With all the hype about the Web, it almost seems blasphemous to suggest the Internet is anything less than a wonderful boon for commerce. Yet, many online business owners share a common lament: "My competitors are only a click away!" The Web has, by its very nature, made every online business equally accessible.

While "location, location, location" was once the mantra of traditional business, the concept has little meaning when applied to the Web. The online "location," or server, doesn't impact most consumers, so "location" is no longer a selling point. Even complex uniform resource locators (URLs) aren't nearly as much of a hindrance to consumers as a poorly located physical store.

Because the Web provides universal access, many companies assume they can only compete if their products or services are more unique and/or better priced than their competitors'. However, before writing off ease-of-access as a distinguishing factor, there's still one form of accessibility that's a powerful selling point -- and all the more since so few companies are leveraging it.

Web site accessibility = usability

On the Web, every business seems equally accessible. However, thus far we've simply discussed a company's external accessibility -- the ease of getting to the front door. By contrast, internal accessibility refers to the ease of getting around within the store -- which is the consumer's experience after they enter a Web site.

The internal accessibility of a particular Web site is a broad, sweeping concept. It characterizes not only how easy it is to navigate the site and find things, but also the degree to which the site:

folding company goals into a site that meets user needs


If you need a usability specialist only part-time or only for the duration of a specific project, consider bringing in an outside contractor to help. If you have a limited budget and can't hire a full-time usability specialist, again consider an outside contractor. Look to e-business consulting firms, full-service system integration firms, or independent usability consultants.

2. Understand your users. The Web is full of sites that aim to disseminate what the company wants to disseminate rather than finding out what the users want and need. Companies must identify:

under what circumstances the site will be used


When collecting personal information, it's important to talk to actual users. Project managers, the marketing department, or other groups within the organization may believe they understand the target audience, but much of what they (and you) believe often proves to be wrong.

3. Keep it extremely simple. Simplicity is no reflection on your users' expected abilities. Rather, it's an acknowledgement that people are busy and don't have time to learn the intricacies of every site they visit. Delete every feature that's not absolutely necessary -- even if it's "cool." For every cool feature you're tempted to add, ask yourself "is it worth the additional complexity?"


Provide an "extra features" link that lets users explore cool features but doesn't expose everyone to them. Also consider letting users customize the simple default interface and add features to the interface that they feel are valuable.

4. Create different sites for different product sets. In the physical world, having "everything under one roof" increases consumer efficiency. However, the idea of one-stop-shopping becomes diluted when applied to the Web. In fact, because of the increased difficulty in finding what you're looking for, a site that sells many different products can actually be less attractive than one that focuses its product set. Companies that offer many different products or services often can increase consumer satisfaction by developing a distinct site for each logical grouping.

Splitting product sets can better accommodate directed users -- those who know exactly what they want -- by driving them to the specific items more quickly. However, the downside is that browsing users may be limited by the product split. You must be careful when different product sets share a commonly recognized brand. Pulling products out of the "umbrella" of a common brand could create confusion, and that potential confusion must be weighed against the potential increase in navigability that the product separation may provide.


At least one study, as noted in Web Site Usability: A Designer's Guide, by Jared M. Spool, has shown users can get lost in subsites. To minimize that problem, make sure each site can stand alone by providing:

a distinct look and feel for each site -- even if the sites act the same

5. Let users be anonymous. Studies have shown that requiring personal information can drive users away from the site. A study reported in the September/October 1996 User Interface Engineering newsletter noted that "in a physical store, the 'sales script' is that the shopper is allowed to browse, examine items, and check prices without giving any personal information to the store's employees. ...Only after the shopper has decided to purchase do they give the salesperson their name, address, and credit card number."

As an example, the original Travelocity site violated this sales script by requiring users to fill out a form with personal data before giving them access to airline flight and price information. That tactic proved to be a deal-breaker, driving users away from the site.

Users must be given the right to dictate the degree of information they're willing to disclose. Your Web site shouldn't exist to entice users with the promise of information, only to ultimately require them to e-mail or call to get it. Occasionally, required registration is appropriate, but you'll lose potential consumers if you force them to divulge information without legitimate cause (for example, in the hope of selling them additional products or services). Such practices don't cater to the user's goals.

