Kimberly Kopp Krause

User Centered Website Analysis

Nothing about me has been ordinary, including how I came into my present profession. For example, my mother says a bookcase fell on my head as a young child, to explain why I don't eat things that wiggle or are squishy. I wanted to be like Barbara Walters, so I took up Journalism in college, where it was discovered I had a talent for creative writing because I couldn't stick to just the facts. (This is why the Cre8pc Blog is right up my alley! )

Later, I taught myself web design in 1995 because I purchased AOL, saw the Internet and decided talking to people from around the world while breastfeeding my youngest would be a unique way to get "out of the house". Everywhere I went online I found mentors willing to teach me whatever I wanted to know. This led me to great employment opportunties during the frenzied dotcom days. For at least five minutes, I was worth over a half million dollars!

I worked for corporations in web design departments and freelanced from home doing SEO until the final days of the last company I worked for that faded into dotcom history. By this time I'd done everything from search engine optimization, to web design to software usability/user interface testing. Testing Internet applications means I represented the user or customer. Just because the designers and programmers could make it work didn't mean customers could, and it was my job to prove where it would fail.

Over the years I became adept at virtual work and learned to manage projects with development teams spread throughout the USA. I continue to work in a virtual environment today. I've developed website user interface and task analysis test plans based on research and the skills needed to test software. I combined SEO with usability because two things are vital to successful websites. The site must be found in search engines and it must retain the interest of the person who clicks into it. Today I work with professional SEO companies who handle optimization and marketing while I analyze the site for user readiness. The combined value to the customer is incredible.

The Internet opened up many doors for me so that I could take years of various work and personal experience and wrap it up into a career that permits me to work from home (for many years as a single mom). I can work on projects from anywhere in the world and still be home in time to help with homework. It occurred to me that I'd be nowhere today if not for my online teachers and mentors, as well as the extraordinary web developers and QA engineers I've worked with. I wanted to be able to provide opportunities for others with a willingness to listen, learn and apply what they've learned. To that end I've owned Cre8pc.com since 1996 plus Cre8asiteForums.com, and co-founded Cre8asite Web Professional Resources, all sites devoted to self teaching and resources .

This year I've launched a new web site called UsabilityEffect.com which focuses on web site usability testing and user centered web design.

A Look Under Your Website Hood

There are many types of usability and user testing. My specialty is affordable user centered analysis with an emphasis on the first-time user impression. I evaluate the user interface, navigation and desirability of a web site and look for areas that may confuse your visitors. It's often small details that make the most compelling differences; the result of which is increased traffic and sales.

Articles by Kim Krause