Usability Reminder: Product labels need to be clear just like website headlines
We've recently moved to a new city and state and while trying different grocery stores near our new home, I've come to the realization that companies don't pay attention to product packaging usability. A lot of focus on the "look" of the label but not the ease of use.
I say this because every time I open the refrigerator, I can't quickly identify which type of milk the two 1-gallon containers are without carefully reading the tiny letters on the package:
Consumers are trained to shop by skim, 1%, 2%, and whole milk. Yet the Publix label emphasizes "reduced fat" (their 2% name) and "low fat" (their 1% name) as the primary label. This is a usability faux pax because the single, most important descriptor on this product package is not the primary part of the label.
When there are no standards, use best practices
When there are no color-coding standards (Publix uses green and pink for their 2% and 1% color labels, respectively -- other suppliers use different color schemes) and the product packaging itself is identical, then the most important part of the packaging label needs to describe what the product is. "reduced fat" and "low fat" are not how consumers shop for milk.
This would be like Apple calling their line of iPod Touches something other than the storage size that differentiates them:
Here's how Apple really does it. This makes sense to the consumer and doesn't force me to explore more to understand what each of these products means. Milk labels should also leverage this best practice:
Treat your website like a retail store, not a campaign.
If you ran a retail store, would you update the signage facing the street once per year? Would you set/merchandise the store and never make a single improvement for months on end? Of course not, because you want to adapt to your customers changing needs, new trends, and optimize your retail setting for the best experience.
Marketing organizations fall prey to waterfall approaches to updating websites and this generally is a result of an annual budgeting process. Since you'd never leave a retail store untouched for weeks or months on end, why should your online visitors suffer this mistreatment with your site?
It doesn't matter if you sell online or not, your website is a storefront, not a campaign. As such, maintaining a website is a process, not an event.
Government websites live in an alternate customer experience universe
I filed my state refund about 45 days ago and checked on the status of it today via the North Carolina Department of Revenue website. Here's the message I received after entering my social security number and refund amount:
Consumer-friendly messaging, right?
Aside from the visual design of the site, it's the vague message that has my eyes rolling. Basically, this website exists to tell you your tax refund status, but the Department of Revenue cannot provide specific estimates on when individuals will receive their refunds. But alas, everyone who is due a refund will receive a refund! I guess that makes it all better, right?
Imagine if you placed an order for a product, it's been weeks and you haven't received your shipment. You call the retailer only to hear them say "we can't provide you with a status of your order but rest assured, you will receive your shipment."
Voice of the taxpayer online
I would love to see a government site use OpinionLab or ForeSee Results on their sites. Taxpayers should then be able to see the aggregated feedback ratings & scores. Government website operators could then focus on ease of use and helpful tools online. Messages like above only insult taxpayer intelligence and further throw gas on the fire.
Viewing 200+ TV channels by number & a 4-character station ID is not usable
For starters, I love DIRECTV.
However, I'm wondering when they (and other satellite & cable providers) will begin to think differently about how they present channel guides both online and via the TV remote?
Here's DIRECTV's guide:
These are mainly local channels. Wouldn't it be better to offer a filter that said "Local Channels" that I could click and see these? I'm not familiar enough with the Station IDs to know if they represent ABC, NBC, CBS, etc. Sure, I can generally tell by the programming listed, but still. This would never fly on a major retailer website for listing products this way.
If TV stations were like consumer products...
If this were an e-commerce site, end-users would be driven away if they were forced to only view products by numerical product ID and a short-code. Through history of channel surfing by number, I suppose this method of thinking is engrained in many people's minds.
However, with the volume of channels being what they are, presenting them in numerical channel order is a growing usability challenge. I live in a world where I DVR virtually everything and watch it at a later date. I am completely channel number and station ID agnostic -- I honestly don't know what channels "my shows" are on.
Searching for TV shows
Let's look at keyword search results for "olympics"
Support topics are shown first. Then site pages. Hopefully there's research to support this ordering, but generally speaking, a topic like "olympics" is probably more related to TV programming than a support article. "Satellite doesn't work" would certainly be a reason to show support articles first. Below the fold (scrolling down on a 20" monitor) I see 5 results for TV programming.
I don't know what NBCw vs. NBCwHD means. Unfortunately there's no title for me to click on to find out why this matched my search for "olympics." Let's click "view all":
More empty titles. Again, search results displayed by channel and then by date with no sorting options.
DIRECTV offers a slick option to "Record to DVR" from their website. As such, having the ability to filter search results by content rather than channel and date/time is important because on the web and with the ability to "Record to DVR", the channel and date/time are irrelevant.
A commoditized business should focus product innovation on user experience and ease of use
After CNN.com launched their redesign in October (before & after screenshots and analysis here), I found myself without a convenient home for news relevant to my interests and attention span.
Old design = 20 headlines to scan. New design = 72 headlines to scan.
Previously, CNN.com provided a 2-headline synopsis of across 10 categories and at any given time throughout the day, I could visit their homepage and get a quick run-down of all that was going on in the world.
With the latest redesign, this quick run-down became much more time-consuming. And there was no way to tailor the news categories to my preferences. The previous website didn't offer this option either and was less important, but the new design now features 6 headlines across 12 categories.
That's 72 headlines I now have to scan as opposed to the previous 20 headlines. This is a huge increase in content and considerably more "work" to scan.
Google's "news" personalization, simplicity, and path of least resistance wins
I ventured upon news.google.com and found it quite easy to personalize the sections I am interested as well as sort them in the order of importance I want them to be in. This feature in itself was enough to win me over -- the way in which they aggregate news from multiple publications is also a benefit.
CNN.com's one-size-fits-all approach to homepage news doesn't appeal to me anymore. I've abandoned them because I've found an alternate service that meets my needs. What's interesting is CNN provides unique content but this is not enough to win me over because it's too difficult to get the information I desire quickly.
A commoditized business should focus product innovation on user experience and ease of use
"News" as a product is commoditized and is partially why newspapers are on the decline. If the product research or delivery mechanism doesn't cater to the changing needs of consumers or customers, then business will be lost to the competitive set. This concept applies to virtually all business, and not just news websites.
CNN.com offers a beautiful new redesign, but has chosen a path that devalues consumers who share my news-consumption preference. I don't know if this is intentional or not, but through further insight-gathering and subsequent innovation with their website, they would recapture my interest.
Blog by Eric Long
I'm an experienced online marketer, information architect, digital strategist, and social media enthusiast. I'm passionate about providing outstanding cross-channel experiences for considered purchases (with a focus on mass customization).
About Eric Long
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