How eye tracking can improve website usability

Eye tracking has been used for many years in fields like aviation and cognitive psychology, but it’s only recently that advances in technologies have allowed it to become part of the standard usability evaluation procedure.

Eye tracking studies, which explore navigation, search and other interactions with online applications have influenced things like user-interface architecture, design layout of screens and size of design elements. .

One recent eye tracking study by usability consultant Jakob Nielsen found that users often scan the main body of text on web pages in an F-shaped pattern:

Initially, users scan a website in a horizontal movement across the upper part of the content area. Short horizontal movements further down the page are then concluded by a vertical movement along the content page’s left side.

Nielsen concluded that the F-pattern behaviour shows users just scan text, they don’t necessarily read. Significant information should be placed at the top left of the page.

As recommended by content audits conducted by Cimex, headings and paragraphs must start with information-carrying words that users will notice when they scan down the left side of the content. Failure to do so may result in the user moving on to find a more identifiable and relevant keyword thus potentially missing key information.

Another eye tracking study by Eyetools Inc and MarketingSherpa concluded the following:

• Users always look at the upper-left corner
• Users hardly read text, they tend to scan
• Material placed underneath images is viewed quite often
• Navigational links usually distract users from the main purpose of the page

Eye tracking at Cimex

It has been said that an increasing number of e-commerce websites can spoil customers for choice. When customers can’t find a product they’re looking for, they’ll abandon their basket and go to one of the hundreds of other e-tail sites out there rather than spend any more time trying to figure out a site’s poor navigation.

Poor usability has seen the failure of many websites, despite the existence of numerous usability evaluation techniques which aim to identify problematic areas. Resources and time can determine the exact type of evaluation routes used, but it’s crucial to apply techniques that explore customer behaviour from multiple perspectives.

Eye tracking provides a cost-effective way of testing a website with real users from a detailed user-behaviour perspective and complements outcomes from other usability evaluation techniques, such as user testing and expert reviews.

Cimex follows a user-centred approach that focuses on the ‘total-customer experience’. We capture customers’ expectations and influences from previous experience, all of which are captured during interviews before testing sessions. Actual behaviour is recorded through user testing and eye tracking, which is then complimented by customers’ preferences identified through interviews after the customer testing session.

Cimex has acquired the latest state-of-the-art Tobii™ eye tracking device which does not require any physical contact with the user. It is non-intrusive which allows a ‘natural’ user-website interaction as it would have taken place in the users’ own work place. The kit is placed in front of the computer screen. It uses an infrared light source to illuminate the eyes, a CCD (Charge Coupled Device) sensor to capture a reflection of the user’s eyes, and eye-movement analysis software to process the data.

Each numbered circle shows the point that the user fixated on, and the larger the circle, the longer the time spent viewing that spot. The example screen shows that the user started in the upper middle part, quickly looked at other parts of the screen, and finished his ‘path’ on the logo on the upper-left corner.

At Cimex we use eye tracking to assess search efficiency, branding, online advertisements, navigation usability, overall design and many other site components.

Analyses may also target a prototype or competitor site as took place during usability evaluations for a government website, which provided useful results when tested with eye tracking. Eye tracking unearthed issues such as a lack of focus on the main navigation and a lack of clear priority within navigational links.

Eye tracking and your website

If you’re interested in finding out one or more of the following about your site, eye tracking could deliver serious benefits:

• If your website’s design is effective
• If your users are able to find what they’re looking for
• If users ever notice or ignore images
• If users carefully read content
• If banners are distractive
• If search boxes are noticed

For further information about eye tracking or usability services, contact us.