Usability

We talked earlier about how design has evolved into a user-centered design. This is exactly what we will be examining now, so what is usability you ask? Usability is simply the attribute that defines how easy the user interface is to use. It's generally measured with five components:

• Learnability: How easy is it for the user to achieve basic tasks when landing on the website?

• Efficiency: After learning, how efficient is it for the user to redo the tasks or achieve other tasks?
• Memorability: How easy is it for the user, after not using the website for a while, to return, and use the website again at proficiency?
• Error-tolerant: How easy is it for the user to recover from errors?
• Satisfaction: How pleasant and satisfying is it to use the design?

Over the past few years, users have gotten used to certain standards in web design and don't tolerate websites that load slowly, are ugly to look at, or difficult to navigate through anymore. If your website is not usable, there are plenty out there that are. Slow loading speed and bad user experience are some of the factors that can increase the bounce rate of your website. But if you study the needs and the behavior of your users, you'll be able to tailor your content and design according to this. Here are some quick guidelines to give you a preview of what you should be aware of: