Improving Web Usability with a Content Management System Fred Miller, Rick Lindquist, & Curtis Kelch Illinois Wesleyan University
The Problem • How to best use a web content management system • In an environment with distributed site responsibility • While ensuring the usability of the site
Our Challenge • About Illinois Wesleyan University – 2100 students, 700 faculty and staff – Over 60 department & office web sites • Went live with CMS in fall of 2005 – Sungard Higher Ed Luminis CMS • > 90% of departments offices using CMS – Departments have responsibility for their sites – Only one new position created
What’s In It For You? • • Our tactics Lessons learned Review of low cost usability techniques Demonstration of low cost usability techniques • More low cost web usability tools
Tactics: Distributed Responsibility • Public Relations – Template and graphic design – Main navigation and template approval – Content for University pages • IT Staff – Maintain CMS systems, build templates – Train department CMS users – Assist with usability testing, department navigation • Department CMS users – Work with IT to develop pages & site navigation – Create & update content
Lessons Learned (part 1 of 3) • Administration support – Budget – Buy-in & ownership – Content, usability, and infrastructure • Avoid being overly ambitious • Offer some site differentiation
Site Differentiation
Lessons Learned (Part 2 of 3) • Pick a primary audience – Who are you building the site for? • Rewards that work – Usability testing – Content managers • Look for opportunities to test usability – Department site redesign – Change requests
Opportunity for Usability Testing • IT controls navigation & template changes – Encourage usability testing with changes Site-Wide Navigation “Bread Crumb” Trail Department Navigation
Lessons Learned (part 3 of 3) • The importance of training and support – Prepare a “maintenance plan” – Some departments use students – A few positions adjusted to reflect new roles – Keep positive momentum • Sustaining Interest – The template refresh – Ongoing usability testing
Low Cost Usability Techniques • • • A few fast, informal tests fix big problems Observation methods Card sorting Prototyping The external expert review (reality check)
Observation Methods • Select target audience for testing – 5 quick tests can find most site problems – Even one test is better than none • Prepare a few simple tasks to perform • Tell user we’re testing the site, not them – “The user is always right” • Ask to talk out loud • Observe only, don’t lead to answers
Before and After • 10 -minute tests • 2 -minute fix • No cost • Deleted old info • Combined hours • Clear benefits
The Application Button
Card Sorting • Helpful when designing CMS site architecture • One index card for each page in the site • Users sort the cards into 6 -8 similar piles – Ask to “think out loud” – Name the categories • Analyze the results – Common themes? – What are top levels?
Prototypes • Paper Prototypes – Sketch out a solution on paper – No preconceived notions – No web skills needed • Using the CMS to create a test site – CMS changes are fast – Iterative process – No need to publish
Usability with a CMS • CMS means fast changes • Dynamic features – Template or style changes – Linked pages: share the same content – Components: change many pages at once – Test your site before publishing
The External Expert Review • Academic usability expert – Dr. Michael Twidale from University of Illinois • Two on site visits and demonstrations • Very low cost • Commercial – Lawlor Group’s “Identity” study • Not so low cost
If it is that easy… • Low Cost Usability testing in action – The Challenge • “What can we learn from a single, short user test with little advance preparation and rapid analysis of results? ” – Looking for a parent of a prospective college student… – Select 5 tasks a parent would perform – Let’s do it…
Low Cost Usability Tools • • Google Analytics Visual Heatmap Confetti Click. Tale
Using Existing Web Visitors For low cost usability
Show visually
Show visually
Google Overlay
Google Overlay
Home Page Design
Visual Heatmap
Dr. Jakob Nielsen Famous User Interface & Usability Expert F
Confetti
Confetti
Why are users clicking here?
Crazy. Egg. com
Just add this code to your pages
Click. Tale
Additional Resources • Jakob Nielson’s Use. It. com & Alertbox – http: //www. useit. com/ • SURL at Wichita State – http: //psychology. wichita. edu/surl • Steve Krug, “Don’t Make Me Think” – http: //www. sensible. com/index. html • Crazy Egg – http: //www. crazyegg. com • Google Analytics – http: //www. google. com/analytics/ • Clicktale – http: //www. clicktale. com/ • Usability. gov – http: //www. usability. gov/
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