Usability Test Report for eBay.com

Please Follow the brief and make sure you meet the criteria, as provided.

Module CI6310
Usability Test Report for eBay.com
Student's name
Institution Affiliation(s)

Table of Contents
1.0 Introduction and Background....................................................................................................2
1.1 Recent Developments and Trends..........................................................................................3
1.2 The Existing User Interface...................................................................................................3
2.0 Aims...........................................................................................................................................6
3.0 Method.......................................................................................................................................7
3.1 Method overview...................................................................................................................7
3.2 Participants.............................................................................................................................8
3.3 Tasks......................................................................................................................................8
3.4 Metrics...................................................................................................................................9
3.5 Materials & Tools..................................................................................................................9
3.6 Procedure.............................................................................................................................11
4.0 Results & Recommendations...................................................................................................12
4.1 A brief summary of overall findings....................................................................................12
4.2 Performance Data.................................................................................................................14
4.3 User Experience Issues........................................................................................................16
4.4 Redesign Recommendations................................................................................................17
5.0 Discussion................................................................................................................................20
6.0 References................................................................................................................................22
7.0 Appendices..............................................................................................................................25
7.1 Appendix (a): Evaluator Script............................................................................................25
7.2 Appendix (b): Demographic Questionnaire.........................................................................25
7.3 Appendix (c): Consent Form................................................................................................26
7.4 Appendix (d): Tasks for usability testing.............................................................................26
7.5 Appendix (e): Post-session Questionnaire...........................................................................27
1

2

1.0 Introduction and Background
The most popular website offering retail online auction services is undoubtedly eBay. It
is not just a pioneer of the market, but it can also be considered as a model of e-business (Drake,
Cegielski, & Byrd, 2015). Together with his payment system PayPal, it has revolutionized
commerce and has paved the way for other businesses, particularly retail and trading. However,
together with the success that eBay has been able to achieve is the realization that it needs to stay
competitive and anticipate developments (Tahmasebifard, 2018). In the last few years, there has
been an abundance of other similar services on the internet, some even being sponsored by
industry leaders such as MSN and Yahoo (Pham, Wallenius, & Wallenius, 2015). To be able to
accomplish this, eBay must be able to offer not only quality services but develop new ones based
on the needs of its patrons.
The business goals of the website is to facilitate trade between sellers and buyers in an
online platform globally (Black, 2017). Sellers are able to list their items for sale and parameters
that buyers would require to fulfil in order to qualify to purchase the item. On the other hand,
buyers can brows for any item that is listed and place their bids. Also, eBay.com facilitates
secure payment transactions between buyers and sellers in their online marketplace.
The purpose of this paper is to study eBay and the current features and functionality of
this auction website to learn its competencies and deficiencies. In doing so, the paper will be able
to present ways to improve services or features that can enhance the experience of website users.
The features recommended will be assessed considering their requirements for operation and the
possible partners that the company can have to provide the services. The paper will present the
usability test for the eBay.com website.
3

1.1 Recent Developments and Trends
The online auction business is one of the cores of e-commerce ventures. The
development of the structures permits for consumers to have access to almost an unrestrained
number of goods and traders to an have access to a boundless market. Most online auctions are
usually based on the English system, where the price is increased by interested buyers, unlike the
Dutch system (Zhong & Chang, 2016). Online auction is not only interesting in terms of their
commercial purpose but also provides interesting insights to people. Spaid and Wood (2018),
believe that online auctions are a good example of the objectives of globalization and the
internet.
Businesses on the web, it is important that there is a thorough understanding of how
buyers are motivated to buy (Rahman, Sultana, & Chakravorty, 2018). eBay's competitors, such
as Overstock.com, uBid.com, oZtion.com.au, and eBid, all have their specializations. Overstock,
based in Cottonwood Heights, Utah that sells surpluses; uBid is an identical service with eBay
selling directly by companies and those sold by pre-approved Certified Merchants; Oztion is an
Australian version of eBay, and eBid is an online auction that has its payment service called
PPPay which is similar to eBay's PayPal. Consumers will consider status, security, comfort, and
quality to be the essential requirements of selecting a product or service, and their perception of
this is influenced by factors such as culture, politics, technology, and economy(Fischer &
Peralta, 2013). Buying decisions are motivated to maximize profitability, reducing costs, and
enhancing productivity (Lin & Khomnotai, 2017).
1.2 The Existing User Interface
The company's development of the website concentrates on its role as a trading platform,
as a community for users, in developing a competitive format, developing support market
4

