Usability is drumming

I went for a party the other day (which had CEOs of entrepreneurial websites) and was introduced as a Usability specialist. Awoa!!! Tout de suite, I was greeted like a superstar. I was enveloped by people all of who wanted to talk about Usability since they had heard of it somewhere and thought that USABILITY was the mumbo jumbo that could augment revenues (no, no, not that I am denying it). It was then that I realized that Usability is undoubtedly the Buzzword…fizzing in every organization that has anything to do with technology.

Having brewed velocious, geeky products; technology geeks have realized that they are deprived of ‘the sensitive eye’. They have thus, stopped undervaluing designers. Additionally, they have started taking advice from them.

HR department has started looking for pedigree that calls itself ‘Usability Experts’. What is ludicrous though is the job description, which can ask for anything ranging from HTML / DHTML / XHTML expertise to knowledge about dot net to Photoshop skills. I want to wipe all myths here and make it amply clear that we Usability Experts do not have these skills and are not meant to. We look at technology products with an amiable eye and ensure that non-geeks can use it pleasantly and unremittingly.

There is also the other side of the scoop. We as Usability professionals more often than not get brain sunk in rudiments and theories of Usability and overlook the business spinoffs of our designs. Our designs unquestionably need to be ‘Good to Look at’ BUT not at the expense of revenues.

**Citing an example from a recent discussion with some UI designers - if logged in features of a website are shown forthright (on the home page) to a ‘not logged in’ user, I do not see anything unsatisfactory with the website. Unveiling logged in features upfront makes the intent of the website amply clear to the user. In addition, clicking on these features could show the Registration form. By increasing the number of times user looks at the registration form, there is a rise in the likelihood of his filling it up. (Unless, of course you can make the cardinal change of removing Registration form from the website).**

There is without doubt a rising need of Usability practitioners but there is even a greater need of people who can ruminate, anticipate, speculate. People who can evangelize user’s needs and yet create products, which have a business value. We need Usability practitioners who can read ‘data analytics numbers’ and understand the impact of their design on these numbers. Are we as Usability professionals seasoned enough to take on this onus?

Let the Business guys join hands with Usability Professionals to concoct world class products that can be used efficiently and can have enormous business value.