Usability Dimension: "Valuable"

VALUABLE.

The 7th and last feature in the series of Usability Dimensions. For earlier features, kindly follow the following links: useful, usable, desirable, findable, accessible, and credible.

Depending on the specific case, all previously discussed dimensions need to be balanced in varying degrees, and not treated as mutually exclusive. However, the aspect of "valuable" is commonsensical and must. On one hand, it should relate to and contribute towards the company's ROI. On the other hand, it should also equate itself to ROE (User's Return on Experience). The user-interface design of your site or product should in effect result into one or more of measurable and sustainable benefits like:

• increase in sales


• increase in operational efficiency


• increase in productivity


• decrease in operational/maintenance costs


• re-use of existing components and infrastructure


• increase in brand awareness/networking outreach

This makes your site/product valuable. Only "shared" value (between Business community and User community) is the key to long term sustainability. I'm struggling to list down the examples of "valuable" websites, primarily because the "value" can be really diverse based on specific businesses, specific user community etc. For example, Technical Developers may find technology forum sites really valuable, much different than a teenager finding value in gaming or music sites, and so on. I'll attempt to list down few generic valuable sites that most end-consumers today from any category, qualification, or industry would not live without. Yes, it's easy to guess a few at least...as they would definitely echo your own choice too.

Here goes:

• google (Need I give a link for you to navigate?)


• youtube


• wikipedia


• facebook


• gmail (Isn't this a new term for email?)


• ebay


• linkedin

I encourage you to share your views and few more additions to the list, as comments to this post.

In conclusion, our sites and products must deliver value to the customers and sponsors. For non-profits, the user experience must advance the mission; for profits, it must contribute to the bottom line and provide customer delight.

Watch this space for more example-oriented features (please expect some overlaps in discussion points) through another series of the Five-Es of Usability - another view of usability dimensions: Effective, Efficient, Engaging, Error Tolerant, Easy to Learn.

Usability Dimension: "Useful"

USEFUL.

It may be observed that when a website or product is usable, but not useful, it's unlikely to get off the ground. Useful is what generates the interest, serves a need, scratches an itch. Often useful can do without being usable. If your website page has large content that is "useful" for the user making an informed decision/action, you may have to sacrifice on the usability by allowing horizontal/vertical scroll and pop-up/navigation elements. Another standard usability principle suggests alphabetical order of drop-down menus, which is usable in nature, as the users can do without additional cognitive load in narrowing down their choice of action. However, if an unsorted but prioritized menu items are presented to the users based on the most useful options presented first; the system might prove to be more useful after all.

Few Examples of Useful but Low on Overall Usability:

• ecademy


• Most Torrent / Freeware Download sites


• craigslist


• experts-exchange


• only batteries


• flickr


• salesforce (App not Website)


• exactitudes


• igluski

As usability and UI practitioners, we cannot be content to paint within the lines drawn by customers and the known patterns of usability. We must courageously and creatively question the usefulness of the system and functionalities and the user interface elements. Thus, we seek to apply our deep knowledge of craft and medium to define innovative solutions that are more useful.

Watch this space for examples of next usability dimension: Usable.