You Asked, We Listened
by Natalie LoRusso, User Experience Librarian
The Libraries’ User Experience (UX) program recently advocated for a major change to the Libraries’ website, but you won’t find it if you go looking.
After hearing a variety of feedback from our users about the library search function, the Libraries’ new UX Program embarked on a year-long project to test the website’s searching usability. Led by User Experience Librarian, Natalie LoRusso, and her team of graduate student assistants, the group designed a series of usability testing activities to determine the overall search experience on the Libraries’ website. Using a myriad of user research methodologies ranging from observational think-alouds, comparison surveys, asynchronous mobile testing and a System Usability Scale questionnaire, the team ultimately met with over 90 participants to listen, learn and advocate for changes that aligned with user needs and expectations.
The studies concluded that the majority of users were struggling with a preliminary categorization page, locally referred to as the ‘Bento Box’ webpage. The team learned that this webpage was preventing library users from finding and accessing the libraries’ vast collections and online resources. That page is now removed from the website, so searching for resources is easier than ever.
If you have any questions about this change, or would like to provide feedback at any time, please contact libfeedback@syr.edu.