Benefits of User Interface Design
Filed Under Benefits, Design, Interface, Process, Usability | Posted on January 14, 2008
User Interface Design is beneficial for both software and hardware. Some of the benefits of having a good User Interface Design are:
* Ergonomics: Ergonomically correct user interfaces prevent industrial injuries and hence absence due to illness.
* Fewer errors: Intelligently designed user interfaces drastically reduce the number of errors and their related costs.
* Savings: Savings gained from making changes earlier in the design life cycle. “The rule of thumb in many usability-aware organizations is that the cost-benefit ratio for usability is $1:$10-$100. Once a system is in development, correcting a problem costs 10 times as much as fixing the same problem in design. If the system has been released, it costs 100 times as much relative to fixing in design.”
* Productivity / Save Development time: A better user design allows reduction of the development time spent due to reduced iterations and rework and overall better productivity.
* Many companies do not understand the issues users have with their products. Problems caused by these oversights have led to manufacturers being found liable for defective designs. If they had a interface design process, then things would have been different.
* Customer returning: If customers find a site or product usable, then the possibility that they use this site / product again improves drastically.
* Reduce maintenance costs: Most maintenance costs are associated with “unmet or unforeseen” user requirements and other usability problems; if there had been an increased focus on interface design, there would have less of these problems.
* Increase Revenue: Unusable products most often prevent a customer from accomplishing a productivity task or retrieving information necessary to make an e-commerce purchase. Good navigation and Website design make it easier for users to find what they’re looking for and to buy it once they’ve found it, and most importantly, keep coming back.
* Increase transactions/purchases: As per a study, the design of product lists directly affected sales. On sites that did not require shoppers to bounce back-and-forth between the list and individual product pages, visitors added more products to their shopping cart and had a more positive opinion of the site. By understanding your customer expectations and needs, and designing your product lists accordingly, you can significantly increase your sales.
* Retain customers (frequency of use): More than 83 percent of Internet users are likely to leave a Web site if they feel they have to make too many clicks to find what they’re looking for.
* Increase market share (competitive edge): The importance of having a competitive edge in usability may be even more pronounced for e-commerce sites. Such sites commonly drive away nearly half of repeat business by not making it easy for visitors to find the information they need.
* Increase user satisfaction: When systems match user needs, satisfaction often improves dramatically.
* Decrease support costs: Many support calls and more expensive support consequences (such as product recalls) are caused because of inadequate usability design.
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