Taking Order Status to Task: Improving Usability on the iBuy Lucent Website

A case study in post-release usability work, this paper demonstrates the effectiveness of a task-based approach to interface (re)design. Customer feedback identified usability issues in the Order Status portion of an e-commerce site, iBuy Lucent. Task data was collected through interviews with internal users and was used to guide the redesign effort. The redesigned search and result screens were evaluated in structured walkthroughs with customers and in subsequent usability tests. The findings resulted in additional improvements to the Order Status search screen. A review of the process looks for ways to leverage human factors methods in the rapid cycle of web design.