Foolproof is a consultancy that specializes in improving online sales through the application of usability and user centred design techniques. On 26 September Tom Wood and Tim Loo, two leading members of the consultancy, shared their experience of a recent, highly successful project for an online mortgage lender.
The project began with a detailed heuristic review of the client’s existing online presence and a benchmarking survey of the competitive market. The heuristic review identified a number of serious usability flaws in the online application and sales processes. The survey found several competitors were handling aspects of the interaction much better than their client.
In the light of these findings, the client deferred a planned programme of advertising intended to drive business to their website. They asked Foolproof to undertake the redesign and development of the site.
Foolproof undertook to design the information architecture and the customer journey based on their previous studies of consumer behaviour in the online financial services market. The Foolproof team developed wireframe layouts of the new pages with the content specified, rather than written. They engaged the services of appropriate experts in graphic design and copywriting to flesh out the pages and then passed the detailed specifications to the client’s own developers for prototyping.
The prototype was tested with carefully selected representative members of the target audience to validate and fine-tune the message and the journey. The test results and the feedback from the test participants indicated that the new site was likely to succeed. The resultant site was launched together with the deferred advertising programme.
The new site has achieved a significant improvement in converting visits to sales and repaid the entire cost of the studies, design and development within one month of launch.
There is no single remarkable step in this process. I would hope that for most usability practitioners, this is simply a solid example of good professional practice. What stands out is the unsullied commerciality of the entire process. The message is that we need not rely on political correctness and social conscience to justify usability. Usability is a key competitive factor in the online marketplace. Usability pays.