| |
| |
|
The Right Trigger Words
CNN.com's designers have gone out of their way to make their workdifficult. They could have built a very simple home page with justtheir logo and a handful of links:
If this was CNN's home page, the designers could go home and not haveany work for weeks. After all, what is a news site's home page but alist of links to the most important stories? (And the unexplainableinsatiable curiosity about Michael Jackson's latest antics.) Yet, these links aren't effective for users because they're missing akey component: the Trigger Words. Trigger words are the words andphrases that *trigger* a user into clicking. They contain theessential elements to provide the motivation to continue with thesite. > The Move-Forward-Until-Found Rule When dealing with information, a web page can do only one oftwo things: either it contains the content the user wants *or* itcontains the links to get them to the content they want. If a pagedoesn't follow this rule, then the users stop clicking and they aren'tlikely to find their target content. CNN.com's home page follows the Move-Forward-Until-Found rule: Almostone-third of the home page is content -- the most important story ofthe moment. (Because it's news, this content is updated every 15minutes, giving the CNN developers plenty to do all day.) The rest of the page contains dozens of links, in case the top storyon the home page wasn't everything the user wanted. These links onlywork when they contain the right trigger words. It's CNN's mastery oftrigger words that make it so interesting. > Dissecting Detailed Descriptions A few years ago, we studied a handful of users while they searched forspecific items of interest on large web sites. These were items *they*were interested in and no two users searched for the same items inthis study. Each item they searched for was on the sites we werestudying. Before every user started their search, we interviewed themextensively about what they hoped to find. We had them describe theirtargets in excruciating detail. We recorded every word they said.Then, we set them off on their hunt, recording every page they visitedon the site. After seeing which users succeeding at finding their target contentand which didn't, we analyzed each page they visited thoroughly,including the home page. Part of our analysis including studying thewords they used to describe their targets. It turned out that users were far more successful at finding theirtargets when the description words, which they told us *before* theysaw the site, appeared on the home page. In the tasks where userssuccessfully found their target content, the description wordsappeared on the home page 72% of the time. When users wereunsuccessful, their words only appeared an average of 6% of the timeon the home page. Description words are a major type of trigger word. This studyindicates that if those trigger words are found on the home page,users are far more likely to get what they are looking for. > Trigger Words as Search Keywords Another interesting fact from that study: In those tasks where theusers didn't find their target, they were far more likely to use thesite's Search function than in those tasks where the description wordsappeared on the home page. When the words did appear, users usuallyclicked on the associated links instead of using Search. In fact, when users did eventually go to Search, they almost alwaystyped one or more of the description words as their search terms. Itmakes sense to us that users would use their description as theirsearch term. This was when we realized the failed searches in a site'ssearch log are important clues to understanding the users' triggerwords. > Getting Scent from Flower Displays It would be silly for the CNN.com home page team to change to thegeneric links above. However, you'd be surprised how often it happens. One of the more outrageous examples is the site for the popular StatenIsland landscaper, Wiesner Brothers. After clicking on the landscapinglink at the top of the home page, the user is presented a page forwhich the only links are the numbers 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, and 8,representing different showcase projects from the landscaper. (See apicture of the landscaping page at Wiesner Brothers' site) You'd be hard pressed to provide *less* trigger words than thesedesigners have. When the user clicks on a number, say #5, they get anew set of links with a similar lack of trigger words. Here you getlinks that are labeled "View 01", "View 02", "View 03" and so forth.(See a picture of "project 5") It's obvious that the designers intended the user would focus on thebeautiful landscapes and just click through each picture serially.Maybe that's the case, at which point this design may be optimal forthat use. (We don't know because we haven't tested it.) However, is it possible some users are coming to the site with aspecific project in mind? How would they jump to those showcases thatare most similar to their project? Would they become frustrated havingto look through unrelated projects? > An Analogue at Analog If you visited the web site for Analog Devices a few years ago, itlooked like many other high tech product company's sites: a single800x600 design that had a few key category links like "DataConverters", "Amplifiers and Linear", and "Corporate Information".Just what you'd expect for a leading electronics producer. (See apicture of Analog Devices home page in February of 2003) Recently, however, the site has completely redesigned. With the helpof our friends at InContext Enterprises, Analog has major revamp oftheir home page. This new design tested very well with users and thecompany has already seen positive effects. (See a picture of thecurrent Analog Devices home page) What's the big difference between these two designs? Well, beyond theincreased use of screen real estate, the major difference is the hugenumber of trigger words they've added to the home page. Since many of Analog Device's customers are engineers looking forinformation about components to build into their products, the companyhas focused on making sure their trigger words appear on the homepage. Instead of having to guess what major category a particularcomponent falls under, the engineers now can quickly pick the closestcomponent out of a list, going directly to the content they desire. > Identifying Users' Trigger Words How do you find out what your users' trigger words are? Well, youstart by asking them. Visiting your users in their natural environments is a wonderful wayto start. You can bet that Analog Devices didn't make their changeswithout spending time watching engineers research and selectcomponents. We've found that personas are a great way to communicate trigger wordsto everyone on the design team. A persona is a detailed description ofa user the team wants to ensure is successful on the site. Listing,within the persona, the trigger words that person would use helps thedesigners understand how the users' own language will impact the finaldesign. In addition, we've never conducted a usability test that didn't yieldtremendous insight into how users react to the links the team isusing. It becomes obvious immediately when links are missing the cluesthe users need to go forward. This powerful trio -- field studies, personas, and usability testing-- are a great way to start identifying the trigger words that workfor your users. > Getting the Most Out of Every Link The purpose of every link is to move users forward. Each link needs togive off enough "scent" to clue the user into the content to follow.That scent comes from the trigger words. When creating new content,the designers' most important task is to ensure that the links to thatcontent contains the right trigger words + + + A permanent version of this article is athttp://www.uie.com/articles/trigger_words/ If you'd like to know more about the Scent of Information and howTrigger Words work, see our latest report, Designing for the Scent ofInformation. Jared M. Spool, Founding Principal Jared is on the faculty of the Tufts University Gordon Institute and teaches seminars on product usability. He is a member of SIGCHI, the Usability Professionals Association, the Association for Computing Machinery, and the IEEE. Jared is a recognized authority on user interface design and human factors in computing. He is a regular tutorial speaker at the annual CHI conference and Society for Technical Communications conferences around the country.
