Heuristic Evaluation of Amazon’s Website
A heuristic evaluation on a web shopping application of one of the largest tech companies and online marketplaces in the world.
Overview about Amazon
Shopping made easy! Amazon is a vast Internet-based enterprise that sells books, music, movies, housewares, electronics, toys, and many other goods, either directly or as the middleman between other retailers and Amazon millions of customers.
Goal of Evaluation
The purpose of this heuristic evaluation is to identify existing usability issues within the Amazon web application.
Heuristic Evaluation
While Amazon has many dedicated users that love its speed, variety of products and ease of delivery, there are still many usability issues within the app that could still be improved to create an all-around better shopping experience.
1. Visibility of System Status
1. Is the user aware of their current position within the user journey?
Issue: The breadcrumb trail is to ensuring the user’s journey on the website. When we search products from “Search” you will find pages with “Back to results” but when we click on the products in recommendation , they are addressed with breadcrumbs.
Recommendation: We should use clear Breadcrumbs for the products the user searched for. As all the products are listed under some category, so we can use the category to address the products like “Home>Product category>Product sub-category>Product”
1.2. Is the user notified about changes in their user journey?
The sidebar on the right and notification on the top is the best way to notify that the user has successfully added an item.
Also when I deleted an item from Sidebar, it is updating as “item is removed from shopping cart” but not updated in the notification.
1.3. Is the user aware of factors that can have a significant impact on their experience?
Yes, the user clearly selects the Country and preferred language from the top left of the website.
2. Match between System and Real World
2.1. Are UI elements and interaction prompts easily recognisable?
Every icon used in Amazon has direct meaning with its context, no ambiguity.
2.2. Does the online experience replicate the familiarity of offline actions and behaviour?
A digital experience that mimics real-life actions and behaviours makes the online experience more enjoyable. Having a personalized message with a gift is natural behaviour and adds a personal touch. This is something that Amazon does very well.
2.3. Does the website make use of acronyms, technical terms or jargon that need an explanation? If acronyms are used, are they clearly explained?
The content is simple and easily understandable across all sections of the website.
3. User Control and Freedom
3.1. Is the exit state consistent and clear?
Issue: While placing an order there is no Back or Exit button. You can go back with the “backward icon” in your browser.
Recommendation: With the “Continue button” we can add “Back Button” also.
3.2. Is the user able to use the core sections of the website without signing up?
The user is able to browse all available products, create a registry, sign up for repeat subscriptions, sign up for trade, etc. until the point of payment details are required. The user is not forced to create an account at any time during their user journey.
3.3. Does the user have control over their personal information?
Yes, the user can edit, update and delete the information under the “Account section”.
4. Consistency and Standards
4.1. Is there a consistent design standard for all call to actions (CTA) on the website?
Issue: All buttons should be categorised based on the importance and outcome of the button. There seems to be no design standard for the call to action on the Amazon website. Buttons are different shades of orange, yellow and white color — there is even a difference in the corner radius and sizes.
Recommendation: We can create one or two standard styles for buttons that will be used in different areas.
4.2. Is there a consistent design standard for form controls?
Yes, All the Amazon forms are consistent with colors and Button styles.
4.3. Is there a consistent design standard for headings?
Issue: The main headings at the top of the main pages are very inconsistent and look quite random.
Recommendation: We can create a similar type of banners for Different Categories and use the same typography to look alike.
5. Error Prevention
5.1. Are there helpful constraints that prevent the user from making mistakes?
In Amazon forms, there are labels and placeholders to prevent the user from entering incorrect values. The password validation is guiding the user to at least have 6 digit password.
5.2. Is the user guide with suggestions to prevent incorrect actions?
There are several guidelines within the forms on the website that guide the user in what type of information is needed for the specific field.
But, When we fill incorrect information Amazon Form will give one error at a time, this is time taking process and decrease the efficiency of use.
6. Recognition over Recall
6.1. Is the user presented with a list of recently viewed products or pages?
Yes, Amazon provides a section called “Inspired by your browsing history” where all the frequently seen items are shown.
6.2. Is the user presented with customised content based on previous actions?
Items under “Related to items you’ve viewed” are related to history.
6.3. Is the user presented with navigational items that reduce cognitive load and aid recall?
The principle of recognition and recall is based on the amount of effort it takes the user to retrieve a concept from memory. Within the search page, the user will get the related items of the group to which the item belongs. Like here I got items from the kitchen when searched for water bottles.
7. Flexibility and Efficiency of Use
7.1. Is the user presented with shortcuts to end goals? Is the user presented with ambient information for quick actions?
Yes, At first the user needs to fill in all the relevant information such as addresses, payment details, contact details. This is used when we shop next time, this decreases the time and increases the efficiency of use.
8. Aesthetic and Minimalistic Design
8.1. Is the user interface design simple and easy to understand?
The visual design of Amazon is simple although it is a very complex application for someone who is not tech-savvy, accent colours are used for important information such as CTAs, the validity of stock, sale items, etc.
8.2. Is the user clear on what all the icons mean and why they’re included in the design?
There is no excessive use of icons and where icons are used there’s a label or description that accompany the icon.
8.3. Are all forms easy to understand and effortless to fill-in?
The forms are straightforward which improves the readability.
9. Help users Recognise, Diagnose and Recover from Errors
9.1. Is the user presented with error messages (as opposed to no message) when adding incorrect information in a form control?
All form fields have validation messages when incorrect information has been entered.
9.2. Is the user presented with human-readable error messages that offer useful information on how to rectify the problem?
All input fields on the Amazon website have useful descriptions on how to rectify the problem.
9.3. Is the user presented with polite error messages that don’t blame the user for the error?
The validation messages are descriptive and clear
10. Help and Documentation
10.1. Is the user presented with clear steps/guidelines to use the product service?
Shopping on the Amazon website is pretty simple, no onboarding or guide is needed to purchase an item. Each page includes clear CTAs to choose colour, change the quantity and add the item to the cart, registry or wish list.
10.2. Does the user have access to documentation with relevant topics to help reach their goal?
The “Customer service centre” is easily accessible from the top navigation and is easy to use. The user can either search or browse topics by popularity or by category.
10.3. Is the user presented with other channels of communication to enquire assistance to reach their goal?
Issue: While browsing products, no contact details of the seller is available. However, FAQs are there to solve problems
Recommendation: We can provide contact details of the seller in the Profile of the particular seller. So that the user feels free to contact the seller directly for help and inquiry.
Conclusion
Conducting a Heuristic Analysis is an excellent way to get an objective view of a website’s usability status. By diving into each of the 10 Usability Heuristics by Nielsen Norman Group, will give a whole new perspective on existing functionality and UI elements within the website. Ultimately this UX methodology should be included in a larger UX strategy that’s accompanied by user research & usability testing.
Feel free to contact me at: jaspritkaur2920@gmail.com
Thank you so much!😄