services, and providing customer service (Bucko & Ferencová, 2018). The website contents are
developed by the company itself, and the infrastructure is connected with payment and logistic
services either with the site's sister company, PayPal or other credit financial services, and
support for the computation of payments, transfers, and shipping.
Platform
The company wants to maintain a platform that is fully automated, responsive to
customer needs, user-friendly and available 24/7. At the same time the site provides software
tools such as Turbo Lister, Seller's Assistant, Selling Manager and Selling Manager Pro, Picture
Services, Shipping Calculator, Shipping Labels for U.S. Postal Service postage and UPS services
and Shipment Tracking. The company is also providing site-independent services in the form of
the eBay toolbar, which is supposed to help users to tune in to eBay services such as alerts
without being actually on the site (Osman, Salahuddin, & Abdullah, 2016). In addition, the
platform of the site also provided database functions such as eBay Sales Reports and eBay Sales
Reports Plus. The site is also has a direct interface with PayPal for exchange of funds.
Community
To maintain its network of users, the company would like to maintain the highest
conversion rate possible (Yuan, Chen, & Mathieson, 2011). One of the primary concerns is to
maintain the security of the interface while providing the greatest options in terms of products
and services for users. The company wants to provide maximum information and interaction for
users through announcements, bulletin boards, and customer support boards, personal web pages
for users or members based on topics. Alerts are designed to keep inactive users in the updated
with eBay (Prashar, Saivijay, & Parsad, 2017). The application of standardized policies serves as
primary guidelines for users and mimics a real marketplace. At the same time, there is an
5

objective to access broader markets while maintaining the same trade conditions for businesses
and customers alike. The community should build on a value proposition emphasizing the
strategic market competencies provided by the site regardless of the size of customers and buyers
(Chen, Lai, & Yu, 2017).
Site layout
The company is trying to expand the site's format to accommodate the interaction of
users. The company wants to maintain the standard format of the site since the beginning to
afford its most loyal customer, the same touch and feel of the eBay site (Mickey, 2010). But at
the same time, the company has made considerable efforts to make the site support client needs.
The Buy Now the function of the site is an example of this response after sellers' posts reflected
their desire for such a function to facilitate sales when they felt that they had already achieved a
good price for items (Elfenbein, Fisman, & McManus, 2019). The company also is now
providing an alternative bidding format utilizing the Dutch auction systems to enhance multiple
sale of items (Chin, 2020). In 2004, the company launched mobile eBay services in Germany,
the Netherlands. Investment options are also now structures in classiNeed, facilitating trading
and sales. One of the most recent features in their format is Rent.com which is an expansion to
online housing and apartment rentals.
Marketplace Services
The company provides marketplace services to enhance selling activities. These include
trust and safety programs which include feedback forums, SafeHarbor programs and eBay
Standard Purchase Protection Programs. These services are user-independent and are considered
as site services (Mishra, 2010). The services are accessible by all users and can serve as basis for
credentials for sellers and buyers. The feedback forums provide information on the experience of
6

dealing with specific users (Smith, 2019). The site tries to controls content and discourages users
of the services form inappropriate behaviour but at the same time encourages complete
disclosure regarding transactions. The SafeHarbor feature provides the site guidelines for
trading, information for resolution of disputes and coordinates action for reported misuse of eBay
services (Mishra, 2010). The eBay Standard Purchase Protection Programs provide support when
disputes cannot be settled between sellers and buyers. Part of the service is in the coordination
with PayPal for a Buyer Protection Program that extends protection for purchases up to $1,000
(Powell, 2011).
Customer Support
The site provides "pre-trade'' and "post-trade'' services for the user experience. The
services include support for the listing of items that include photo hosting, authentication
services and productivity software (Chang, 2010). For post-trade, the site support for insurance,
processing, escrow, shipping vehicle inspections and postage. To create an environment that
supports the idea of actual market, the company also provides support for users in creating their
own websites via the site. The service allows users to build online stores and to connect the
personal websites to all other services and functions of the site (Devries, 2017). As an additional
service, the company also provides an "About Me" website that provides users a venue to upload
personal information, interests, and profiles.
2.0 Aims
Statement of Aim
This report aims to evaluate and enhance the usability of a retail auction site, eBay.
List of Objectives (Deliverables)
7

