Web Usability: The book "Do not Make Me Think" condensed into 7 ideas 
The Web usability is a discipline that seeks to make websites easier to use, intuitive, unambiguous, where important information is where it should be and where the user gets a fast browsing experience and, above all, useful. First the bad news:
Any web designer worth his salt has read the book by Steve Krug, "Do not Make Me Think" ("Do not make me think"). More than 100,000 copies sold.
Although you are not a web designer, if you have or work for an Internet business, it is also essential reading. 200 pages of extra work that you just recommended.
Now Good:
In this post I put together the seven concepts that may have more impact on the usability of a website. Not all, much less replace the book. But it can be an appetizer:
I. The tagline is not the slogan II. "3 clicks? III. Do not read, scan IV. Reinvent the wheel in web design V. We do not seek optimal solutions, we chose the first thing that looks good VI. Asking too much is dangerous VII. Add real magic remains almost always I. The tagline is not the slogan Some companies can live without a tagline such as Nike, Coca-Cola and Apple. Everyone knows what they do.
But the rest must be repeated every time someone enters our website. Most visitors do not know us, they need to know right away if they are in the right place and unequivocally: this is the 'tagline'
The tagline is the phrase short, clear and informative to express our main advantage and differentiates us from rest, there is a generic.
is what we need to just below the logo at the top of the web. But it is the slogan ("We can help you"), for a slogan is a statement of intent, an aspiration, does not provide the desired message the user ("checks in a day").
Although the worst thing is not to put anything, as is more often.
II. "3 clicks? has been much debate about how many clicks it should take a user to find desired information.
The number is usually at 3. At most 5 clicks.
But as with the length of an email or a landing page actually relieved we must respond with "depends": the number of clicks depends on the mental effort to require the user. One click equals 3 easy difficult. Then
not depend on a specific number but that the user can access easily, even after 28 clicks and also ensuring that the entire search process has the feeling that you are in the right way, without ambiguity.
III. Do not read, scan Probably you're doing. Instead of reading this article you scan up and down the subheadings and you skipped all that you do not care. We are good scanning
information. We do from small to the stories, books, newspapers and then with reports of the company. Internet would not be an exception.
Another reason is haste. And hurry, go to grain on your web site must provide reading diagonally with the necessary indexes, sections, subsections, headings, subheadings, dashes, bullets, etc. The gray concrete blocks of text is just the opposite.
But make no mistake. People to skip text does not mean that the content has to be brief, simplified, minimalist.
Steve Krug does not say in the book, but I think you would agree with me: it includes all the information you need your client to make a decision, be it to subscribe to a newsletter, go to another page or place an order. Simply
let you answer a question, a fear, a "what if ...?" for the process to be stopped short. If they have to be 10,000 words, no problem. Yes, they are easy to read and scan as 100. The agency
do almost every month tests of landing pages long against short, in 9 of 10 cases version "roll" is the winner.
I can not tell if people have read all or only a part. In any case, what matters is that the result is superior.
IV. Reinvent the wheel in web design Whether imposition from above, by company policy or simply on a whim, sometimes we distance ourselves from the convention without a big reason for doing so.
Aesthetically
When a button does not seem a button, create doubts.
When the "Careers" everyone easily recognizes and knows what it does, we changed the name to the "Careers" or worse, "Trabajolandia", we think unnecessarily.
When a search engine, rather than simply put the search term and hit the button, we must select a category from the menu, we are asking for another extra effort.
Anything to get away from the obvious and generally accepted, unless you have a solid reason (which is not usually the case), is a bad idea.
Veterans and major Internet know. Amazon, Google, eBay and the like are constantly honing their web pages, testing everything and do not invent wheels, only optimized.
Look at how they do it. The "to invent them!" De Unamuno is sometimes the most practical option.
V. We do not seek optimal solutions, we chose the first thing that looks good theories is like they teach you in the economic race, starting from the assumption that people make decisions in a rational, hypothesis false tremendously as we can see daily.
In the menus of the sites is the same. We believe that our user is to weigh the alternatives and will choose for you.
In most cases, either by mistake or because the rush has no major penalties, what happens is that we give the link to what appears to be what we want.
If not, re-test until we find him or we get tired.
Perhaps this explains why the first menu options are more ratio of the last click and less. Hint: do not put the good in the end.
VI. Asking too much is dangerous We all passed. Find something interesting on a website. To I get asked to register with your data. We're going to do something for something.
The problem comes when you call the phone, what you do or how much your partner earns.
Then ask yourself if this information is necessary to send you the free PDF sample or demo. If the question is no, you begin to suspect dark uses the extra information you're about to give. Request more information
account takes you to three dangers:
1. You get fewer answers: The Internet is the speed. The more time you rob the user stress, less will reach the end of the form.
2. Get answers of less value: Internet is also the means of the false. When you ask too many data are free to corresponderte with invented names such as "John Doe" or "Donald Duck."
3. Project a bad image: the fact that few end up filling the via crucis not mean they are happy with the experience. I left a bad taste in the mouth that might pose in the future.
Some tips to avoid:
- Borrow only what you need at that time to complete the transaction. Later in the relationship (something we are doing "relationship marketing") and have a chance to gather more information.
- Justifica la solicitud de algunos datos: “El teléfono es imprescindible para poder confirmar la entrega por mensajero de su regalo”
- Refuerza el valor de lo que obtienen justo antes de dar el primer dato: los que han enviado muchos mailings (de papel) saben a qué me refiero, el “Sí quiero recibir el….…. y beneficiarme de……...y sólo tengo que……”
VII. Añadir virguerías resta casi siempre Todavía hay alguna web con introducciones, aquellas en las que buscas desesperadamente el “skip intro”, o con musiquitas marchosas que siempre te pillan con el volumen al máximo en through a lot of people.
This, fortunately, happens less and less. But there are still other fancy stuff to add more points, subtract: animations that are just decorations, images that take longer to load ...
Unless your goal is pure Internet Branding (high consumption), show your work done (programmers, web designers) or the entertainment (music, video, movies), all that fancy stuff you will turn against you.
Why? Because our site include thinking that has to engage, when in fact you have to do is give a solution to which the search.
words, users look for sites with interesting content, not visually interesting sites.
Of course we have to care and spoil the image that gives us the site. But not by pretending to be original or modern can hamper the main objective, which is to provide solutions.
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1918 2008 
