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HEURISTIC & ACCESSIBILITY EVALUATION | USABILITY TESTING
Goodreads
I performed an extensive evaluation of the Goodreads website through heuristic review, usability testing with 5 users, and accessibility assessment to gauge the overall usability of the website and redesigned it for a more aesthetic look and feel.
OVERVIEW
This project is about evaluating and redesigning the Goodreads website, which is considered one of the best hubs for bibliophiles. I performed heuristic evaluation using Nielsen’s usability heuristics, moderated usability testing with 5 users, manual accessibility testing using WCAG 2.1 guidelines, and automated accessibility testing using the WAVE accessibility checker. Based on my evaluations, I discovered primary improvements and redesigned it for a more consistent aesthetic look and feel.
Project Duration
My role
Mentor
5 Weeks
(8 February - 26 March)
Individual Project
UX Researcher and designer
Prof. Jonathan Lazar
Prof. Jason Aston
Delieverables
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Heuristic Evaluation
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Usability Testing
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Manual Accessibility Review
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Automated Accessibility Testing
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Redesign strategy
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Final redesigned UI
PROBLEM STATEMENT
Why goodreads?
I chose to evaluate the Goodreads website, which is considered as one of the best hubs for bibliophiles. I myself, being an avid reader, use Goodreads often in my daily life. However, I find the interface visually cluttered and confusing to find the right information I need. However, despite having apparently bad design, Goodreads has a large user base. It has managed to stay popular over the years. These are the reasons why I decided to evaluate some aspects of this website and redesigned it to improve its overall UX.
TARGET USERS
Deciding who would be the typical users of the platform
The typical users of Goodreads would-be readers and authors. Readers can be of any age, to be honest. They can be anyone from teenagers, and young adults to older people. Anyone who’s interested in reading - an avid reader or someone who has just started and is willing to read more can be considered as a potential user. On the other hand, authors can be anyone from young adults to older people.
USABILITY EVALUATION
Discovering usability issues using Neilson's heuristics and usability testing
For the Goodreads website, my focus was on understanding the visual and structural elements, its consistency, and how navigable the website is in general. For these possible reasons, I thought Nielson’s heuristics would be more appropriate to find out the usability issues, as it includes checkpoints such as aesthetic and minimalist design, consistency, and standards.
Following are the usability issues found based on Neilson's usability heuristics.
Lack of feedback
Heuristic - Visibility of System Status
1
I noticed the lack of feedback throughout the website for multiple activities.
Coming soon
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