6. Evaluate other similar Web sites. One way to quickly get a feel for trends in usability is to visit competitors' Web sites to learn what to do and what not to do. Even companies that aren't direct competitors may have sites that can provide valuable information. When in doubt, follow patterns established on high-profile Web sites. They have likely invested somewhat in usability, and the patterns used or established on those sites are probably gaining user acceptance.


Modeling good constructs established on other sites is a good way to get a head start on developing your own Web site. However, don't be constrained by what others are doing if there's a way to better support user goals.

7. Take the time to get it right. It takes time to develop a usable site, but the vast majority of companies who take the time actually save in the long run. Given the accelerated nature of the Internet, there may be a temptation to deploy first, and ask questions later. Commonwealth Aluminum is a company successfully re-sisting that temptation and is investing the necessary time to develop a usable product. They recently determined to support their business strategy with a comprehensive online system that encompasses every facet of the business. Matt Zundel, marketing services and systems manager at Commonwealth, says "It's imperative that our system be easy for whomever uses it. We could spend a lot of time and money developing and promoting the site, end up in trade journals and receive a lot of press ... but if we don't do it right and go out with something unusable, all that work is for nothing."


Before the project starts, allocate sufficient time and budget for usability. Also, avoid the temptation to design the interface and develop the underlying system in parallel. As much as we like to talk about modularity, the interface and infrastructure nearly always affect each other. Clearly set the design direction before beginning any parallel programming.

8. Place the burden on the technology (even if it takes more time). People and computers are very different, and one or the other (or both) must make accommodations when communicating. When entering a birth date, for instance, the user must remember how to format it, or the system must be programmed to accommodate several different formats.

In the middle of a Web development project, it's sometimes difficult to accept several additional weeks of programming time for seemingly small increases in usability. However, decision makers need to consider the cumulative effects of poor design. For example, they must weigh whether saving several weeks of programming effort is worth several thousand users losing several minutes every time they log on (assuming they keep coming back).

9. Humanize the technology. Recently, I spoke with a woman who's a regular shopper on a large catalog site. When I asked her why she enjoyed it so much, she confided, "They know me."

I tried to explain that it's really just a cold, heartless database that "knows" her, but my explanation of the underlying processes didn't matter to her. Her Web site experience was akin to visiting a department store where a friendly clerk knew her name, and her likes and dislikes.

Forward-thinking companies are looking for ways to leverage technology and provide Web users a more emotional experience. John Hines, senior manager of marketing communications and field marketing for the Enterprise Services Division of Sun Microsystems, says much of Web site usability is geared toward efficiency, but he believes there's another missing aspect -- building relationships with consumers. "It's like the difference between a loading dock and a sales floor," he explains. "When consumers are here to pick up a product, they just need to get in and get out. But when you're really trying to build a relationship, that's not good enough." One way Sun Microsystems is looking to take the Web to the next level is by asking Web designers to go on sales calls. The designers will carry tape recorders and record conversations between the sales people and potential consumers. The hope is that designers will be better able to model human conversations in Web interaction.

"Our goal is to expand the Web and give the consumer an experience that allows us to connect with them on an emotional level," says Hines.

Toward a positive Web experience

In the physical world, companies understand the importance of catering to consumers' needs and wants. They spend millions of dollars designing a wonderful experience for their consumers. They develop brightly-lit showrooms; they hire helpful, knowledgeable staff -- because they believe it will ultimately translate into increased marketshare.

However, the same energy is rarely applied online. Many businesses spend far more resources on driving consumers to a Web site than devising ways to enhance their experience once they arrive. The result is often wasted time and money because the site itself drives users away and prevents any kind of ROI. As the Web continues to make external accessibility issues moot, internal accessibility -- usability -- becomes all the more vital. User tolerance for poor design is inversely proportional to the number of alternatives available (and to the ease of accessing those alternatives). Ultimately, only those companies that cater to their online consumer, through quality, usable Web site designs, will survive.