Web Design for Usability
How This Course Will Help Your Career
What You’ll Learn
- The principles of user-centered design and to apply them to your designs to improve usability
- How to evaluate the effectiveness and usability of alternative designs
- Why it is important to have clear, conceptual models and early design
- The importance of involving users in the design process
- Basic usability and accessibility guidelines that you can apply to your designs
Usability and profitability are two sides of the same coin. Simple improvements in usability can greatly increase the probability that your e-commerce site will be a success... however, the opposite is also true! It is therefore crucial that all designers consider usability early on in the design process, especially seeing as such knowledge is also applicable to wider contexts—such as improving productivity and job satisfaction in the workplace.
As Forrester Research puts it:
“Usability goals are business goals. Web sites that are hard to use frustrate customers, forfeit revenue, and erode brands. Executives can apply a disciplined approach to improve all aspects of ease-of-use. Start with usability reviews to assess specific flaws and understand their causes. Then fix the right problems through action-driven design practices. Finally, maintain usability with changes in business processes.”
As you may have deduced by now, the realm of usability extends far below what you see on the surface. Despite this, what we want to see on the surface has proved to be an ongoing temptation for all too many of us as designers. Constructing an awesome site is not just about making it look awesome—particularly when you can end up with a beautifully sophisticated design that crashes moments after users sit down to interact with it. Fortunately, you can—and should—aim for a site that both looks and functions in an awesome way.
Getting to the nub of usability issues as soon as you notice them—or, better still, as soon as you notice their potential to upset your work—means saving yourself many a headache further down the development line. The old expression “forewarned is forearmed” is more than relevant in this market... and that’s why we have put everything you need into this course to help you keep your work optimized for usability.
“Web Design for Usability” is a course built on evidence-based approaches, as well as solid evidence, distilled from over 40 years of experience in the development of interactive systems. The course is taught by the founder and principal consultant of Syntagm, William Hudson, who is also a distinguished writer and teacher in the fields of user-centered design, user experience, and usability.
Gain an Industry-Recognized UX Course Certificate
Use your industry-recognized Course Certificate on your resume, CV, LinkedIn profile or your website.
Our courses and Course Certificates are trusted by these industry leaders:
Is This Course Right for You?
This is a beginner-level course suitable for newcomers and experienced practitioners alike:
- UX designers who want to create outstanding websites that are free from usability flaws
- Project managers keen on building user-centered products that stand out from the competition
- Software engineers interested in augmenting their development skills with a firm grounding in usability
- Entrepreneurs looking to ship products that are free from usability flaws and thus succeed
- Newcomers to design who are considering making a switch to UX design
Courses in the Interaction Design Foundation are designed to contain comprehensive, evidence-based content, while ensuring that the learning curve is never too steep. All participants will have the opportunity to share ideas, seek help with tests, and enjoy the social aspects afforded by our open and friendly forum.
Learn and Work with a Global Team of Designers
You’ll join a global community and work together to improve your skills and career opportunities. Connect with helpful peers and make friends with like-minded individuals as you push deeper into the exciting and booming industry of design.
Lessons in This Course
- Each week, one lesson becomes available.
- There’s no time limit to finish a course. Lessons have no deadlines.
- Estimated learning time: 17 hours 11 mins spread over 10 weeks .