A CIF methodology is adopted to aid the usability professionals involved in enhancing the
usability of the eBay website. An online survey will be conducted, and data analyzed to provide
recommendations on what the usability stakeholders need to do.
Table of Research Questions
The identified problems include lack of affordance, lack of structure regarding how information
was presented, redundant information, and lack of simplicity of indexes. The usability test report
contains user feedback, task completion rates, time-on-task metrics, and recommendations for
improving the website.
Reseach issues
1 Lack of affordance
2 Lack of structure regarding how information was presented
3 Lack of simplicity of indexes
4 Redundant information
3.0 Method
3.1 Method overview
Common Industry Format (CIF) provides guidelines for reporting usability tests (Masip,
Oliva, & Granollers, 2014). The methodology defines the reporting procedure for the results of a
usability test that was done to collect both qualitative and quantitative data for measuring user
performance of a system, software, or an application. CIF requires that the usability test must
include the measurements of the systems, software, or application's efficiency and efficacy
together with metrics to determine the level of user satisfaction (Borsci, Federici, & Filippis,
8

2019). On the contrary, CIF does not outline the process of conducting a usability test. CIF has
the following functions, especially for professionals responsible for system usability.
(a) CIF helps usability stakeholders in an organization in determining if a system, software
product, or an application is ready to be released.
(b) CIF is critical for individuals within the organization who are tasked with the
responsibilities of making decisions on what software tools the organization should buy.
3.2 Participants
Five participants took part in this usability test. Four of the participants were male, while
one participant was a female. The participants were recruited by the evaluator based on their
history with online auctions. Two of the participants have in the past bought items from online
auction sites, while three of the participants have listed their items for sale at online auction sites.
All five participants have previously had or engaged with eBay. To be specific, two of the
participants had previously purchased or ordered items at eBay.com, while three of the
remaining participants had not previously used the site.
3.3 Tasks
Five task scenarios which developed and participants were required to take part in these tasks
a) Task 1: Search for a listed item on eBay. The participants had the option of the search for
any item, such as a book, a movie, a home appliance, among others.
b) Task 2: Order an item from eBay. After searching for a product on eBay, users were
required to select one item and purchase it. The process would include entering personal
information, the billing address, the credit/debit card details, and authorizing the
purchase.
9

c) Task 3: List and item for sale with eBay. Users were required to follow the steps in
listing a product for sale at eBay. The process involved writing a short title and
description of the item, posting the product image(s), posting the product price range, and
finally publishing it on eBay.
d) Task 4: Subscribe to the eBay website. You want to subscribe to the website's journals
and newsletters to be able to get popular purchases, sales, and promotions at eBay. In this
task, participants were required to find the subscribe page and subscribe in order to get
more information from the site.
e) Task 5: Read an eBay blog. The participants were asked to read the eBay blog to get
more information on similar kind of purchases, sales, promotions and frequently asked
questions. The eBay blog icon is on the homepage. In this task, participants were asked to
look for the "Read blog" navigation tab and find one blog to read. The purpose of the task
was to investigate how easily users can find and read blogs on eBay.com.
3.4 Metrics
Both binary-task-success and time-on-task metrics were employed in order to measure
the performance. The binary-task-success metric measured the successful rate of compression for
each task while the time-on-task metric was used in order to establish the time that each
participant took to complete a given task. Then, the average completion time was calculated. The
result showed that the faster a participant completed a task, the easier the website was to navigate
and gave the user a better experience while the more time they took to complete a task indicated
that the website was not user-friendly. This metric established the efficiency of the website.
10

3.5 Materials & Tools
The “worksheets” that I will be utilizing to conduct the test sessions and gather data
include task instruction sheets, observation sheets, and questionnaires. In addition, an online
survey will be included at the end of the sessions. Conducting an online questionnaire has a
myriad of advantages and disadvantages. It is significant to comprehend the different changing
aspects of the online questionnaires to be able to understand how to use and engage the survey.
Some of the advantages of using online survey to collect data include the following;
a) Cost-effective - Online questionnaires are cost-effective as the surveyor sends the
questionnaires to the respondents through an online platform and receives the feedback
just by a click of the button. The surveyor does not move from one place to another,
dropping, and collecting the questionnaire questions. The online platform reduces the
transportation cost and the cost of printing of the questionnaires hence making these
kinds of survey cost-effective.
b) Speedy result - Online surveys provide a faster way of getting a response from the
respondents as the respondent needs to respond to the questionnaires at the comfort of
their living rooms. Once the surveyor sends the questions to the potential respondent,
they relax and wait for the results that take less than a week which is faster than taking a
standard questionnaire.
c) Scalability - It is easier to attain larger and more varied respondents as the survey
reaches out to different people across the globe. The kind of diversity that the online
researcher achieves is enormous and hence making the study more practical and real.
d) User anonymity - The respondents in the online platform have the option to display their
identity or remain incognito. When the respondents have the option to go public or not,
11

