Usability testing for a community college library website
| Pages | 1-8 |
| DOI | https://doi.org/10.1108/LHTN-06-2018-0039 |
| Date | 04 March 2019 |
| Published date | 04 March 2019 |
| Author | Alyssa M. Valenti |
| Subject Matter | Library & information science,Librarianship/library management,Library technology,Library & information services |
Usability testing for a community
college library website
Alyssa M. Valenti
Introduction
In today’s global information
ecosystem, a library’s users may never
actually step foot into the physical library.
This makes the library’s website essential
to both the library’s success in fulfilling
its mission and to the users’ success. A
community college library website must
meet the needs of an increasingly diverse
population including faculty, staff,
students and the public, all of which may
represent in-person and/or remote users,
first-time visitors and repeat visitors. Skill
levels of these populations can differ
greatly, which makes decisions regarding
organization of content challenging.
Factors which must be considered in a
website redesign consist of – but are not
limited to – accessibility, usability, ease
of finding, simplified navigation, mobile
users, aesthetic appeal and allowing for
user feedback or reporting of issues.
Consideration of these factors in a
redesign is important because users may
be less likely to experience frustration
and users with special needs will be able
to use the website. Krug (2014a)
describes usability as useful, learnable,
memorable, effective, efficient, desirable
and delightful. Basically, users do not
want to have to think (Krug, 2014a).
Those responsible for developing and
designing a library’s website can
strategically plan the design by creating
and implementing a usability test. A 2014
survey of academic and public library
websites found that 72 per cent of the
1,469 participants did not conduct
usability testing when designing their
current website (Chow et al., 2014,
p. 261).
Although the importance of usability
testing is stressed in much of the
literature (Becker and Yanotta, 2013,
p. 8; Erickson et al., 2013, p. 865;
Pallud and Straub, 2014, p. 369; Chow
et al., 2014, p. 254; Oldham, 2008,
p. 221; Nielsen, 2012), many libraries
do not conduct usability testing before
beginning a website redesign project.
Perhaps this is due to staffing and time
constraints, but as the ever-increasing
need to have a well-designed, properly
functioning Web presence increases and
becomes the primary interaction users
have with the library, usability testing
must not be ignored.
Literature review
Designing a website with the end-
user in mind can alleviate frustration
and the chance that a user will give
up and seek information elsewhere.
Becker and Yanotta (2013) identified six
specific goals in their research including
the ability to locate high-level
information within three clicks (7).
Understanding how users perceive a
website offers valuable qualitative
feedback (Oldham, 2008,p.223).Before
usability testing can commence,
developers and designers must plan the
testing in a strategic and organized
manner so as to ensure neutral que stion s,
VOLUME 36 NUMBER 1 2019
JANUARY/FEBRUARY
AN EMERALD PUBLICATION
LIBRARY HI TECH NEWS NUMBER 1 2019
CONTENTS
Feature articles
Usability testing for a community
collegelibrarywebsite......... 1
Self-archiving options on social
networks: a review of options . . . .9
Column
Emerging technologies for libraries
archives and museums: trends and
projections.................13
Internally displaced persons (IDP)
workathon mobile services: a
possibility! . . ..............15
Feature article
Promoting library and information
services in a digital age in
Zimbabwe . . ..............17
Library Link
www.emeraldinsight.com/librarylink
LIBRARY HITECH NEWS Number 1 2019, pp. 1-7, V
CEmerald Publishing Limited, 0741-9058, DOI 10.1108/LHTN-06-2018-0039 1
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