usability research: netzero start page and search june, 2010

Bureau West Marketing & Research - tel: (818) 752-7210, email: [email protected] 1

Usability Research: NetZero Start Page and Search

June, 2010

Conducted for:

United Online

Conducted by:

Bureau West Marketing & Research

Tel: (818) 752-7210, email: [email protected]


Executive Summary

● The Research

– Two small focus groups and eight 1-on-1 observation/interview sessions were conducted to get member input regarding NZ/JU Search and Start Page.

● NZ/JU Search

– While some members use NZ/JU Search, others don’t.

– Reasons for non-use: lack of awareness, perception of better results on other search engines, habit (“I’ve just always used Yahoo, I don’t know why”).

– Members prefer the alternate layout for search results (which looks more like Google).

– Many members did not notice the email announcement from NZ/JU regarding the Search function.


Executive Summary (cont.)

● Start Page

– Members consider the current Start Page cluttered.

– They would like to use the Start Page to quickly access content of interest to them.

– The alternate Start Page layout was preferred by members.

– Members don’t mind advertising in general, but they felt that the ads on the current Start Page make the page somewhat confusing.

– Members are not interested in paying extra in order to have a Start Page with no ads.


Background and Methodology

● United Online would like member input regarding NZ/JU Search and the Start Page. To this end, two small focus groups and eight individual observation and discussion sessions were conducted with a mix of NetZero and Juno members, and included both free and paid members. A total of 16 members participated in the research.

● During the sessions, participants were asked for their reactions to the Search function and the Start Page. They were also shown some mock-ups of an alternate layout for search results and several alternate Start Page mock-ups.

● The interviews and focus groups were held at the offices of United Online in Woodland Hills, CA on June 21 and 22, 2010.

● The research was conducted by Jay Zaltzman, member, Qualitative Research Consultants Association.


NZ/JU Search


How Members Search

● Some of the participants use the search box on the Start Page.

– Interestingly, some referred to using the search box as “using Google.”

● Others don’t use the search box and weren’t even aware of it, despite its large size.

– This seems to relate to their habit of ignoring everything on the Start Page except email.

● Those who use other search engines mentioned Google, Yahoo and MSN/Bing.

● In some cases, they don’t know why they use a specific search engine – it’s just a habit.


Reasons for Using Other Search Engines

● Some cited specific reasons they prefer other search engines.

– Several mentioned the auto-complete function on Google and Yahoo: “By now, it would already be showing me the different options.”

– Another mentioned Google’s filtering options: “On google.com, when you search on a subject, you have the option to narrow it to images or videos. And they don’t have that in Juno’s version.”


NZ/JU Search Benefits

● Convenience

– Members who use NZ/JU Search do so because of the convenience. They’re on the Start Page and the search box is right there, so it’s the most convenient option.

● Ease

– Members did not consider NZ/JU Search to be any easier (or more difficult) than other search engines. (Except for the convenience aspect – it saves having to go to a different web page to search.)

● Speed

– None of the participants realized that NZ/JU Search results are optimized for dial-up. They did not expect NZ/JU Search to be any faster than other search engines.

– Once members were told that NZ/JU Search is optimized for dial-up, they liked that fact and could appreciate that it would speed things up for them.

– However, since many members access the internet using broadband, some would like the option to view search results optimized for dial-up or view them without such optimization.


NZ/JU Search Vs. Others

● During the interviews, some participants conducted searches using NZ/JU Search and then conducted the same search using their preferred search engine.

● Participants preferred the search results they received using their own search engine, because they thought the results were more complete.

– Note: one reason for this: the large number of sponsors at the beginning of the NZ/JU Search results pushes the organic results further down the page, creating the impression of a less effective search.

Click below to view video clip (45 seconds)


Two Search Boxes

● There was some confusion about the two search boxes on the Start Page.

- “It was a little confusing to me, why they would have two places to search and this little tiny one, I was a little afraid to search in the small one, thinking, ‘what will it do to my site.’ If they just had the bigger one, and didn’t have a little one, then it’s not confusing any more. I wouldn’t even have a second thought, I would use that one right there.”