they tend to give an accurate response, and hence, the surveyor can get the true picture of
the situation at the ground.
e) Not hectic - last but not least, the online questionnaires are easy to conduct as the
surveyor send the questionnaire to the respondents and wait for their responses before
making an analysis and making a final remark.
Online survey do have disadvantages. Some of the main demerits in employing this method for
data collection include:
a) Elements of dishonesty - The online survey has some element of dishonesty as the
respondents have the change of hiding their identity and maliciously give wrong
information. It is challenging for the surveyor to gauge the level of honesty as the
respondent has not to limit to the answers they provide.
b) Some questions are difficult to analyse - Posting online questionnaires to the
respondents have a lot of challenges when it comes to the data analysis. There are some
questions that are difficult to analyse and therefore, making the online survey irrelevant
as compared to the offline survey. The questions which require honesty and credibility
such as the respondents to the expert in a field could lack as the online e respondent could
impersonate an identity and thereby participate in the survey hence leading to the
provision of poor results.
c) Skipped questions - Online respondents normally like to respond to the questions that
they like or feel are of great importance. In such a case, the skip the questions that,
according to them, is irrelevant. In most cases, the respondent skips the question that the
survey is trying to study and thereby questioning the validity of the study. All the
respondents I used in my survey did not skip any questions.
12

3.6 Procedure
The test administrator contacted five participants who were to take part in the usability
test. An independent measure design was adopted for this usability test. The usability test was
conducted in a silent private room free of any distractions. Each participant had a fifteen minutes
window to complete all the five tasks. The test would be done individually where each
participant would get their time to do the test. Thus, there were only two people in the room at
any particular time during the test, a participant and the test administrator.
The test administrator would begin by first greeting the participant and giving them
detailed instructions about the purpose of the evaluation test and the need to carry out the
usability test the administrator food guide every participant through all the steps that they had to
follow in order to finish the tests are located demonstrator would also point out that the
participant was attributed to ask for help in case they needed it at the beginning of the test the
participant was asked to fill out a demographic questionnaire after filling out this questionnaire
no the test administrator would provide the participant with a laptop that is internet enabled and
ask the student to go on ebay.com the best administrator would hand in a sheet with 5 pass and
instruct the participants to complete all the task the sheets included space where the participants
could write additional notes or remarks for the task they are carrying out the usability test
administrator will then sit next to the participant as they carry out their 5 past they would be
observing measuring the time taken and writing additional notes on each participant as they take
on the task after confession of the five cast the test administrator would hand in a post evaluation
questionnaire to the participant
13

4.0 Results & Recommendations
4.1 A brief summary of overall findings
After the completion of each task, participants rated the ease or difficult of completing the task
for three factors:
a) It was not easy to find my way to this information because of the website's structure.
b) At times information was difficult to understand because of the use of jargon.
c) I lost track of what I was trying to find because of how poorly the information was
presented.
Below are the graphs created from the Likert scale used in the study. In total, there were
eight questions on a scale from 1 to 10. Each is asking the user a variety of questions about their
experience with the site. Both the graphs here display a consistent disappointment with the site.
After observing the first graph, you will find that the fourth question, "How easy did you find
what you were looking for on the eBay website?" had an abysmal average rating of 2.4. Across
the board, the highest average rating was 5.6. The second graph shows that the majority of
answers were four and that the outliers had the highest answers.
Graph 1
14

