Usability is probably the single most important factor that governs the success or failure of a website. When users enter a web page they are looking for information and usability is how quickly and easily the user can find that information.
If the information isn't easily found then users will have no desire to proceed any further. All a user need do is hit the back button on their browser and go to another site - and there are plenty of them.
This decision probably takes less than 2 seconds and is ruthless. Therefore if a user follows a link from a search engine, or any other site, and arrives at your site then the prospect of them lingering any more than 2 seconds depends on ...
The landing page matching the expectation generated by the link text or description that the user clicked on.
The user immediately finding the information they are looking for or finding the means to access that information quickly.
Usability often suffers when graphic design is given priority in the design process. It's natural to want your site to stand out against others, but using unconventional layouts or navigation will tend to confuse users and the success of your site will suffer.
Most users will already have seen many other web sites and most web sites tend to follow one or two particular layout conventions. If you decide to go against these conventions then the user will have to learn your convention and this will make finding information more difficult. Most users don't have the patience for this - why should they?
If the name of your site or your logo or content don't make it immediately obvious what your site is about, then tell users in plain language in a tag line at the top what is on offer. Don't have users guessing - they can't be bothered.
Studies have been carried out to find the features that encourage, or discourage, users spending time on a website and any recommendations produced are useful in improving the success of a website.
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