Guerilla<\/a> testing. This method can be employed during the early stage of development to determine whether the product will eventually be good.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n5. Phone interviewing testing<\/b><\/h3>\n
In this usability test researcher will instruct the participant to do a task over the phone and later receive feedback about the test object. With the help of this kind of test, you can gather data from wider geographic areas and get a larger picture of the website\u2019s potential problems. It\u2019s common to use phone interviewing testing as a subsequent test to unmoderated remote testing, as it allows you to get to know the reason behind the decisions participants had taken during the test. Nevertheless, it\u2019s crucial to employ properly trained moderators as the test may be performed by different participants with different languages.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n6. Recording Session Testing<\/b><\/h3>\n
Recording session testing evaluates the actions of users when they use the website prototype. The recorded video can help the researchers understand how users interact with the website, whether it is a confusing experience for them, etc. The video basically records the actions of users such as mouse movements and clicks on the website.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\nHow to Improve Your Website Usability Tests?<\/strong><\/h2>\nBe Clear About Your Goals<\/strong><\/h3>\nA successful usability test starts with a well-defined objective. You must clearly understand what you want to learn from observing users interact with your website. Here are some examples of clear goals:<\/span><\/p>\n1. A\/B Testing a New Layout:<\/strong> You’ve redesigned your website’s homepage with a new layout and want to see if it performs better than the existing one. Your goal could be to measure user engagement (time spent on the page), clarity of navigation (how easily users find key information), or conversion rate (percentage of users who complete a desired action like signing up for a newsletter).<\/p>\n2. Evaluating the Effectiveness of a New Feature:<\/strong> You’ve implemented a new product filtering system on your e-commerce website. The goal might be to assess user understanding of the filtering options, ease of use, and overall satisfaction with the new feature.<\/p>\n3. Assessing User Understanding of Product Information:<\/strong> You suspect the product descriptions on your website might be confusing or lacking key details. Your goal could be to observe how users navigate product pages, understand product specifications, and identify any areas where the information needs improvement.<\/p>\nChoosing the Right Testing Method<\/strong><\/h3>\nSuppose you have a bakery business, and you get an online ordering website designed for it. Now, you want to conduct usability tests to see how easy it is for customers to order pastries and cakes. Here’s how resources can influence your choice of testing method:<\/span><\/p>\nWhen you choose In-Person Moderated Test<\/strong><\/p>\nYou will get rich data<\/strong><\/p>\nThat\u2019s because a moderator can ask follow-up questions\u00a0 (“Why did you hesitate there?”), get deeper into user frustrations, and understand their thought processes.<\/span><\/p>\nIt\u2019s ideal for complex tasks<\/strong><\/p>\nIf your website\u2019s ordering process involves customization or requires users to go through multiple pages, a moderator can guide and ensure users stay on track.<\/span><\/p>\nBut there are some limitations!<\/strong><\/p>\nLack of Resources<\/strong><\/p>\nRecruiting participants, scheduling sessions, and having a moderator present require significant time and potential financial investment.<\/span><\/p>\nIt\u2019s known to be less scalable<\/strong><\/p>\nTesting with a limited number of participants due to logistical constraints.<\/span><\/p>\nIf you choose a remote unmoderated test, you\u2019ll get the following advantage:<\/strong><\/p>\nSpeed<\/strong><\/p>\nThe test can be conducted quickly without scheduling logistics. Participants can complete the test on their own time.<\/span><\/p>\nBut,\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\nThere are some downsides as well, like<\/span><\/p>\n\n- Limited data:<\/strong> You rely on recordings and pre-determined questions, missing out on the opportunity to ask follow-up questions or probe user thought processes.<\/span><\/li>\n
- Less control:<\/strong> You have less control over the testing environment \u2013 participants might be distracted or have technical difficulties.<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ol>\n
So, which method is ideal for the bakery website?<\/span><\/p>\nIf budget and time are tight, A remote unmoderated test might be sufficient to identify major usability issues like confusing navigation or a difficult checkout process.<\/span><\/p>\nHowever, if the ordering process involves customization or requires users to make specific choices, the richer data from an in-person moderated test might be more valuable. The moderator can delve into why users might hesitate at certain points or skip crucial steps.<\/span><\/p>\nRemember, the best method depends on your specific needs and resources.<\/span><\/p>\nSo this is how you can choose the right testing method.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\nCreate Realistic Task Scenarios\u00a0<\/strong><\/h3>\nIt means you must avoid including the tasks in the test that a user may not encounter; in simple words, do not be hypothetical. Instead, focus on replicating users’ specific goals when visiting your website.<\/span><\/p>\nFor example, if you’re running an e-commerce site, avoid tasks like “Click on the ‘Products’ tab.” Instead, go for something like this, ” You need a new running shoe. Find one in your size (8) suitable for neutral pronation. Add it to your cart and checkout without creating an account.”<\/span><\/p>\nMake sure to be clear about your instructions. We have given 2 examples representing unclear and clear instruction; learn from them:<\/span><\/p>\n1. Unclear Instruction:<\/strong> “Find the ‘Contact Us’ page and use the form to send a message about a billing issue.”<\/span><\/p>\n2. Clear Instruction:<\/strong> “Imagine you’re having trouble with your recent bill. Describe the issue in a message and use the website’s contact form to send it to customer service.<\/span><\/p>\nRecruit the Right Users<\/strong><\/h3>\nSuppose you’re making a website for a local bakery specializing in gluten-free and vegan pastries.\u00a0 Here’s how you’d target the right audience for usability testing:<\/span><\/p>\nTo understand who are your bakery’s ideal customers you might consider:<\/strong><\/p>\n\n- People with gluten allergies or celiac disease<\/span><\/li>\n