– Some seem to think that the top box is NZ/JU Search, and the big one is actually Google. Others don’t notice the smaller box.


Search Results: Current Layout

● In the current search results, members frequently can’t see non-sponsors without scrolling. Many don’t realize that the first search results are sponsors, since they’re not shown in a different color.


Search Results: Alternate Version

● Participants were shown an alternate version of search results that looked more like the way Google displays results.

– Most preferred the alternate version, since they felt it provided more information because of the additional links in the right-hand column.


Search Results: Sponsors

● Most prefer the way sponsors are shown in the alternate search results.

- “With this [alternate], you get the feeling that they’re not trying to trick you. The sponsors are highlighted. With the other [existing] one, once I figure it out, I would get ticked off and I might not use the search any more.”

● Participants did not notice the “more sponsors” link, to view sponsors in addition to the highlighted ones before the search results and the ones shown to the right of the search results. When asked, most said they would not be likely to click on the link.


Search Results: Related Searches

● While most didn’t notice the “related searches” section, those who did notice it, liked it.

– They felt the related searches could provide them with valuable information they might not have otherwise received.



Search Results: Additional Options

● Participants were asked if they would prefer the whole search result to be clickable, including the description, rather than just the title.

– Some weren’t interested in this option, perhaps because they are so used to clicking the blue title.

– Others felt it would make clicking easier, and would ensure clicking even if their mouse were not hovering directly over the first line of the search result.

● Participants were also asked if it would be preferable for a click on a search result to open a new window or tab.

– In theory, this would be helpful to people using dial-up, since they could then go back to their search results without the need to reload that page.

– However, many participants had difficulty understanding this concept.

– It is likely that some members would be confused if clicking a search result opened a new window. Some would not know how to get back to their search results (i.e., they would try to click the Back button in their browser and wouldn’t realize they have to go to a different window).


Local Business Results

● Most members consider Google’s local business results to be useful and would like a similar feature in NZ/JU Search results.

– One participant suggested providing an option to see the map, e.g., “click here to see local business results on a map.”

● It is interesting to note that participants didn’t refer to this feature as “local business results,” but rather just thought of it as “a map.”


Email from NetZero

● When shown the email announcing Google search, participants did not remember receiving it.



Deciding Whether to Open Emails

● Members look at the subject line and the sender in order to decide whether to open an email.

– “I don’t open the commercial ones. Usually the subject tells you what it is. Between the sender and the subject, you can figure it out… I see the ‘from’ address has United Online… I just don’t pay attention to it any more… I mean that one where they keep saying $30 for referrring a friend. I’m at the point where they don’t even bother me any more, I just don’t look at them.”

– “I do get upset by the ones that say ‘win $50,000 for your opinion” … that’s how I differentiate. If it doesn’t way ‘win something,’ then I click on it.”

– “I only get upset if I bothered to open it, and then realize that I was tricked into thinking it was something else... if it’s disguised in some way, and then I realize it’s from United Marketing.”


NZ/JU Start Page


Start Page: Cluttered

● Most members ignore the Start Page and try to leave the page as quickly as possible. They go to the Start Page in order to get to their email.

● When asked, most said they found the page cluttered, with “too much going on.”


Start Page: What Users Want

● Many participants said they go to “portal” pages such as Yahoo! or MSN. Most do so in order to read headlines or check stock prices.

– Several participants said they particularly liked the way the top stories rotate on MSN.com.

- “As it is, when my Juno comes up and I see all this stuff [ads], I ignore it. But if they had the different top stories rotating, I might stay there longer and I might actually notice the ads.”



Start Page: What Users Want (cont.)

● Participants were asked if they would be interested in the ability to customize their NZ/JU Start Page to show feeds from the sources of their choosing. This idea received very positive reactions.

– Members would spend significantly more time on the Start Page if they could customize it to have the content they want (e.g., RSS feeds from their preferred news providers).

- “If you could do that, if I could choose New York Times, this one, that one, then I wouldn’t need to go anywhere else.”



Start Page: Channels

● Participants assumed the channels would link to content areas, similarly to the left-hand links on the Yahoo! home page.

