The Design of Sites: Patterns for Creating Winning Web Sites

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The Importance of Customer-Centered Design

Over the years we have learned that the criteria for building customercentered Web sites are based on providing a positive experience for all customers, whether those customers are there to find information, to be part of a community, to purchase items, or to be entertained. This focus is called customer-centered design. Customer-centered design increases the value of Web sites through better design and evaluation. It is about how you empathize with customers—how well you understand their needs, the tools and technologies they use, and their social and organizational context. It is about how you use this understanding to shape your designs and then test those designs to ensure that the customers' needs are met. Why go to all this trouble? What will happen if you don't? Suppose your site overruns its budget or schedule. Management could pull the plug before it is completed. Or what if your Web site is finished but turns out to be too hard to learn or use? Customers might visit your site once and never return. With customer-centered design, you do the work up front to ensure that the Web site has the features customers need, by determining and planning for the most important features and by making certain that those features are built in a way that customers will understand. This method actually takes less time and money to implement in the long run. In short, customer-centered design helps you build the right Web site and build the Web site right! Here's an example that underscores the importance of customercentered design. Several years ago, IBM found that its Web site was not working well. Quick analysis revealed that the search feature was the most used function. The site was so confusing that IBM's customers could not figure out how to find what they wanted. IBM also discovered that the help feature was the second most popular function. Because the search feature was ineffective, many people went to the help pages to find assistance. Paying close attention to customer needs, IBM redesigned the site from the ground up to be more consistent in its navigation. A week after launching the redesigned site, customers' reliance on the search and help features dropped dramatically and online sales rose 400 percent. This is just one of many stories highlighting the increasing importance of good design. But does good Web design really affect the bottom line? You bet! Web sites founded on solid fundamentals and extensive customer research can make the difference between success and failure.



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