Website usability improvements

September 2006 sees the launch of Titman Firth's newly designed website. Leigh Titman looks at the changes that have been made as a case study of techniques to increase site usability.

Our previous site structure was first developed five years ago and has remained relatively unchanged since.
Of course we have constantly updated and added to the content but the menu system in particular had got to the stage where it could not accommodate any further expansion.

Another reason we redeveloped and changed the design of the site was to add more online information for our clients and potential clients. With the increasing demand that information will be available online, it's important to try to get the balance right between print and the web.

The specific changes we made include:

Home page

The site's home page now features a scrolling gallery of our showcase portfolio. This gallery lets people click on an image as a short cut to the client showcase. We have done this because we know from monitoring the way people use our site that the showcase is one of the most popular features.

Showcase

This section of the site not only features PDF downloads of each showcase case study but provides the content as a web page as well. Users do not always want to download the information as PDFs so it is often good practice to provide both options.

Client login

On every page of the site our client login facility is visible to enable clients to gain access to design proofs. The proofs are of course housed in each client's own password-protected secure area. A history of all proofs can be accessed, which is useful whenever archive proofs need to be referred to.

Subscribe to TF magazine

Users can fill in our subscribe box to guarantee their next copy of the magazine. Also within the box is a link to view or download previous issues. This feature was available on the site previously and we found it very popular among visitors who wanted to do more than just read about our services.

Free articles

In order to provide a convenient way for users to view the articles from TF Magazine, and others we have written, this section is also accessible via a drop
down menu.

Services

Under the services menu we now offer separate pages to describe each service we offer. The use of the dropdown system enables us to add to these in the future without running out of menu room. There is also the facility to order our brochure pack.

Forms

The forms used throughout the site have been created to be as user-friendly as possible. If a user does not complete a field or a number of fields correctly, the form provides a summery of the errors at the top in red, and red pointers appear by the site of any incorrect fields. It's an effective way to help people complete forms correctly, as is the fact that we have kept the number of fields to a minimum. Security is another big issue and therefore our forms prohibit access if a hacker is detected.

These are just some of the improvements we have made to our site. I am sure that some of the items mentioned might be applied to improve usability of your own site.

© Titman Firth 2006