MORE RESOURCES:
Google News |
|
|
|
RELATED ARTICLES
Ten Steps to a Winning Home Page There's no doubt about it - the first page your site visitors see is the most important page of your website. If your home page isn't appealing, chances are the rest of your pages will never even be seen by your visitors. How To Boost Your Chances at Having a Successful Web Site New Web sites are springing up online by the millions. However, when they don't reach a level of success, the Web site owners assume that they can't make money off the Internet. Your Graphics- Are They Really Working For You? (Making Your Graphics Work For You)It's no secret that a picture is worth a thousand words or that people really do judge a book by its cover. Effectively using graphic headers, e-covers and background graphics can send your profits soaring. 7 Benefits of HTML Validation You may not bother with html validation or writing simpleand clean code when designing your web site. Later you mayfind your site is slow loading, appears incorrectly in themain browsers and does not rank well for the major searchengines. How to Convince Your Visitors to Return Often One visit does not make a sale. Be sure to make your Web site attractive to your visitors so that they want to come back. Keep It Simple, Stupid: The Beauty of a Clean Cut Website Don't knock it; "Keep It Simple, Stupid" is a great rule to live by. Nobody likes a website to "yell" at them, with blaring colors and flashing lights. Database Driven Website The solution lies in creating a 'Database driven website', through which web pages are created dynamically which further gives a web site visitor an up-to-dated view of information stored in the database. When the information in the database is updated, site visitors will immediately see the changes that have been made. Be Inspired to Create Better Websites Being a writer, when I was asked to do some research into what makes a good website, of course I straightaway went to check out all of my favorite authors. After sifting through a few standard sites I remembered to look at one of my all time respected writers-Paulo Coelho. Choose & Use the Best Colors The Psychology of ColorAre you using the best colors for your web site? Many web designers often overlook the issues of color in web design. When choosing colors for your web site there are three main areas that should be addressed. The Next Marketing Tool: Deisgn Design sells. It's something that all of us know, but few of us consciously acknowledge. Your Website Visitors - Will They Stay? I'm sure you've all heard the saying 'Build it and they will come'. Although that may have been true a few years ago, now we must work, and work hard, to get visitors to our websites. Creating a Basic Web Design Template A "template" is simply a design format which you can apply to all (or most) of the pages in your web site. The first advantage of using a "template" system is that it allows you to make your most important design decisions at the beginning, and then just focus on content. Speed Up Or Lose Out! How To Improve Your Websites Download Speed So your web site's online and you've got high rankings in the search engines attracting lots of visitors. But the statistics tell you most of them are leaving after viewing just one page, what's gone wrong?One possible cause could be a slow download speed of your web site's homepage or the web site as a whole. Website Design For Small Businesses There are many different website design companies, offering different facilities such as flash design, however what should a small business look for when seeking an internet prescence?When choosing which company you would like to build your website, there are many factors which you need to take into consideration.Firstly how much is the website going to cost to build and host. Revising Your Site - What Happened To My Search Engine Placement? As of September, Smartads went through what so many have done before. I changed the entire site. Design With Purpose If your website is falling through the cracks, the chances are that the site has no message, no central core to build traffic or a core readership. Websites that try to do everything usually fail. How To Choose A Website Designer When you're self-employed, choosing a website designer is a crucial decision, as a good website can bring you more business and a bad one can drive away prospective customers. Below are some important things to consider when selecting a website designer for your new site or site redesign. How To Increase Your Conversion Rate or What Most People Miss When It Comes To Optimization Everybody talks about the importance of testing your sales copy or a page layout. After all, proper testing can help you modify your page in a way that will drastically increase your conversion rate. Converting Print Advertising For Use On The Web - A How-To Contrary to the beliefs of some, advertising for web and print are very different. Converting print ads for use on the web is very tricky. Web Marketing: Design Mistakes That Drive Customers Away In Droves They may look cutting edge, but if you want a web site that contributes to your bottom line here are some design ideas you will want to avoid:· Opening with Flash. If your site opens with a movie that your prospect is forced to sit through, no matter how short, before they can get to your "welcome" or "home" page, you are losing customers.
|
| home | site map |
| Webdesign-box © 2006 |