C/C/13. Heuristic Evaluations: Too Costly?

To include usability testing into a software design cycle potentially requires huge investments of both time and money by companys for apparently little gain or return on investment. Many companies also fail to see the long-term and generally indirect benefits from such an investment; Increased satisfaction, reduced help-desk call load leading to the need for less staff and thus increased profits. Nielson (1989, 1990, 1993) proposed a way for an effective usability analysis to be conducted for less investment of time and money, with a quicker return on investment. He developed what he later called Discount Usability Methods. Heuristic Analyses are methods designed to test the usability of a software interface at a cost much lower than a full usability analysis, but which still gives reliable, consistent results which when implemented, will improve the usability of the software.