Optimization of a Smoking Cessation Website

Issue
The Healthcare Human Factors Group was engaged to improve usability and accessibility of a smoking cessation website. Although the website was very rich in content and contained a number of useful tools only a small portion of these visitors signed up for the program that was offered despite the high website traffic that the website received.

Methods
An iterative design and development approach was used in this project. First, a heuristic evaluation was conducted to determine how well the website satisfies general usability principles. Issues were prioritized according to severity and recommendations to address each issue were provided. After design changes were made, usability testing was conducted on the updated site with test participants recruited from the general public according to their desire to quit smoking and length of smoking history. During the testing, participants explored the overall site and used the tools that were available. They provided feedback about the website’s general usability and content using the talk aloud protocol.

Results
A number of issues were uncovered during usability testing, including: limited access to information, unclear navigation, lack of feedback when using interactive elements, and confusing program structure. The recommendations resulting from the testing helped to organize the website in a more meaningful and intuitive way, and eliminated inefficiencies that occurred when users interacted with the site. These changes helped to ensure that future users benefit from all the tools and information available thereby increasing the reach and impact of the smoking cessation website.