Introduction to Usability Testing

Usability testing is a technique used to evaluate a product by testing it with representative users. In the test, these users will try to complete typical tasks while observers watch, listen and takes notes.

Your goal is to identify any usability problems, collect quantitative data  on participants’ performance (e.g., time on task, error rates), and determine participant’s satisfaction with the product.

When to Test

You should test early and test often. Usability testing lets the design and development teams identify problems before they get coded (i.e., “set in concrete). The earlier those problems are found and fixed, the less expensive the fixes are.

No Lab Needed

You DO NOT need a formal usability lab to do testing. You can do effective usability testing in any of these settings:

• a fixed laboratory having two or three connected rooms outfitted with audio-visual equipment
• a conference room, or the user’s home or work space, with portable recording equipment
• a conference room, or the user’s home or work space, with no recording equipment, as long as someone is observing the user and taking notes
• remotely, with the user in a different location

What You Learn

You will learn if participants are able to complete identified routine tasks successfully and how long it takes to do that. You will find out how satisfied participants are with your Web site. Overall, you will identify changes required to improve user performance. And you can match the performance to see if it meets your usability objectives.

 Usability Testing Process @ Hyena Labs Studio

Step 1: Software/Application/Product information collection

Knowledge of product to be tested is vital for facilitator & note takers involved in usability testing.If you are new to the project then this information can be collected from the product manager,UX architect,designers or other team members involved in the design of the product.If you are working from the initiation phase of the project then it is an idealscenario.The user persona’s,technical infrastructure,industry area to which the product pertains,number of users globally,geographical locations of users etc are some of the information you should look upon.

 Step 2: Critical Task/Scenarios selection

Sit with the product design team and product manager to come to conclusion most critical tasks that will be performed with the application by the users.Suppose it is a flight travel ticket booking site then the most critical tasks that come into mind will be

• Buying a ticket online
• Search flights
• Online Customer service

Step 3:Test scripts & scenarios

A test script includes the task the users needs to perform & gave their valuableresponses.Preparation of test scripts will have the below sections.

• Pre-test questions: ”Questions should be very simple” this is the ground rule.We can ask the users to fill a small information sheer which asks for name,age,gender,location,education,interest & hobbies etc. Uncomfortable questions like what is your annual income should not be asked unless it is mandatory affecting their tasks in case of BFSI(Banking and Financial Services) products.
• Test scenarios: A typical test scenario will be like this.

This year Diwali holidays are falling in October end.Your manager has granted you ten days of leave.Please book a flight ticket for yourself on the travel portal

• Invite the participants & welcome them for the test
• Introduce them to usability testing team
• Make the users comfortable saying that “We are not testing user skills here rather we are testing the application”.This will make the user more comfortable.
• Distribute the test scripts,Help them in filling the small form, answer their queries in most caring manner.
• TAKE CARE OF THE USERS - this line should never be compromised.
• Usability testing – Invite the users to their respective systems & ask them to work on the test scenarios. Make a not of the time while they are performing the test.If they ask any question’s answer them with some clues but do not help them in making the task success.Use words like ”I am very delighted to see what you have done till now, it will help us to make the application user friendly.Let me take you to the next task”.
• Post-test questions - Collect the users feedback from Post test questions.

• Note takes will be taking notes throughout the sessions, they will focus ongetting the important information that will improve the application.They will have all the quantitative details about each user like how much time they took to
• complete the test,what were the important path they followed etc, they are also responsible for the videos data capturing & screen hot area files etc.