● Note that, once members realize that the links lead to ads rather than content, they’re unlikely to click on them again, and would be less likely to spend time on the Start Page.


Start Page: Advertising

● Most participants felt there were too many ads on the Start Page; they felt the ads give the page a cluttered look.

- “Four ads on the page is too many. It’s clutter on the page. They should reduce it to one banner that would rotate.”

● Most understand that advertising is necessary; some even like the ads, as long as they don’t distract or confuse them.

- “It’s good to have the ads. If you’re not interested, you just ignore it. And if it happens to be of interest to you, it’s good that it’s there.”


Start Page: No Advertising?

● Participants were asked if it would be worth paying a dollar or two more per month for their subscription in order to receive no ads at all.

● The response to this idea was unanimously negative.

- “No. I’d rather just ignore them than have to pay money to have them go away.”



Alternate Start Page Layout

● There were very positive reactions to the layout of the alternate Start Pages. Participants felt it was much easier to orient themselves on the alternate pages, since there was a clear separation between content and advertising.


Alternate Start Page Background

● Most members liked the Start page mock-ups with a background color.

● While some like the idea of being able to customize the background color and the look of their Start Page, others feel they wouldn’t take the time to do so.


Alternate Start Page: Email Links

● Some participants reacted positively to the concept of links to their various email accounts (e.g., Yahoo! mail, Hotmail, Gmail, etc.).

● They felt these links could save them time, as against going to their email pages separately, and would get them to spend more time on the NZ/JU Start Page.


Alternate Start Page: Facebook

● While some members said they use Facebook, there did not seem to be a great deal of interest in having their facebook content appear on the Start Page.

● One participant said he wouldn’t want Facebook content on his Start Page because he considered the content personal:

– “Facebook accounts can be rather personal, and I wouldn’t want to go away from my desk and have someone see my Facebook information.”


Start Page: Shopping Offers

● Participants were asked if they would be interested in “daily deals” or “lightning deals,” similar to the limited-time deals found on other sites, such as Amazon.

– Most were not particularly interested in the idea. They thought the deals were appropriate on a shopping site such as Amazon, but not necessarily on their NZ/JU Start Page.

Click below to view video clip (20 seconds)● The MyPoints concept was explained to participants, and they were asked if they would be interested in having a MyPoints search box on their NZ/JU Start Page.

– Many participants were quite interested in that option; in fact, several noted the mypoints.com URL so they could check out the site once they got home.


Conclusions and Recommendations


Conclusions and Recommendations

● General

– More than half the participants access the internet using a broadband service such as DSL or cable (non-NZ/JU), but continue to go to their NZ/JU Start Page to check their email.

– If a significant portion of NZ/JU subscribers are experiencing the internet through a broadband service, this may have implications regarding the design of NZ/JU web pages. We may want to consider offering alternate experiences for those on dial-up and those accessing the site via broadband.

● Search

– We need to ensure members know that the search is optimized for dial-up. In addition, we may want to consider providing the option for search that is not optimized for dial-up, for those members who access the internet via broadband. Both of these needs could be addressed by including a checkbox which could read “optimize results for dial-up (loads faster).”

– Consider using the alternate layout for NZ/JU Search results. This layout was preferred by members; using it would make members more likely to use NZ/JU Search.


Conclusions and Recommendations (cont.)

● Start Page

– Members expect “Featured Channels” to lead to content. Consider providing actual content channels, as this would encourage members to spend more time on the Start Page and ultimately click on more ads. Alternatively, consider designing the channels differently so they don’t look like left navigation content channels.

– Consider offering members the option to customize their Start Page with feeds from content providers of their choosing (e.g., RSS feeds from news providers).

– Consider using the alternate Start Page layout. Members still notice the advertising, but the organization of the page makes it seem less cluttered.

– Consider offering the option for members to customize the background on their Start Page.

– Consider including links to enable members to check their other email accounts, as shown in the alternate Start Page mock-up.


Thank You

● Jay Zaltzman

● Bureau West Marketing & Research

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usability research: netzero start page and search june, 2010

Documents

search box

search results

search function

search enginessome

page layout

alternate start page

specific search engine

page cluttered