Plan a usability test
This is the first step of usability testing. You need to prepare a document. You need to ask yourself with some following questions:
What you are going to do and how you are going to conduct the test?
What metrics you are going to capture
With how many participants you are going to test? And
What scenarios you will use.
Usability specialist meets with the stakeholders and members of the development team to decide on the major elements of the plan. Usability has to draft a plan, which circulates to management and the rest of the team. Once everyone has commented and a final plan agreed upon, the usability specialist revises the written plan to reflect the final decisions.
Run a usability test
Here the question is how to run a usability test. Kick off the things such as to arrange a date and time to hold a meeting with the stakeholders to decide on the bulk of the usability test plan details. After that, record the time and date using with the following points.
Test target name
Product version
Test navigation details
Test content details
Record Your Goals
You need to discuss what the goals of the test are with everyone in the meeting. After meeting keep a record. The goals will be core to creating the test scenario, and could be anything from "we want to know if our users know how to find the home button" to "we want to know if users can easily work out how to turn the product on".
Identify your concerns
As with your goals, record these concerns what every member create their speeches and feedback. Make confirm, these concerns are same exactly what you want to answer with the usability testing template, not concerns about performing the test itself.
Always try to give simple and easy process to identity the users. Don’t make the users confusing and don’t give time consuming task. Otherwise user will be frustrated. There will be some overlap with your goals, so don't worry about saying the same thing too much. This is more of an alternative way to find core elements you'd benefit from by testing.
Estimate and recruit number of participants
Now you need to recruit the number of participants you'll need to perform an effective test. This will largely depend on the resources you have, the importance of the test, the size of the differences from your last test, and the nature of the test itself.
"If you want a single number, the answer is simple: test 5 users in a usability study. Testing with 5 people lets you find almost as many usability problems as you'd find using many more test participants." - Jakob Nielsen,
Choose a location
Now you and your team have decided to select a location. Sometimes, participants in person while they perform the test but doing so remotely via screen sharing and video calling technology is also a viable option.
You can always hire out a room if you want to perform the test in person but don't have space where you work. Your participant pool will be much larger if you don't mind doing the test remotely, as you can link up with literally anyone online.
Organize Session
The time is how to organize the session which is very important. If you run the test for half-hour with every person, then session length would be 30 minutes.
After that judge how long you'll need for each test and how long you'll need to reset the test environment after each participant. If you're performing the test remotely, this time will instead be spent collecting your notes, saving any recordings, and so on.
Decide scenarios
Scenarios are very important situations with this the number and type of tasks are being tested. You need to create situations which the participants will be put in or asked to make complete finally. Fix a target at least around 10 scenarios for desktop/laptop tests and around 8 for mobile/smartphone tests. After that record the scenarios with the following points
Scenario 1
Scenario 2
.
.
Scenario 10
Gather required equipment for testing
To perform a usability tests required a desktop or laptop for each participant. However, you'll also need something to take notes with, recording equipment if you want to record the sessions.
Set test metrics
Decide and set the metrics the test will use to measure the success of the design. Use the multi-select option to choose the metrics such as.
Successful task completion: Each scenario requires the participant to obtain specific data that would be used in a typical task. The scenario is successfully completed when the participant indicates they have found the answer or completed the task goal.
Critical errors: Critical errors are the mistakes which result in the task not being completed. This could be due to anything from the participant misinterpreting the task to taking the wrong route through your website.
Non-critical errors: Non-critical errors are errors that are recovered by the participant and did not provide any result in the participant’s ability to successfully complete the task.
Error free rate: Error-free rate is the percentage of test participants who complete the task without any errors.
Time to task: The time that takes by the participants to complete the task in a proper way without any error.
Subjective measures: Subjective measures are usually gathered from participant questionnaires at the end of the test. These usually ask questions about things like ease of use, how easy it was to find the information, whether it was satisfying, and so on.
Likes, dislikes and recommendations: Participants provide what they liked most and what they did not like, what they suggested or recommended and what improvements need to be done in the site.
Prepare testing document
Finally, you need to gather and collect data that you have already recorded or written during the testing. Then evaluate again such testing fulfills your goals unless try to set another test in the same pattern with another location, so on.
By Editorial Team,
UXD Media
Date: 26/07/19
