Web Team blogThe importance of the user
Always remember the user!
Think about some of the world’s most popular, and most-used, websites. What do you use them for? Do you like searching for holiday accommodation? Maybe you like to browse through clothing websites. Or maybe, like me, you enjoy watching old videos of 1990s football matches.
Popular websites all have one thing in common: successful digital content has the user at its heart.
Who are my users?
Before thinking about the content of your webpages, it’s important to know who your users are. Who is relying on you for information? Is it school pupils? Is it current university students? Maybe it’s staff who will be viewing your content.
Top tips for defining users
It can be very useful to make a list of who your users are. Try a top three to start with. You can increase this to a top five if you think you have more.
You may have heard people talk about creating ‘user personas’. This means giving your users an identity. For example, we want our content to attract John, a fifth-year school pupil from Motherwell, who wants to study in Glasgow.
Having a persona in mind can help you define your content better and ensure you are always thinking about your target audience.
What do my users want?
This question is the key to creating successful content! People will visit your webpages because they want to know something or need information from you.
Think about how you use the internet, and have a think about the following three questions:
- do you like getting answers quickly?
- do you like reading unnecessary information before finding what you want?
- do you get frustrated if you can’t find what you’re looking for?
If you didn’t answer ‘yes’, ‘no’, ‘yes’ to the above, please think again!
If somebody is on your webpage, they’re only ever one click away from their social media accounts (you're always fighting against Instagram and TikTok!). Therefore, you need to make sure you have their attention. Don’t confuse your users. If they don’t find what they’re looking for quickly, they aren’t going to hang around.
Talk to your users
We can all speculate about what our users want but speaking to them will give you the clearest answer. Try setting up a focus group and chatting to your users. Find out what they like, dislike and what they need from you. These needs will help shape your content and get you on track for creating good, impactful webpages.
Web task
Pick one of your pages on the Strathclyde website. Who is this page aimed at, and what should users get from it?
Focus on one section of the page, and think about the following:
- is this content written with a user in mind?
- what should a user gain from reading this content?
- is there anything I can do to make this content more user-focused?
You can repeat the above steps for other sections and other webpages.
User Experience (UX)
In our next blog, Elaine Shaw will go into some detail on user experience, and how this can impact your digital content.
Keep an eye out for the old Yahoo homepage from 2005!
Quick-fire answers
Name: Martin Dunlop
Job title: Digital & Web Manager
Joined Strathclyde: March 2014
Favourite website: YouTube (see reference to 1990s football videos above, an absolute treasure trove)
Favourite biscuit: Probably a Caramel Wafer
If you'd like to get in touch about anything in this blog, give me a shout at martin.dunlop@strath.ac.uk