Series 3: Fundamentals of Good Web Design
(The following is a series of reviews on web 2.0, web design, and social media books. It will be a 9 part series. Each review is structured to provide a brief summary of the books along with some application to current course assignments for a Web 2.0 Production course taught by Dr. Sorin Matei, Purdue University.)
Series 3: Don’t Make Me Think: A Common Sense Approach to Web Usability
Q: What’s the most important thing I should do if I want to make sure my Web site is easy to use?
A: Nothing important should ever be more than two clicks away. Speak the user’s language. Be consistent. (Krug, 2005)
Summary
Krug’s book, Don’t Make Me Think, was one of the easiest and most interesting reads on the web design topic. I found that it’s direct, straight talk approach helped to make the previous two books make more sense. I have to admit that the first two books were very long and packed in a plethora of information, some that isn’t necessary if you are a non-designer who is designing a web site. Krug’s book however is perfect for the non-designer. His bottom line, keep it simple and don’t make the user think more than they have to. The guidelines discussed in this book provide a sort of laundry list for designing a web site. There is good use of real-life examples to show the good, bad, and ugly of the Internet. He also begins by explaining how important it is to understand the purpose of the site. Krug’s has several points that he makes, however I think the following three are the most important.
- Don’t make a user think
The basic scenario is a user goes to a site, most likely as a result of Google search, and is perusing through looking for specific information. Most searchers are directed. Very rarely does a site receive a visitor that just so happen to end up there and not by some intention. Once there, a user shouldn’t have to think about where to go to look for specific content or an identifier for what site they are on. This is the most fundamental of all of Krug’s guidelines. If a site fails this test, then there is no hope for any redemption. Background noise on a site should be at a minimum. There should be nothing on a page to distract the user or to make them think too hard about what to do next.
- Less is more
Once a site is developed, go back, proof read, and get rid of something. Too many words on a screen can diminish the validity or creativity of a site. Like on the homepage of a site, Krug asks, do you really need all those words to “welcome” visitors? No. Users scan, something the Krug repeated time and again. They aren’t going to read all of them anyway, so why have them. Unnecessary instructions and “happy talk” must be removed from sites. Don’t even think about putting it there, even if it is just to satisfy stakeholders.
- Make it plain
Navigating a web site is typically taken for granted when developing a web site. Krug simplifies this by showing users that having “street signs and bread crumbs” encourage user navigation. Clearly identifying a user’s location on a site and where they can go next is the key to a successful layout. Colors and text style can help with this, if it is consistent.
Web 2.0 Relevance
Krug’s book should be treated like the handbook of interactive design or web 2.0 designed web sites. IT is exactly want a non-designer needs to make the complexity of interactive design easy to understand. Krug’s book says anything completely different than the other two books. He just manages to deliver the message in a very fin and visually appealing manner much like what he preaches on design of a good web site. The book is an excellent reference for web sites that pass (and do not pass) Krug’s usability tests. His use of Amazon.com’s web site shows just how much a good we design can impact business and repeat visits to a retail site. It’s all in how the content is delivered and how it matches with what the user is looking for. Following the three principles above, Krug’s laws of usability, and the other important factors disused can lead to a very innovate and highly interactive site.
Reference
Krug, S. (2005). Don’t make me think (2nd ed.). Berkley, CA: New Riders Press.