Graph 2
According to
the data from
the study, the
overall opinion
of the site is
that it is
frustrating to
use. All of the subjects found the website unenjoyable to use in some way, whether it was how it
navigated or how it looked. There were issues on all fronts. Based on the questionnaire, 3 out of
5 subjects found the website uncomfortable to use and made it harder for them to accomplish
their task. When asked, "Was there anything you felt was missing?" everyone requested better
visibility of relevant information, whether it was through search functionality or on the size of
the text. No one found they had a pleasant experience, according to the questionnaire.
4.2 Performance Data
The rate of task completion for the five participants is shown below.
Table 1: Binary-task-success
Participants Task 1 Task 2 Task 3 Task 4 Task 5
Participant 1 yes yes yes yes yes
Participant 2 yes No yes yes yes
15
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10
0
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
3
2
6
7
5
3
0
2 2
0
Total Answers
Data Linear (Data)
Likert Scale (1-10)
Number of Answers
Q 1 Q 2 Q 3 Q 4 Q 5 Q 6
0
1
2
3
4
5
6 5.6
4.8 4.6
2.4
5.2
3.4
Average Answer for Each Questi on
Questions
Likert Scale (1-10)

Participant 3 yes yes yes yes yes
Participant 4 yes yes No yes yes
Participant 5 yes No yes yes yes
Success 5 3 4 5 5
Rate of Completion 100% 60% 80% 100% 100%
The most involving task was both task 2 and task 3. Task 2 required that participants
complete making an order for an item on eBay while task 3 required that participants list an item
for sale with eBay. Two participants failed in task 2, while only one participant failed in task 3.
Almost all the participants quoted the fact that the information needed to be easier to find on the
website. Some letters were either too small or invisible, and some tasks involved a thorough
search for one to find a specific item on the site. Below is a time-on-task metrics table.
Table 2: Time-on-task
Participant
1
Participant
2
Participant
3
Participant
4
Participant
5
Average time
(seconds)
Task 1 20 25 23 27 21 23.2
Task 2 31 36 33 32 35 33.4
Task 3 33 39 37 35 36 36
Task 4 21 29 28 29 26 26.6
Task 5 11 15 12 14 13 13
Total time 116 144 133 137 131 132.2
16

The above table indicates the time in seconds that each participant used to complete each
of the five tasks that were allocated. The table also shows the average completion time for each
task and the total time that each participant used to complete all the five allocated tasks.
4.3 User Experience Issues
Table of User Experience Issues
Usability
Issue
Description Redesign Recommendations Redesign
Priority
Site
Accessibility
As more computers are being designed to
cater to persons with disabilities, the site can
offer accessibility options parallel to those
provided by standard operating systems of
computers.
The accessibility options
should be placed on the home
site of eBay and should be
supported in all other user
pages.
Medium
Language Considering the recent surge in non-English
speaking internet users, the site can provide
language options. Though localized sites are
available, some users may still encounter
difficulties, particularly if their first language
is not written in Roman scripts.
The language options can be
further enhanced if they were
also enhanced by accessibility
options. These options should
also be placed on the home
site of the service.
Critical
Customizing
options
To cater to customer's individual preferences,
the site can also provide options for
personalizing their user pages by choosing
themes or colors. These features can be
coordinated with the company's promotional
The color schemes may be
hosted by eBay; however, the
themes may be better
supported by third parties.
The development of the
High
17

campaigns or with the campaign of other
companies such as for film, books,
celebrities, or popular culture. The effort can
provide the company with greater
information about users and deeper insights
into trends and preferences. At the same
time, this option can be developed as a new
profit-generating feature by providing
promotional and advertising avenues.
features will rely significantly
on creative services. The
options should be accessible
on the main personal page of
users.
Speed Site speed is low, and data structures and
programming languages used should be
checked and improved so that the site
response time can increase.
Remove unnecessary scripting
and embedded data structures.
Low
4.4 Redesign Recommendations
The suggestions for the website involve suggestions to increase its functionality and
ability to cater to a global market. The development of the suggestions is based on the
consideration of the influences on buying behavior, as illustrated in Figure 1. The suggestions
were developed considering the manner by which online auction services are expected to
develop in the future. The suggestions should be able to provide the company with greater
sensitivity to the developing needs of the users. The development of the suggestions is based on
the consideration of the influences on buying behavior, as illustrated in Figure 1.
18

Figure 1: Factors that can affect buyer behavior
Accessibility
As more computer is being designed to cater to persons with disabilities, the site can offer
accessibility options parallel to those provided by standard operating systems of computers
(Cynthia, 2017). The accessibility options should be placed on the home site of eBay and should
be supported in all other user pages.
However, the provision of the services entails a significant development of the interface
since the contents of the website are not limited and depend on independent users, unlike in an
OS where features and contents are relatively more controlled (Schmutz, Sonderegger, & Sauer,
2016). The accessibility options may be developed first by just one service. The probable easiest
service to develop would be in providing magnification options for the content. The company
can utilize Java technologies for the said feature to afford its universal application on all
browsers and OS (Lima, Molinaro, & Garrossini, 2012). Since Java is already one of the partners
of the company, Disclaimers may be needed to cover concerns regarding the security of
information as well as that the limitation of the information accessed using accessibility options
(Lima et al., 2012).
Language
19

