Usability test checklist for your WordPress site
There are many factors to consider when developing your WordPress website. Everything should be visually pleasing so that people want to stay there and browse through it. Also, it needs to accommodate your content, and most importantly, to make it usable and to help visitors achieve their goals.
What is usability?
Usability is quite simple with which a user can navigate your site. This enhances the positive experience of your website. Conversely, non-usable websites confuse users and result in nothing but lost conversions and revenue.
What is a usability test?
Usability testing is the process of assessing the user experience of your website. Checking the Usability test of your site shows you how seamless everything is. The benefits of conducting usability testing for your WordPress website include:
2] Convenience: To test usability, all you need is your laptop, online tool, and notepad.
3] Predicting user behavior: learning more about what users do on your site and why they take a specific action.
4] Solving Problems: Solving the problems of your website and solving bad UX.
5] Promoting ROI: Using Insights to Promote Customer Acquisition, which brings a huge demand for your services.
Is your page layout user-centric?
Usability test means a user-centric design. Developing a user-centric WordPress layout is much more essential than design and development it’s called as Usability test. You need to ask yourself if your WordPress site is usable, and most importantly, beneficial for your prospects.
Analyze your current layout
Modern web users know what they are looking for! They may not immediately notice your layout, but they will certainly notice if it helps them achieve their goals. The aspects you need to focus on while analyzing the design and layout of your WordPress website are:
1. First Impressions: How do users feel when they open your website? Is your website structured so that people can easily find what they are looking for?
2. Content: Investigate how your content benefits users and enhances your page layout. Is the layout relevant to your content and your target audience?
3. Site Architecture: Is Navigation Clear and Intuitive? Is every element in your layout positioned to encourage users towards conversion?
Do you like your visual hierarchy?
When it comes to improving usability, your objective should always be to guide visitors to complete the desired action. However, this should be done naturally. By modifying the position, color, or size of some page elements, you can configure your site’s visual hierarchy to highlight the most important factors.
Do you have navigation on point?
In terms of web usability, navigation should be one of your main focuses. Puzzling web navigation is one of the most annoying things a user may encounter in a web experience. Thus, you need to analyze how users navigate your website when they are looking for information.
Do you have a proper sitemap?
For your website, you need minimal steps from point A to point B in your conversion funnel. The more steps, the more likely a visitor will leave without completing the user journey. A sitemap should help determine what those steps are, and where they can be added to your WordPress site.
Without the right sitemap, you will have a lot of unnecessary pages, which in turn make your website more complex than it should be. The following exercises will help you create the perfect sitemap for your WordPress website.
Create XML Sitemaps with YOAST
Yoast SEO plugin is one of the best plugins that you can use to improve the SEO and functionality of your WordPress website. In addition to addressing content, keyword density, tags, and readability, this plugin can also help you create your XML sitemap.
To add an XML sitemap to your site via the Yoast SEO plugin:
1. Install and activate the Yoast SEO plugin.
2. Navigate to SEO -> Enable Features and Advanced Settings.
3. This enables the XML sitemap for your WordPress. In the XML Sitemaps section, you can manage the maximum number of entries per Sitemap, such as excluding specific pages/posts from the Sitemap, or similar settings in Usability test.
4. It creates your XML sitemap using the Yoast SEO plugin. You can find your WordPress sitemap URL under your XML sitemap.
Submit your XML sitemap to GOOGLE
Once your XML sitemap is ready, you should submit it to Google. The first step to present your sitemap through Google Search Engine Console is to verify yourself as a site owner.
1. Once verified, open the Google Search Console home page and choose your website.
2. Go to Index and choose Sitemap.
3. Enter your WordPress sitemap URL and click on the submit button.
How do you use breadcrumbs?
Breadcrumbs improve the discoverability of your pages, and they help users reach pages faster.
If you have a large and multi-layered website, you need to make sure that breadcrumb navigation:
1. Makes the pulse: Ensure that breadcrumb navigation has a linear structure. Do not use it on a landing page where people will be confused about how they got there. Or, if you have a very small website with only a few pages, you probably don’t need to use breadcrumb navigation.
2. Do not exaggerate: breadcrumb navigation should not take up too much space on your pages. You do not want your users to mistake it for the primary navigation bar.
3. Include the entire path: Even if readers choose to open a random page, you should provide them with an easy way to include each URL that contains that page.
4. Be consistent with the title: If you are targeting certain keywords and you don’t want to confuse users, you need to be consistent with the names in the breadcrumb navigation.
v5. Keep it simple: Breadcrumb navigation should act as a simple aid to users, and should not be overly complicated. Make sure you don’t clutter your breadcrumb navigation with unnecessary text or elements.
Is the search function efficient?
Users should be able to search through keywords or phrases without opening every page of your site. Therefore, you should ensure that you have a thorough search function on your pages which minimizes the barriers for users to reach the desired pages.
Some best practices to keep in mind for your internal web search functionality are:
1. Keep it on top: In most cases, the search bar can be found next to the navigational menu or at the top of the website page in the blog sidebar. It should be easy to find and view.
2. Make it worth noting: The search bar should attract the attention of your visitors while fully fitting into your site. It should be clear and intuitive.
3. Bold Search Query Results: When the user presses the search button, you may want to bold the search query keyword so that the user can quickly identify those words in the search results.
4. Autocomplete: Use autocomplete to enhance the experience for visitors to your site and encourage them to search.
Are the buttons prominent and intuitive?
Buttons are an essential component of your web usability. They have a fundamental role in the interaction between a user and your website. While testing their functionality and performance, here you need to keep in mind the following:
1. Appearance: If users struggle to find out what is clickable and what is not, it will not matter how beautiful your website design is. This is why you should use the appropriate visual indicators (size, shape, color, shadow, etc.) to highlight the button. Never assume that the buttons are clear to users.
2. Familiar: When users see a familiar button, they immediately know that it is something they can click. Some examples of buttons that most users are familiar with are: buttons filled with square borders, buttons filled with round corners, buttons filled with shadows, ghost buttons.
3. WhatsApp: The amount of WhatsApp near the button can make it easier for users to feel if an element is clickable.
4. Locations: The buttons should be located in places where users expect them. You should never let users spend their time searching for a button. If they cannot find it immediately, it is as if the button is not present.
5. Labels: Unclear button labels can be a major setback for your users. For that reason, you should clearly label the button. The label of a button must directly explain its action.
6. Size: The size of the button should indicate the importance of the button on the screen. Therefore, you should make the most important button look like the most important. The different it is, the better.
Is the main navigation menu efficient?
One of the best ways to help users get around your website is the navigational main menu.
Here are some questions for your WordPress website to help ensure that you have the most efficient main menu:
Is it easy?
The quickest path to an effective navigation menu is in its simplicity. However, achieving simplicity is not so easy, especially if you have a large website and you want to include each category on the menu. For a simple navigational menu, note the following:
1. Size: Keep only those elements that improve usability or overall UX.
2. Structure: Test the menu structure. Can users logically access pages through the main menu?
3. Words: Words play an important role in the effectiveness of your navigational menu. If the buttons are given different names than expected, the user will not understand them. Use words that people are familiar with. Just don’t be too creative for this.
4. Accountability: For growing mobile traffic, responsive design is important. Which also includes your main menu. Creating a navigation menu for a smartphone screen is the point where you need to be inventive. The best solution is to use a dropdown menu that will fit each of your categories and subcategories.
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