An effective online presence

If you're reading this then you've already completed an extensive online journey, perhaps without even realising it. You knew you wanted to visit the Public website and when you landed on the homepage you were in no doubt that you had found it. Perhaps technology is of interest, which led you to select the appropriate tab: it was easily identifiable, in a natural position on the page. After following the link you saw the articles displayed logically with the newest at the top, and you selected one. Whether you were looking for this piece in particular or simply browsing, you weren't frustrated by hidden links or dead ends. Your positive (or 'not negative') experience makes you more likely to revisit the site in future or redirect friends or colleagues here. The same attention to usability is not always devoted to sites serving web 'customers' in the public sector. While glowing examples like direct.gov.uk and socitm.gov.uk are commended for their design and ease of use, others aren't as good. We subjected all 23 of the Sector Skills Council (SSCs) sites to 'usability' tests (based on 10 basic usability standards). These government-funded portals are designed to connect with everyone from career-minded school children to enterprise directors. None of the sites met the minimum standards, with the most common problems being accessibility of contact information and general site navigation. First port of call The SSCs have a lot to say and many people to say it to. Online is perhaps the cheapest and easiest way to achieve this, so well thought out, usable websites are key. If for example a would-be apprentice needs to quickly access advice or guidelines on working in a particular sector, the website will most likely be their first port of call. If they struggle to find what they need, they'll quit and look for it elsewhere, or worst of all, just give up in frustration. Usability is a gauge of the quality of a user's experience and combines simple principles such as clear titles, links from the logo to the home page, contact details and intuitive navigation. Without proper consideration of usability, websites can become virtual vaults, containing valuable but inaccessible content which ultimately leave users frustrated with the site and the organisation. To ensure a site is serving its primary purpose, usability needs to be considered from day one. Trying to fix a website which already has usability problems can be expensive and is second prize to an original, usable design. So, rather than trying to work out what went wrong, usability should be one of the first conversations taking place. Contrary to popular belief, this is not an expensive process. Basic development principles like wire framing (image-based diagrams of what the actual page will look like), prototyping (an offline site for the target audience to trial, to ensure project goals have been met and the platform is ready for use) and site analytics (Google provides a free, comprehensive program that records visitors, click-throughs etc) are less complex then they sound and all vital processes and tools engaged by a knowledgeable design agency working within a restricted budget. And the returns are significant. Take the following as an example: A major breast cancer charity in the US recently had its community website given a usability make-over. It benefited from a 117% increase in traffic, 41% more new memberships, a 53% reduction in time taken to register, and a 69% drop in monthly help desk costs. The result was that extra budget could be redirected to frontline projects. These are the type of efficiencies that we now demand from the public sector, and getting it right from the beginning means both organisation and audience profit in the long term. Foresite