Economic Downturn Puts Website Usability into Focus
22nd July 2008
The economic pinch is encouraging more people to shop online, making website usability more important than ever.
With the headlines dominated by the "Credit Crunch", combined with the rising cost of fuel & food, the accepted wisdom is that people are sacrificing any non-essential spending.
However, research by Capgemini indicates that consumers aren't necessarily shopping less but instead they are shopping smarter - by going online rather than to the high street. As reported in the Scotsman 
on the 18th July, internet shopping has increased by 38% since January compared with the same period in 2007.
Internet shopping comprises 17p in every £1 of retail spending this year, compared with 15p last year. Perhaps most surprisingly, the biggest gains are for clothing, lingerie and shoes. These are products which normally would require physical touching, fitting and inspection of the product quality, at least more than traditional online shopping purchases such as books, CDs, DVDs and electronics.
Interestingly, this increase in online shopping may be at the expense of the physical shopping outlets. John Lewis's figures reflect this trend; their sales dropped in out-of-town shops but their website has experienced a 20 per cent year-on-year growth.
Benefits of shopping online
As budgets are stretched, finding a bargain is more important than ever. While most people with limited budgets are used to shopping around for the cheapest deal, this strategy has changed due to internet access being available in most homes. Those who shop online can compare the prices of products across many shops at the click of a mouse rather that driving around shops for hours in traffic. The price of fuel and parking is causing consumers to think twice before driving around several locations to comparison shop especially in poor weather.
Customers are choosing the internet because they feel they have more control over their spending, with less chance of impulse purchases. Much can be credited to the ever-improving online shopping experience offered by some stores, together with comparison sites that allow people to buy with confidence. Let's look at some of these components of a good online shopping experience.
Good usability practices
Those ecommerce sites that follow good usability practices will inevitably have a competitive advantage. There are many things which a provider can do to make their site user friendly. Some of the key aspects of buying online are outlined below:
Reassure customers that your site is secure and that they can trust you.
This is particularly important when customers decide to part with their money. As internet crime is more prevalent, customers are increasingly suspicious of sites that do not clearly show text or images indicating that the site is secure. The rewards for doing this are often an increased conversion rate than those sites without security badges. Curry's and Boohoo.com both provide good examples of security information placed on their site at the point of purchase.
Make it easy for customers to find what they are looking for.
While some customers like to browse, others will have an idea of what they are looking for. They might have seen a specific product advertised or may just be browsing more broadly. In both situations, a good categorisation system for your products as well as an effective search tool will help both types of customers find what they are looking for easily. Amazon.co.uk has a conventional navigation system with a list of products down the left as well as a search tool across the top of the page. This tool allows customers to search the entire site or merely a specific area, helping to narrow the search results.
Provide enough information to allow customers to make an informed choice.
More and more websites are providing additional ways of viewing products to reproduce the same experience of a store. This is particularly important when selling clothes or shoes. Being able to zoom in on a pair of shoes, rotate a dress 360o and change the colour and style of the dress are all effective. As Seen on Screen (ASOS.com) go a step further by providing a video clip of a model wearing the item down a catwalk (see image below). This is a good example where the website provides an abundance of information for their customers which can help to persuade them to buy without trying on.
Additional persuasive content includes such features as customer reviews. This provides transparency for customers and increase trust. Importantly trust is essential to building a good relationship between customer and company.
Ensure that the purchasing process is quick and straightforward to complete.
If you ask customers, many will tell you that less is more when purchasing online. This is particularly important when asking customers for personal information. Good practices suggest that asking for detailed personal information that is not required to complete a purchase should be avoided because it is off-putting. Similarly customers often avoid registration forms, and will even leave a website, if they deem the registration to be unnecessary or unwieldy. Those sites that have listened to customer complaints have made registration optional, providing customers with the choice to proceed without registering. Debenhams.com are an example of an online store which provides this option:
Provide clear calls to action when items have been added to the shopping cart.
There are many different methods currently used by websites, some more effective than others. In all cases, the following should be clear to customers:
- That the item has been successfully added; and
- What customers can do once they have added their item; whether that is to continue shopping or proceed to check-out.
In this situation, both options should be prominent enough on the page. JohnLewis.com has a reliable system on their site which takes customers to their basket each time a new item is added. They also provide two clear options to ‘Go to checkout' or ‘Continue shopping'. This is a simple and effective way of informing customers and as a result, avoids unnecessary or duplicate items being accidentally added.
Once the purchase is completed, clear feedback should also be provided on the receipt page to indicate that the purchase has been successful. Information such as a reference number and a confirmation email both help to reassure customers. Additionally, avoid dead end receipt pages by providing links to continue shopping will encourage customers to spend more.
With great choice comes great responsibility
Those ecommerce sites that strive to improve their site with emphasis on the user experience will inevitably gain financially. As the online market continues to grow in the current climate, there is a danger that complacency from a false sense of security could creep in. As with any growing market, more and more new sites will emerge looking to obtain a slice of the profits. While the internet already provides great choice for customers, this choice will only continue to grow. Consequently, it is the responsibility of retailers to ensure that their site provides a good user experience; otherwise customers will simply choose to shop online a more customer-friendly competitor.Lorraine Paterson
What can you do next?
- Read some more usability and accessibility articles.
- Find out how usability testing can help improve your ecommerce site and give you a competitive advantage.
- Attend one of our usability training courses and learn the tricks of the trade for yourself.
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This article was written by Lorraine Paterson. Lorraine is a User Experience Consultant at User Vision, a usability and accessibility consultancy that helps clients gain a competitive advantage through improved ease of use.
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