- Vegans or those following a plant-based diet<\/span><\/li>\n
- Health-conscious individuals interested in alternative pastries<\/span><\/li>\n
- People who live in the local area (if it’s a brick-and-mortar store with delivery options)<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ol>\n
Based on these demographics, here’s where you might find participants:<\/strong><\/p>\n\n- Online communities: Facebook groups for gluten-free\/vegan diets or local foodies.<\/span><\/li>\n
- Social media ads: Target ads on Facebook or Instagram to people with relevant interests.<\/span><\/li>\n
- Website pop-up: If your bakery has an existing website, consider a pop-up asking existing customers if they’d be interested in participating in a usability test to improve the site for people with dietary restrictions.<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ol>\n
Let’s see what would happen if you recruited the wrong participants:<\/span><\/p>\nTesting with people who have no dietary restrictions wouldn’t provide valuable insights for your gluten-free and vegan target audience. They might not understand the importance of highlighting allergen information or struggle to navigate because they wouldn’t typically search for those keywords.<\/span><\/p>\nThink beyond success\/failure<\/strong><\/h3>\nTypically, usability tests track whether a user can complete a task or not (success\/failure). But valuable insights lie beyond that binary. We should also observe how efficiently and intuitively they achieved it.<\/span><\/p>\nWhy did we say so? Let\u2019s explain to you with the help of two different scenarios:<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\nSuccess, but inefficient<\/th>\n | Success, but unintuitive<\/th>\n<\/tr>\n<\/thead>\n |
\n\nThe user finds the chair after a long search. They browsed numerous categories, clicked through several pages of irrelevant products, and finally stumbled upon the blue ergonomic chair.<\/td>\n | The user locates the chair, but their thought process is unclear. They might have used the search bar with vague terms (“comfy chair”) or gotten lucky by randomly clicking through categories.<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\nWhat insights do we gain from the above examples?<\/strong><\/h3>\nBy observing beyond success\/failure, we can identify problems like:<\/span><\/p>\n\n- Information is poorly organized: Users struggle to find what they’re looking for despite the item existing on the website.<\/span><\/li>\n
- Unclear labelling or categorization: Product categories or filter options might be confusing, leading users down irrelevant paths.<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ol>\n
By addressing these issues will improve the user experience, you will make categories more specific and user-friendly and give users a visual path of where they are within the website structure.<\/span><\/p>\nAt last, Find Patterns and Prioritize Improvements<\/strong><\/h3>\nThis stage is crucial for turning the raw data from your usability tests into actionable insights. After the tests, you analyze recordings and user feedback. You might notice a recurring pattern:\u00a0 Many users struggle to find the “Contact Us” page.\u00a0 This indicates an issue with the website’s navigation.<\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Usability testing helps you see your website through the eyes of your target audience. By observing how real people interact with your site, you can gain valuable insights into their expectations, needs, and pain points. It’s no news that user behaviour and technology trends keep adapting. What once worked for your website might not in […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":76981,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[20],"tags":[],"class_list":{"0":"post-10205","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-web-design-blog"},"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.kinexmedia.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/10205","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.kinexmedia.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.kinexmedia.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.kinexmedia.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.kinexmedia.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=10205"}],"version-history":[{"count":10,"href":"https:\/\/www.kinexmedia.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/10205\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":79333,"href":"https:\/\/www.kinexmedia.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/10205\/revisions\/79333"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.kinexmedia.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/76981"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.kinexmedia.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=10205"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.kinexmedia.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=10205"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.kinexmedia.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=10205"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}} |