Usability Testing for Library Web Sites: A Hands‐on Guide

Web sites are an increasingly important part of a library’s service. As such, it is crucial that they are easy to navigate and deliver the required information in a clear and consistent manner. This book does not aim to tell you how to create a good Web site but how to check that your site is usable and effective.

As a “hands‐on guide” I was expecting lots of check lists and sample surveys. However, the first chapter is a rather academic introduction to the foundations of usability testing. It contains some interesting points but when discussing the key players required in a usability testing team it glosses over how you find a usability specialist, evaluation specialist, trainers and marketing personnel within the confines of the library. Some discussion of which groups of library personnel are likely to have these skills would have been useful.

The second chapter is a very brief attempt to outline Web design guidelines. This is a tall order for only eight pages and although they stress how important it is to keep the end user in mind there is not room for much detail. There is a wealth of Web design information available on the Web and it may have been more useful to simply include references to this. The third chapter covers getting buy‐in for your usability project and suggests that you back your proposal up with “articles containing both qualitative and quantitative data regarding the successful implementation of Web site usability testing” – although no such articles are listed.

By the fourth chapter the book is getting more “hands‐on” and the discussion of preassessment and planning contains some practical tips and sample questions for surveys and focus groups. This chapter helps you to narrow the focus of your usability testing to concentrate on the key areas for your site. It also covers the makeup of the usability testing team, but in a more practical way than the introduction given in chapter one.

Chapter five covers preparing for your usability survey and evaluating the results. It is another “hands‐on” chapter with concrete examples, sample questions and example scripts. It takes you through from setting your objectives to creating your questions and writing a script and then recruiting participants for the usability test. There are some very useful hints for test moderators regarding body language, keeping the participant talking and not becoming too attached to the Web site (particularly relevant for people who have been involved in the creation of the site). The evaluation section avoids quantitative techniques and simply suggests that “the easiest way to analyse the data is to look for patterns”.

The final chapter steps through a usability testing example of a fictitious university’s library Web site. This site is over simplified but nonetheless demonstrates some key usability and design points. The chapter provides a good overview of putting the previous chapters into action and gives a clear model of a usability study from conception to conclusion. They also illustrate a common problem with library Web sites: the use of library jargon that may be commonplace for library professionals but can be confusing for new users. Finally there is a small list of additional reading and a good index.

In conclusion, the majority of the book is a useful “hands‐on guide” taking you from preassessment and planning (chapter 4) through designing your usability test (chapter 5) to running it (chapter 6). I feel that the initial chapters are somewhat weaker and could have included more references to other information as such a slim book could not possibly cover all aspects of usability testing. However, there is enough here to help you prepare and run a usability exercise. It also demonstrates how users can help you to challenge and improve your Web site, which should encourage you to put your site to the test.