NONE: Re: ONLINE-ADS>> Surfing w/Graphics Off - Rising Trend?
Re: ONLINE-ADS>> Surfing w/Graphics Off - Rising Trend?
Al Bredenberg (ab_at_copywriter.com)
Mon, 29 Dec 1997 22:48:11 -0500
Donna Dolezal Zelzer <djz_at_efn.org> wrote:
>At 11:26 AM -0500 12/20/1997, Simple Gifts Farm made this
>statement of rare insight:
>> The interesting thing in all this from a web designers
>>point of view is that many sites are extremely user
>>unfriendly if the graphics are turned off. You don't have
>>to go very far into the most "popular" sites to find sites
>>that don't work without graphics (try IBM for example with
>>1) a slow computer and 2) no graphics). As a marketer I'm
>>surprised that any company would shut out the 20% (I'm
>>actually surprised that number is so low) who do run the
>>net without graphics?
>As a marketer it surprises me, too. From the smallest
>homepage to the biggest corporate megasite, a major reason to
>be on the web is to communicate: to share information, to sell
>an idea or way of life, or to sell a product or service. And
>if people can't use your site, you're not going to be able to
>convince them of anything (except maybe not to come back!)
User Interface Engineering (UIE) has done some interesting
research on Web site usability. They've set up tests in which
they observe users trying to find information on popular Web
sites. One of the factors they've studied is the role of
graphic design in Web site usability.
In their published study, "Web Site Usability: A Designers
Guide," UIE reports that they measured 13 graphics-related
factors, including number and size of graphics, number of
image maps, colors and layout. Only one factor out of the 13
had any correlation with users' success or failure at finding
information on Web sites: the color of graphic links. Using
Netscape's default link colors helped a little.
UIE's conclusion: "Graphic design neither helps nor hurts."
When I talked with UIE founder Jared Spool, I questioned
whether Web site usability per se ought to be the primary
concern for Web marketers. His reply was that usability is
indeed a critical concern. For example, if the purpose of
your site is commerce, the usability of the site will
directly affect your customers' ability to find and buy
your products. I couldn't argue with that.
UIE offers a free excerpt from its study at its Web
site: http://www.uie.com .
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COPYWRITER.COM - Internet and Web copy specialists
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