Considering the recent surge in non-English speaking internet users, the site can provide
language options for the site. Though localized sites are available, some users may still encounter
difficulties, particularly if their first language is not written in Roman scripts. The language
options can be further enhanced if they were also enhanced by accessibility options. These
options should also be placed on the home site of the service (Vertommen, 2015).
The service will need coordination with interpretation services. The site will also have to
develop features that will serve as verification of the correct translation of headings. The service
can be started by eliciting the help of existing users to create a database for the interpretation of
the site's contents. The participation of existing users is essential for the service to provide the
services in the context of users. At the same time, visual support for the languages has to be
developed at the same time (Vertommen, 2015). The language features should not require the
installation of language support features aside from those provided by users' browser services.
For the purpose of the development, eBay may have to consult with browser service language
support programs. In the event that these supports are not enough, the company would also have
to provide the language support necessary for the language options.
Personalization Options
To cater to customers individual preferences, the site can also provide options for
personalizing their user pages by choosing themes or colors. These features can be coordinated
with the company's promotional campaigns or with the campaign of other companies such as for
film, books, celebrities, or popular culture. The effort can provide the company with greater
information about users and deeper insights into trends and preferences. At the same time, this
option can be developed as a new profit-generating feature by providing promotional and
advertising avenues (Bodoff & Hoshuk, 2015).
20

The color schemes may be hosted by eBay however the themes may be better supported
by third parties. The development of the features will rely significantly on creative services. The
options should be accessible on the main personal page of users. The selection of themes and
color schemes will have to be supported either through a third party site so as not to affect the
functionality of the site. eBay can also accept suggestions on what themes and color schemes are
to be featured.
eBay can develop partnerships with advertising and promotion companies as well as
directly with media companies, are artists' publicists. Media companies and celebrities can be
asked to pay to be featured by the site but at the same time can be invited by eBay to be features
if users request for them. The themes and schemes should be hosted by the parties being
featured, and eBay will provide access to it on users' personal pages.
5.0 Discussion
The site is very functional, and it is easy to learn to navigate around it. The mentioned
content provides both function and support for users to maximize the use of the site (Hasker &
Sickles, 2010). The use of pictures to highlight items for items about to end their auction attracts
last-minute bidders effectively. The site is also effective in highlighting its other services.
Services are grouped according to their functions, and they are arranged according to the
estimated needs of users. Categories of items are featured in a list, but the feature also offers
most items in the category on the right-hand side of the site that is supported by pictures of the
popular items (Hasker & Sickles, 2010).
Though all functions are listed, users need to sign in into their accounts for most of them
to function. Users do not have to scroll down the page to see all of it. The site uses Arial fonts
and uses font styling to imply a hierarchy of sections. The also is a great use of color, primarily
21

using the logo colors of the company on the site. This is to motivate buyers to purchase as much
as it is for aesthetic reasons. The site is supported in all popular web browsers and has made an
effort to support open source technologies.
One of the violations that have been highlighted in the heuristic evaluation was
minimalist and aesthetic designs (Bošković & Borovina, 2013). When the participants click on
the search button to search for items to buy on eBay, too many advertisements pop up, which
was particularly frustrating to the participants while they were carrying out the task allocated
(Pierre, 2015). The advertisements are placed on the website so that they can earn money as
more people either attracted to click on the advertisement or view the advertiser's page.
However, eBay should check on the number of advertisements that are placed on each page.
22

