Word about Josh Porter's "Testing the Three-Click Rule" has been making the rounds on web-related blogs lately. The (in)famous Three-Click Rule says that all web content should be available within three mouse clicks. I (and most web developers) have heard clients ask for designs that will follow this rule. But, is there any basis for this rule? Porter conducted some experiments to find out. The results:
If there is a scientific basis to the Three-Click Rule, we couldn't find it in our data. Our analysis left us without any correlation between the number of times users clicked and their success in finding the content they sought.
But, as Porter points out, the rule isn't all bad. It helps people--especially high-level decision makers--focus on users. And that, as Martha would say, is a "Good Thing."
Posted by Karl
April 17, 2003 08:36 AM