Smart association executives don’t wait for a redesign project to improve their organizational website. As part of their Web strategy, they continually assess user needs and preferences and are proactive in offering content and tools to meet those needs. There is a variety of high value, low cost tactics you can use for ongoing Web site research. Three are described here.
User Surveys
Surveys are good for gathering benchmark information about user satisfaction and preferences. Optimally, when fielding a survey, responses will be linked to existing user profiles in your Association Management Software (AMS) for cross-referencing, thus eliminating the need for profile questions. Low-cost tools such as Surveymonkey allow you to upload invite lists to enable this. If you cannot link the responses to profile information, be sure to include questions to determine if the respondent is a member or nonmember, a leader of the organization (e.g., board or committee member), and which audience group to which they belong.
Other suggested questions include:
- List the top two websites you use to support your work/professional development
- Briefly describe why you use these sites and/or what value you get from them
These questions can give insight to competitor or potential partner sites, and also provide clues to pertinent content, tools or functionality that your site does not currently offer. Of course if your organization’s site is listed as one of the top two, you will get information on what is most important to these respondents.
- How frequently do you do the following activities? The list could include: Read blog, comment on a blog, use RSS feeds, use social networking sites/tools.
- The response options could range in frequency from daily to never.
This question helps the organization determine the level of penetration for Web tools and functionality it is considering to offer its users. It is also informative to include the response option “I don’t know what this is.”
- The following are website enhancements that (your organization) is considering.
- Please indicate how valuable these additions would be.
Offer a range of ‘value’ as the responses. Recognize that what respondents say and what they actually do once you offer the enhancement are going to differ. This is one data point that you are collecting that can be further explored.
Exit Polls
Many associations offer a Contact Us or help link that allows users to submit a question about or suggestion improvements to the Web site. Random exit polls are a great way to continuously gather feedback about the user experience. I am a big proponent of using site analytics to gain insights but this data lacks context. Adding exit polls to your research offerings will supplement this important data.
Here are three simple questions:
- Why did you visit our site today?
- Did you find what you were looking for? (or, if a transactional site, Were you able to complete your task?)
- How can we improve our site to ensure you have a great user experience?
Scavenger Hunt
An easy way to measure usability for your site is to use a scavenger hunt quiz. Create a list of typical activities you expect a user to accomplish and either observe them or have them document their experience by taking notes as they attempt to complete the tasks.
ASAE and the Center includes a Web site scavenger hunt as part of its orientation for new employees. This serves to educate new employees about the association’s offerings, and is a great research opportunity. (Don’t forget that staff members are website customers, too!) This research tactic also works well at the association information booth at conference as it can be a quick exercise for delegates, you can give away a small incentive gift, and gather valuable information.
Suggested scavenger hunt questions:
- Where would you...
- Volunteer to be on a committee?
- Register for the Spring expo?
- Buy a book?
- Find the feature article in last month’s magazine?
The goal is to continually assess your site. And keep the conversation going. Add a question to the survey asking if the respondent would be willing to participate in a follow-up interview. This helps build a list for future conversations—via phone or face-to-face—that will allow you to ask more probing questions and further the discussion about site development. For the scavenger hunt, if you are able to observe the user tying to complete the tasks, ask a few questions once they are done to get more detail on the sticking points, or to gather more ideas for improving the user experience.
Additional Resources
Dina Lewis, CAE, president of Distilled Logic, LLC, consults with associations and nonprofits on Web site usability and content strategy. You may reach Dina at dina@distilledlogic.net or follow her on Twitter @dinalew.
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