6.0 References
Black, G. S. (2017). A comparison of the characteristics of eBay consumers and eBay
nonconsumers. Journal of Direct, Data and Digital Marketing Practice, 9(1), 16–29.
https://doi.org/10.1057/palgrave.dddmp.4350066
Bodoff, D., & Hoshuk, Y. (2015). Effectiveness of Website Personalization: Does the Presence
of Personalized Recommendations Cannibalize Sampling of Other Items? International Journal
of Electronic Commerce, 20(2), 208–235. https://doi.org/10.1080/10864415.2016.1087821
Borsci, S., Federici, S., & Filippis, M. (2019). Shaking the usability tree: Why usability is not a
dead end, and a constructive way forward. Behaviour & Information Technology, 38(5), 519–
532. https://doi.org/10.1080/0144929X.2018.1541255
Bošković, D., & Borovina, N. (2013). Heuristic Evaluation in the Human Computer Interaction
course. 2013 36th International Convention on Information and Communication Technology,
Electronics and Microelectronics (MIPRO), 685–688.
Bucko, J., & Ferencová, M. (2018). Online shopping: Factors that affect consumer purchasing
behaviour. Cogent Business & Management, 5(1), 1535751.
https://doi.org/10.1080/23311975.2018.1535751
Chang, J. (2010). EBay: Towards A Perfectly Competitive Market. International Business and
Economics Research Journal, 9, 65–70. https://doi.org/10.19030/iber.v9i3.536
Chen, K.-P., Lai, H., & Yu, Y.-T. (2017). The Seller’s Listing Strategy in Online Auctions:
Evidence from Ebay (SSRN Scholarly Paper No. ID 2004814).
https://doi.org/10.2139/ssrn.2004814
Chin, K. (2020, January 28). EBay Profit Drops Amid Strategic Review. Wall Street Journal.
Retrieved from https://www.wsj.com/articles/ebay-profit-declines-amid-strategic-review-
11580248535
Cynthia, N. (2017). A Practical Guide to Improving Web Accessibility. Weave: Journal of
Library User Experience, 1(7). http://dx.doi.org/10.3998/weave.12535642.0001.701
Devries, P. (2017). The impacts of eBay on an information-based economy. International
Journal of Management and Enterprise Development - Int J Manag Enterprise Dev, 4.
https://doi.org/10.1504/IJMED.2007.014984
Drake, J. R., Cegielski, C., & Byrd, T. A. (2015). An Exploratory Look at Early Online Auction
Decisions: Extending Signal Theory. Journal of Theoretical and Applied Electronic Commerce
Research, 10(1), 35–48. https://doi.org/10.4067/S0718-18762015000100004
Elfenbein, D. W., Fisman, R., & McManus, B. (2019). Does Cheap Talk Affect Market
Outcomes? Evidence from eBay. American Economic Journal: Applied Economics, 11(4), 305–
326. https://doi.org/10.1257/app.20170086
23

Fischer, M., & Peralta, R. (2013). Secure sealed-bid online auctions using discreet cryptographic
proofs. Mathematical and Computer Modelling, 57(11), 2583–2595.
https://doi.org/10.1016/j.mcm.2011.07.027
Hasker, K., & Sickles, R. (2010). eBay in the Economic Literature: Analysis of an Auction
Marketplace. Review of Industrial Organization, 37(1), 3–42. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11151-
010-9257-5
Lima, J. F., Molinaro, L. F. R., & Garrossini, D. F. (2012). Analysis of Accessibility Initiatives
Applied to the Web. Procedia Technology, 5, 319–326.
https://doi.org/10.1016/j.protcy.2012.09.035
Lin, J., & Khomnotai, L. (2017). Online Auction Fraud Detection in Privacy-Aware Reputation
Systems. Entropy, 19(7), 338. https://doi.org/10.3390/e19070338
Masip, L., Oliva, M., & Granollers, T. (2014). Common Industry Format (CIF) Report
Customization for UX Heuristic Evaluation. In A. Marcus (Ed.), Design, User Experience, and
Usability. Theories, Methods, and Tools for Designing the User Experience (pp. 475–483).
https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-07668-3_46
Mickey, R. (2010). The Impact of a Seller's Ebay Reputation on Price. The American Economist,
55(2), 162–169. https://doi.org/10.1177/056943451005500217
Mishra, M. K. (2010). Why is eBay the Most Successful Online Auction? Global Journal of
Management And Business Research, 10(9). Retrieved from
https://journalofbusiness.org/index.php/GJMBR/article/view/286
Osman, A., Salahuddin, S. N., & Abdullah, S. (2016). Factors Influencing Online Shopping
Behavior: The Mediating Role of Purchase Intention. Procedia Economics and Finance, 35,
401–410. https://doi.org/10.1016/S2212-5671(16)00050-2
Pham, L., Wallenius, H., & Wallenius, J. (2015). Multi-attribute online reverse auctions: Recent
research trends. European Journal of Operational Research, 242(1), 1–9.
https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ejor.2014.08.043
Pierre, R. da S. de Q. (2015). Heuristics in Design: A Literature Review. Procedia
Manufacturing, 3, 6571–6578. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.promfg.2015.07.961
Powell, C. D. (2011). The eBay Exemption: Restructuring the Trademark Safe Harbor for Online
Marketplaces. Santa Clara High Technology Law Journal, 28(1), 1.
Prashar, S., Saivijay, T., & Parsad, C. (2017). Effects of Online Shopping Values and Website
Cues on Purchase Behaviour: A Study Using S–O–R Framework. Vikalpa, 42(1), 1–18.
https://doi.org/10.1177/0256090916686681
Rahman, M., Sultana, N., & Chakravorty, S. (2018). Consumer buying behavior towards online
shopping: An empirical study on Dhaka city, Bangladesh. Cogent Business & Management, 5(1),
1514940. https://doi.org/10.1080/23311975.2018.1514940
24

