Although a usable system should seem intuitive for the user, getting there
is not always intuitive for developers.
There are some basic principles that every project should keep in mind—see
our website design section for general usability
principles. You will also find our
Dos and don'ts for achieving usability in design in this section.
Usability consultants work with designers and developers to look at how a product
meets user needs so that they can improve the product to enhance productivity,
increase user satisfaction, and minimize user errors.
If usability consultants are brought in before a website or software product
is created, they can help developers achieve more consistently usable results.
This is the preferred model for development, as usability can be built into
the system rather than tacked on at the end. Usability is not about making an
interface pretty. It encompasses issues such as information architecture, design,
writing, and quality assurance. Usability needs to delve beyond surface elements.
Still, if they are brought in after production, they can evaluate the usability
of a website or software product using one or more usability
evaluation methods.
Usability consultants usually offer such services as needs analysis, usability
evaluation (often through expert critique or usability testing), user interface
design, and usability training.
- Increasing the usability of a website or software product will raise productivity.
- Bringing a usability consultant into the design and production process will
reduce costs in the long run, as it is more cost effective to build a usable
product than to repair an unusable one.
- Doing a less than thorough job can cost more than money. It can cost you
in time and customers.
- They can evaluate systems more efficiently because they know what to look
out for based on their experience with a wide range of systems.
- They can bring to bear perspectives that those close to a project may not
have considered.
- It is difficult to be objective about your own site.
- Consultants are trained in a range of usability evaluation methods. The
advantage here comes with knowing which method is the best for your particular
project.
- Having a usable product will result in more satisfied and productive users.
Usability is a multidisciplinary field, and as such, a good usability consultant
or consulting team must be able to approach the subject from multiple perspectives.
Usability engineering is derived from many disciplines, including computer
science, ergonomics, psychology, graphic design, and information science.
An understanding of the end-user also comes from a multidisciplinary approach,
with team members representing different perspectives and experienced with many
web/software projects.
Extensive experience with various usability evaluation methods will enable
a usability consultant to apply the appropriate method to your particular project,
as not all methods are optimized for all projects.
Here are some tips for working with usability consultants:
- Work together to define the scope in order to establish the goals and expectations
of the project.
- Know what you want to accomplish with your product.
- Determine in advance how the changes will be implemented and plan a timeframe
and scheme for the implementation.
- Keep the end-user as the focus of usability-related changes, not management's
expectations.
- Understand that usability is a process where changes occur over the course
of the design and evaluation process.
The study of usability can be approached from a variety of disciplines including,
computer science, ergonomics, psychology, graphic design, and information science.
There are several institutions where you can get a degree in Human-Computer
Interaction:
For a more comprehensive list of Human Computer Interaction programs see the
ACM SIGCHI HCI Education Survey.
To learn more about hiring a usability consultant, visit
Foraker Design.
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