When looking at the stats for this blog and what queries were made through the search box, I realised that many people don’t know what this blog is for! They think that this is the new WikiStudent website - not a blog about how I’m re-doing it!!
Search terms include “log in”, “how does this website work”, and zillions of course codes. There is an “about” page with an explanation, but do people read it? No. They land on the home page and start looking for study material to download.
Here’s an appropriate quote from page 11 of Don’t make me think:
When I look at a Web page it should be self-evident. Obvious. Self-explanatory.
I should be able to “get it” - what it is and how to use it - without expending any effort thinking about it.
Just how self-evident are we talking about?
Well, self-evident enough, for instance, that your next door neighbor, who has no interest in the subject of your site and who barely knows how to use the Back button, could look at your site’s Home page and say, “Oh, it’s a___.” (With any luck, she’ll say, “Oh, it’s a___. Neat.” But that’s another subject.)
To me, it was obvious that this blog was not the real site, but it looks like I was wrong in assuming everyone else would understand this at a glance. I realise now that there’s going to be even more confusion later on, when we have three sites: the WikiStudent website, the WikiStudent wiki, and this blog.
This is something ultra important to bear in mind when designing the landing pages of these three sites, and it’s going to be difficult!
Tags: Usability