Towards An Internet Site Usability Evaluation Model

The population of web sites continues growing every year, but are the sites usable? Most sites seem to ignore the usability issue. Usability is about making the site easy for consumers to navigate and operate. Unusable sites do not attract and retain consumers. A usable site is one that is concerned with the user’ perception and provides the fundaments that allow the consumer to accomplish tasks such as searching and purchasing. According to ISO’s usability definition, examining its effectiveness, efficiency and satisfaction, measures the usability of the web site. Five commonly used usability evaluation methods, competitive analysis, scenarios, inspection method, log analysis and on-line questionnaires, were reviewed. Using these earlier concepts as a basis, the usability evaluation model was developed. The model consists of four components - Information, Transaction Service, Trust, and Non-functional requirements. The model was first tested on Travel sites. It was found that it could be used to classify the sites. It was then tested against a user perception survey of the industry sites. This indicated an agreement between the model and the user perceptions. The model was then tailored for e-commerce web sites and, based on the core similarities, a more abstract level could be postulated. This was then tested against its application to a third industry, Internet banking sites. Similarities and differences between the fundamental elements of the sites in the three industry sectors are related to the sector’s needs and those of the customers that they service

Evaluating Usability of New Zealand E-Tailing Sites

“When a main street store builds a web site, they open up opportunities to expand their market beyond geographic boundaries. The chances of losing sales from the physical shop are slight, but the potential to increase sales through their web site could be enormous….” [1]. The Internet is world wide virtual world that everyone can access (buy) almo st everything they might want in the real world. The web site is the front door of the online store that interacts between the e-tailer and consumers. Setting up the web site seems easy, but to make the site that usable and effective is not so easy. Of the many web sites on the Internet, only a few can survive and make a profit. Thirty New Zealand e-tailing sites were evaluated using a model adapted from that of Hersey. Most sites do a satisfactory job enabling commercial transactions (providing electronic catalogue, online order, online payment and delivery). 70% of those examined are positioned as full e-commerce capability sites. However, they lack a sense of building the consumer’s trust, a necessary step towards establishing a relationship. They do not provide the necessary assistance to make it easy for consumers to shop online, nor do they create a consumer community. Only 47% use either pull or push techniques to attract and retain the consumers