Schmutz, S., Sonderegger, A., & Sauer, J. (2016). Implementing Recommendations From Web
Accessibility Guidelines: Would They Also Provide Benefits to Nondisabled Users. Human
Factors. https://doi.org/10.1177/0018720816640962
Smith, J. (2019, July 24). EBay to Launch Shipping, Logistics Service for Big Sellers. Wall
Street Journal. Retrieved from https://www.wsj.com/articles/ebay-to-launch-shipping-logistics-
service-for-big-sellers-11563992042
Spaid, B., & Wood, C. (2018). Trust and experience in online auctions. Journal of
Organizational Computing and Electronic Commerce, 28(4), 294–314.
https://doi.org/10.1080/10919392.2018.1517478
Tahmasebifard, H. (2018). The role of competitive intelligence and its sub-types on achieving
market performance. Cogent Business & Management, 5(1), 1540073.
https://doi.org/10.1080/23311975.2018.1540073
Vertommen, K. (2015, August 26). Tips for Designing and Building a Multilingual Website.
Retrieved April 19, 2020, from Web Design Envato Tuts+ website:
https://webdesign.tutsplus.com/articles/tips-for-designing-and-building-a-multilingual-website--
cms-24708
Yuan, T. T., Chen, Z., & Mathieson, M. (2011). Predicting eBay listing conversion. Proceedings
of the 34th International ACM SIGIR Conference on Research and Development in Information
Retrieval, 1335–1336. https://doi.org/10.1145/2009916.2010188
Zhong, H., & Chang, C. (2016). An Efficient Electronic English Auction System with a Secure
On-Shelf Mechanism and Privacy Preserving. Journal of Electrical and Computer Engineering,
2016, e6567146. https://doi.org/10.1155/2016/6567146
25

7.0 Appendices
7.1 Appendix (a): Evaluator Script
7.2 Appendix (b): Demographic Questionnaire
Disclaimer < No information will be sold or shared and will only be used for these
purposes pertaining to this usability test.>
Name First
Name:
Last
Name:
Gender Male: Female:
Age Bracket
(circle your
selection
5-10 11-13 14-17 18-25 26-35 36-50 51-65 66+
On a typical day, what is your level of interaction with technology and platforms similar
to the ones we are testing today?
How often do you use applications and or software like the one we are testing today?
Have you used eBay before? And for what purpose, to buy or to sell?
26

7.3 Appendix (c): Consent Form
7.4 Appendix (d): Tasks for usability testing
a) Task 1: Search for a listed item on eBay. The participants had the option of the search for
any item, such as a book, a movie, a home appliance, among others.
b) Task 2: Order an item from eBay. After searching for a product on eBay, users were
required to select one item and purchase it. The process would include entering personal
information, the billing address, the credit/debit card details, and authorizing the
purchase.
c) Task 3: List and item for sale with eBay. Users were required to follow the steps in
listing a product for sale at eBay. The process involved writing a short title and
description of the item, posting the product image(s), posting the product price range, and
finally publishing it on eBay.
d) Task 4: Subscribe to the eBay website. You want to subscribe to the website's journals
and newsletters to be able to get popular purchases, sales, and promotions at eBay.
e) Task 5: Read an eBay blog. The participants were asked to read the eBay blog to get
more information on similar kinds of purchases, sales, promotions, and frequently asked
questions. The eBay blog icon is on the homepage.
27

7.5 Appendix (e): Post-session Questionnaire
An online survey questionnaire was created using Survey monkey and distributed using the
following link. https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/DJPS6SN
28

29