Lesson 0: Welcome and Introduction
-
0.1: An introduction to courses from the Interaction Design Foundation (37 mins)
-
0.2: Let our community help you (1 min)
-
0.3: How to Earn Your Course Certificate (16 mins)
-
0.4: Meet your peers online in our discussion forums (5 mins)
-
0.5: Meet and learn from design professionals at an upcoming meet-up (1 min)
-
0.6: Gain Timeless Knowledge Through Courses From the Interaction Design Foundation (21 mins)
-
0.7: Mandatory vs. Optional Lesson Items (7 mins)
-
0.8: A Mix Between Video-Based and Text-Based Lesson Content (6 mins)
Lesson 1: Introduction
Lesson 2: Interaction Model
-
2.1: Gulf of Execution and Evaluation (29 mins)
-
2.2: Goal Mapping (24 mins)
-
2.3: Goal Oriented Models (1 hour 5 mins)
-
2.4: Discussion Forum (6 mins)
Lesson 3: Users
-
3.1: Interviews and Focus Groups (1 hour 9 mins)
-
3.2: Personas and Card Sorting (40 mins)
-
3.3: Hierarchical Cluster Analysis (43 mins)
-
3.4: Paper Prototyping (16 mins)
-
3.5: Discussion Forum (6 mins)
Lesson 4: Accessibility
Lesson 5: Navigation and Content
Lesson 6: Visual Design
-
6.1: Gestalt Principles and Grids (1 hour 13 mins)
-
6.2: Layout Expectations (47 mins)
-
6.3: Forms and Data Entry (50 mins)
-
6.4: Discussion Forum (6 mins)
Lesson 7: Feedback
Lesson 8: Testing
Lesson 9: Course Certificate, Final Networking, and Course Wrap-up
Learning Paths
This course is part of 1 learning path:
How Others Have Benefited
Maram Saber, Germany
“Awesome teaching method, the alternating between videos / articles was great and the examples were simple and easy to follow.”
Salvatore Salvo, Italy
“This course is one of the best out there. The breadcrumb lines lesson is very useful, I have to admit I didn't realize the impact of this technique.”
Christoph Kloecking, Germany
“I especially appreciated the part about the user stories vs persona stories as I have found myself struggling to write good user stories for the reasons mentioned. However, the processes that had been implemented in that business required user stories. I am quite confident that with the arguments from these lessons I can achieve a shift towards persona centre story writing which will hopefully improve the developers understanding of the stories leading to a better product.”
How It Works
-
Control your learning.
Lessons are self-paced so you’ll never be late for class or miss a deadline. Learning and life, hand in hand.
-
Earn Course Certificates.
Your answers are graded by experts, not machines. Get an industry-recognized Course Certificate to show you’ve put in the work.
-
Advance your career.
Grow your professional knowledge by watching Master Classes, networking within our UX community, and more.
Start Advancing Your Career Now
Join us to take “Web Design for Usability”. Take other courses at no additional cost. Make a concrete step forward in your career path today.
Advance my career nowFrequently Asked Questions
When I finish a course, do I have to pay extra to get my certificate?
Can I take more than one course at a time?
With a Student membership, you can take a maximum of two courses at the same time. You can still take as many courses as you would like – free of extra charges – just as long as you finish or drop them so that you don’t have more than two ongoing courses.
I missed the enrollment, and now the course is closed. What can I do?
Don't worry if you missed the course. We will re-run it shortly. One of the reasons we continually open and close courses is in order to control the classroom size.
Networking is a large part of our value proposition, so we want just the right number of people inside the courses. That is also why we display the "XX % percent booked" on our course icons.
Do I have to be online at an exact time to study?
No. You can set your own study schedule. There are no "live sessions" since we have members from all timezones around the world. We are a truly global community.
Thus, once you are enrolled, you can take all the time to complete a given course. Every "classroom" in each course will never close, so you’ll have permanent access to your classmates and your course material (as well as your own answers).
Will I receive a Course Certificate?
Yes. You will get a digital industry-recognized course certificate every time you complete a course. Certificates never expire and can be saved as a .jpg file, so it's easy to be shared. Also, there is no limit to how many certificates you can earn during your membership.
You can see an example of a Course Certificate at the bottom of the Course Catalogue.
I have answered questions in a lesson; when will they be marked/graded?
I have updated my name, but my course certificate is not updated — how can I change it?
Don't worry; once you change your name, your certificate will be updated automatically in the next 48 hours.
I have started my course later than the specified date, are my answers still going to be marked?
Sure! We will be marking all your answers for as long as you are an active member.
How are courses graded?
For how long will I have access to the course materials?
You will have access to the course materials for the entire duration of your membership. So, if you pay for a one-year membership, you will have access for one year. Renewing your membership for a second year means you will have access to one more year, and so on.
New lessons are starting before I have completed the previous lesson(s). Am I going to be locked out of these unfinished lessons?
