Usability evaluation
The following heuristic report is based on the online ordering service “A La Carte Express” using Nielson’s 10 usability heuristic. It consists of the three most severe problems identified during the evaluation along with its screenshot and diagnosis and insight is covered at the end of the report.
1. Changes In The Shopping Cart
Criteria: 3. User control and freedom
Description: Unable to make changes to the shopping cart on the payment page. The only way to make changes to the cart is to use the back button.
Recommendation: Allow users to edit their shopping cart on the payment page. They should have the freedom to make adjustments during the entire online ordering journey.
This problem is the least severe of the three but still important. At all times, the users should be able to adjust their shopping cart because they can change their minds at any time.
2. Automatically Save the Address
Criteria: 6. Recognition rather than recall
Description: The address does not get saved automatically when the user comes back to the website. The system would always bring the user to the home page as shown on the card and request to insert their address before looking for a restaurant to order online. For returning users, it is redundant for them to write their address from scratch.
Recommendation: A saving mechanism should be set in place in the address bar so returning users don’t need to re-type their address. Returning users should have their address saved even if they do not have an account. The system can recognize the user’s address and their landing page should be straight to restaurant choice.
This problem is the second most severe out of the three. In comparison to other online ordering platforms, it is becoming a standard to save returning user’s address. As a user, you usually order food from home so your address rarely changes.
3. Unclear Pre-Order Schedule
Criteria: 5. Error prevention
Description: It is challenging to pre-order a meal in the system. When picking a time, the system lets the user select a date and time even if it not available. To find the right time, the user must go through several trials and errors between date and hours.
Recommendation: Shade or remove the date and time that is unavailable to order, this will prevent users from clicking an incorrect time and an error message. Only show dates and time that users can pick.
This is the most severe problem among the three. When the user has a difficult time finding the correct time to schedule a delivery, it will build frustration or even enabling them to fulfill an order
Insights
Overall, I learned that websites are not perfect. You can find many usability problems on a website but what distinguishes good from bad is the level of importance of these problems - some are critical and others, more forgiving. That is why it is important to assign a priority level on each problem and tackle the most severe ones first.
Additionally, Capian is a great tool to support the ergonomic evaluation. It helps to visualize and organize the problems and enables people to view them. However, there are some limitations. In some cases, it is difficult to convey the problems in a simple screenshot card. For example, it is challenging to find the right screenshot to perfectly capture a problem where it involves a transition from one link to another. A collage could do the trick but it will require additional time.
Finally, Using the 10 usability heuristic principles from Nielson helps to identify and categorize problems. It is so much easier to find problems following a set of criteria which allows easier diagnosis and recommending a solution. Following these principles can capture a good portion of the usability problems of a website but it is impossible to find all the problems. Ultimately, different target audiences have different ways of ordering food, factors like culture or age could change people’s perception, habits, and ways of using the website which cannot be captured following the 10 usability heuristic principles. Usability testing on top of expert evaluation would be the best way to capture all the problems.