Usability is a very important factor for the users of software and websites. However, several studies have shown that the majority of software products does not meet the users’ requirements. Small and medium enterprises (SME) have two special obstacles to overcome if they want to develop usable products. The fi rst obstacle is a lack of knowledge regarding usability and its merits. The second obstacle is the fact that SME require usability know how only temporary and in selective phases of the product development process. To overcome these obstacles, the “Kompetenzinitiative Usability” (KiU) was brought into existence in 2008. During a three year period, more than 70 usability consultancy projects for SME in eastern Germany were conducted. A multitude of products were analyzed and improved using a vast variety of usability methods, both user and expert centered. Of these 34 projects, 24 were based in the information technology (IT) domain. These 24 projects were analyzed regarding important factors of success. The projects were compared using a number of criteria, structured according to different project phases (acquisition, company and product type, type of the project, applied methods, and type of results). Then, the projects were rated according to their success and ranked. Finally, the most and least successful projects were compared. Qualitative conclusions were drawn which criteria had an impact on the projects’ success.