Originally written in November 2010 for a graduate class at Quinnipiac University.
It’s the “front door.” It’s what users see first. The homepage is the gateway to a website. The first impression of a homepage needs to be a positive, lasting impression if a user is to return. I agree with usability guideline 5:3: Treat your homepage as the key to conveying the quality of your site. A design team has one shot to nail their personas, design, and content to obtain user satisfaction.
In “An Empirical Evaluation of User Interfaces for Topic Management of Web Sites,” the empirical study involved the concept of topic management and concluded that, “most subjects made their judgment of a site by viewing only the front page of the site.” This strongly supports the guideline that the first impression can make or break a website.
Further data from this study supporting the notion that the homepage needs to create a positive experience states that, “Among the 399 sites that users rejected, 285 sites were rejected after browsing the front page,” (Amento, et al, 1999). That’s over 70%. It’s said you can’t judge a book by its cover, but that’s exactly how users navigate the web. Users don’t have the time to figure out a website; they shouldn’t have to either.
For a recent 512 assignment, we were asked to provide examples of bad web experiences or sites. The comments provided by students further prove that the first impression is the most important.
jesmcan “I also am very judgmental like you Ryan about web sites. I often stumble upon them, if they are not aesthetically pleasing I leave the site.”
Ryan “I do tend to check out websites in advance, and if that’s the only impression then I base my opinion on it.”
In “Factors influencing the experience of website usage,” it is noted that perceived usefulness, ease of use, hedonic quality and visual attractiveness all play a vital role in the user’s eye when they navigate a website for the first time. If one of these necessities is lacking from the homepage, away a user goes to find another site that will make that great first impression.
Lastly, the article on “Role Playing on the Web: Guidelines for Designing and Evaluating Personas Online” provides insight into the role that credibility, quality, values, and personas play in regards to a user’s impression of a website. Does the site offer quality content? If not, a user may look for it elsewhere. Was the site designed with the right persona in mind? “If we as users don’t like who we are allowed-sometimes required-to become as we enter a particular site, we are not likely to stay for long,” (Coney and Steehouder, 2000). Is the site credible? Where is the contact information?
Recently, I had to navigate the pages of Norton Antivirus in search of a telephone number. I had been wrongly charged for a subscription renewal. I navigated through at least 10 web pages and made three, different attempts to find what I was looking for. Instead of being located under “Contact Us” (one click away), I had to maneuver through countless and wasteful links to get a simple, phone number. If I had not been out over $60, I would have given up in frustration. In my eyes, Symantec’s credibility has dropped considerably.
A web design team has a lot to juggle to create a great site and experience. It’s an intricate balance of personas, visuals, credibility, content, and nameless other factors. Yet, they have one shot to woo us as users. I concur with usability guideline 5:3, the homepage must make a great first impression if it is to win users over and maintain them for years to come.