No, you will not be locked out of any lesson or course. You will have access to all course materials throughout your membership, so there is no pressure to keep at the same pace as the specified lesson release dates.
All we recommend is that you try to stick to the same schedule as other participants. The reason is they may have moved on to other lessons, thereby meaning you could miss out on the social aspects of the course(s).
Do I have a specific date to award my certificates?
No, you can generate your certificate as soon as you score at least 70% of the total course points.
When will I receive my Course Certificate?
Course certificates will be given to participants when they have scored more than 70% or more of the total course points. For example, if a course contains ten lessons each with ten questions, you will receive a course certificate when the instructor has awarded you at least 70 points (70% of the total course points).
There is no specified time that certificates will be awarded — instead, they are given to participants as and when they have answered all questions, even if this is long after the official end date.
How do I add my Certificate to my LinkedIn profile?
Below is a step-by-step guide on how to add your Interaction Design Foundation course(s) to your LinkedIn profile:
Log in to your LinkedIn account, then go to your profile.
Below your profile description, click on the button Add profile section, choose Recommended and then select Add license or certification.
![]()
3. In the following fields add:
Name – Course name
Issuing organization – The Interaction Design Foundation
Check the field “This credential does not expire”
Issue date - Input the date written on your certificate (e.g., May 2021)
Credential ID – Your membership ID number – it's written on your certificate. (For non-members, you can leave this field blank or, if you prefer, insert the certificate ID, which can be extracted from the certificate link. This ID will begin with "mcc_" and be followed by a string of numbers and letters.")
Credential URL: Input the certificate URL provided on your course page
4. Click the Save button.
Congratulate yourself! Earning the certificate is a great accomplishment and now you can share it with the world!
How do I add the Interaction Design Foundation Membership Certificate to my LinkedIn Profile?
Below is a step-by-step guide on how to add your Interaction Design Foundation course(s) to your LinkedIn profile:
Log in to your LinkedIn account, then go to your profile.
Below your profile description, click on the button Add profile section, choose Recommended and then select Add license or certification.
![]()
3. In the following fields add:
Name – Membership Certificate
Issuing organization – The Interaction Design Foundation
Check the field “This credential does not expire”
Issue date - Input the date when you joined our community (e.g., May 2019)
Credential ID – Your membership ID number (it's written on your certificate)
Credential URL: Input the certificate URL provided on your profile page
4. Click the Save button.
It is as simple as that. Now, anyone who visits your profile can see your certificate!
How much will I have to pay for the courses?
After you pay for your membership, you can take as many courses as you want with no additional costs. There are no further charges on top of the membership fee.
Do you provide mostly beginners' or more advanced courses?
How long does it take to complete a course?
You will need approximately 5-8 hours to complete one lesson. Each course has between 3 and 16 lessons.
Once enrolled in a course, you will gain access to a new lesson each week, which you are free to complete without any deadlines and no end date, either.
I scored less than 70% in a course, so I didn't qualify for a certificate. Can I try again?
Yes! Everyone's learning journey looks different, and we'd never stop our members from trying again. To retake a course, just follow these steps:
1. Go to your profile and click on the relevant course you'd like to retake.
2. Underneath your progress bar, you'll see a phrase "UX Courses" with an arrow (>) pointing to a clickable landing page of that course. Click on that link.
3. Once on the landing page, scroll all the way down to the bottom of the page. You'll see a red button, which you can simply click to drop the course.
4. Head back to our main list of UX Courses, and re-enroll yourself in the course. You'll all set to try again!
Please note that when you drop a course, you will lose any answers and progress you submitted. We advise that you screenshot or save any answers you'd like to reuse.
In some cases, we can open up lessons for members who are retaking a course, so that they don't have to wait for familiar lessons to unlock each week. If you'd like us to do this for you, please get in touch with our support team at hello@interaction-design.org, and we can help you out.
How do I drop a course?
To drop a course, the following should be done:
1. Visit your profile page and click the 'continue lesson...' button for the course you want to drop.
2. Click the course name link breadcrumb near the top of the page that opens (this only appears in unlocked lessons, not upcoming lessons)
3. Click the red 'drop my course now' button at the bottom of the page that opens
