In this project, we delved into usability testing for the Oliver Bonas website. Although the site is visually appealing, I uncovered certain issues with the dropdown menus and the way products were categorized. For instance, when searching for ‘lavender bath salts,’ it would make sense to find them under ‘bath and body,’ but they were oddly categorized as gifts. During the usability tests, I specifically instructed participants to locate the bath salts without using the search bar, aiming to highlight the challenges posed by an abundance of choices in the dropdown menus of the navigation bar.
After the testing sessions, a recurring pattern emerged where each participant faced the same predicament—they couldn’t easily locate the product due to its unexpected placement under the ‘Christmas stocking fillers’ section. This clearly indicated the website’s shortcomings in terms of product organization and navigation.
Another issue that surfaced, which I had previously marked in my Heuristic Markup, was the compulsion for users to enter their email and name during the ‘guest checkout’ process. This could potentially lead to customer dissatisfaction.
Overall, the usability testing was an enlightening experience, as it offered insight into how people interact with a website, even when provided specific instructions for finding items. It was also notable that the participants encountered similar difficulties, underscoring the website’s design-related concerns.
