anyone that gets stuck
All these factors are crucial. If the visitor to your site can't find what they need within seconds, then you are losing customers. Again, I can't stress enough, the general rule of thumb to use in web design is for a visitor to not require more than three clicks to reach the content they require.
This might sound limiting, but with a clear sitemap structure and logical page setup, this should be a breeze. For example, if you are running an online store, you would have your homepage with a list of departments on the left...
CLICK 1 through to department of choice, say "Gardening"... another menu appears on the left...
CLICK 2, click "Tools" to reveal another menu of gardening tools.
CLICK 3, you've found the page listing spades. The user is now happy to browse at leisure through the range of spades you offer.
So make sure your website is usable. If people can't even navigate your site, they aren't getting in the front door. But if you do have a usable site, you need to ensure your visitors are getting what they want. And they key here is the quality of your content. The one thing you don't want to do, is let your customers down.
For more information on SEO and online marketing techniques, check out the 3dubs online marketing blog.
Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Rob_T
