Software is everywhere, but not everyone is comfortable with using it. If you are a system developer, you might wonder how to make your software easy for non-technical users. In this article, you will learn some best practices and tips to design and develop user-friendly software that anyone can use and enjoy.
Before you start coding, you need to understand who your users are, what they want, and what they struggle with. You can do this by conducting user research, such as surveys, interviews, or usability tests. User research will help you identify the needs, preferences, and pain points of your target audience. You can also create user personas, which are fictional profiles that represent your typical users. User personas will help you empathize with your users and design software that suits their goals and contexts.
This is such a critical step. Spending a “day in the life of” observing or even doing what the users currently do is a great way to gain empathy and understand needs at a deeper level.
1. Sticking to best practices 2. Putting ourselves in the shoes of the user 3. Automating steps to make flow less complicated 4. Testing with a non-technical user
The user interface (UI) is a critical aspect of making software easy for non-technical users. To simplify the UI, use simple and familiar language that is easy to understand and relevant to the user's task. Additionally, reduce the number of options and steps as too many choices can overwhelm users. Stick to essential features and use menus, tabs, buttons, and icons that are well-organized and easy to access. Lastly, follow common conventions and standards that users are familiar with based on their previous experiences. These conventions can make your software predictable and user-friendly.
Build simple prototypes / wireframes and test these with users before starting the build. Have users involved in the UI design process early.
Even if you have a simple and intuitive UI, your users might still need some help or assistance when using your software. To provide guidance and support, consider onboarding new users to show them the features and benefits of your software and how to use them. Additionally, you can use tooltips and hints as small pop-ups or messages that appear when users hover over or click on certain elements of the UI for additional information. Furthermore, you should provide help and feedback, such as FAQs, manuals, videos, chatbots, or contact forms. This will enable users to have questions answered or problems solved in a timely manner. Additionally, it is important to give clear feedback when users perform actions or encounter errors with your software.
Help and Feedback Channels: Highlight the significance of diverse help channels such as FAQs, manuals, videos, and chatbots. Share a success story where the introduction of a chatbot significantly reduced support ticket resolution time during the development of the lending platform. Timely Problem Resolution: Emphasize the need for timely problem resolution. Share a positive outcome where the deployment of a contact form streamlined the communication process, enabling users to report issues promptly, resulting in faster resolutions.
The final step of making software easy for non-technical users is to test and improve it. You can do this by using usability testing to measure how easy, efficient, and satisfying your software is for your users. Additionally, A/B testing can be used to experiment with UI elements, features, or functions, and see how they affect user behavior and satisfaction. Analytics and metrics are also important as they show how users interact with your software and can be used to identify and fix any issues or problems. Making software user-friendly can increase user satisfaction, loyalty, and retention, as well as reduce support costs and complaints. By following the best practices and tips, you can design and develop software that anyone can use and enjoy.