Usability Testing
Usability testing is used to understand how users actually behave with a product or service, be it a web site, physical product, enterprise software or business process. Usability testing determines how easy the product/service is to use and how effective it is in allowing users to accomplish their tasks and goals within typical usage contexts. Standard testing practices allow us to quickly identify issues and potential solutions.
Timing
Usability Testing can be done during the Assessment phase to understand the gap between goals and actual delivered experience, as a formative testing tool during Visioning and iDesign, as a summative test to determine whether a product or website, for example, is ready to go live. Experience testing for greenfield development projects can be especially valuable to determine which design is most effective before extensive development resources are committed.
Methodology
Our research analyst works with your team to develop a test script of tasks based on the requirements identified during Discovery. Even if you only want testing we would still sit down with you and go through a shortened Discovery phase to understand your goals and the tasks of your end users. Based on this initial work, we then together develop a profile of the target market user(s) and, based on that profile, we recruit test participants to those specifications.
Greenfield projects bring special challenges since test participants must use prototypes or screen shots rather than a finished product. For a web site or software test, for example, the test is conducted in one-on-one test sessions in which a research analyst facilitates a test participant through usage scenarios emphasizing electronic screenshots. The test participant is asked to give feedback on the flow of the processes, the overall look and feel, navigational issues, terminology used, and colour and graphics. An experience test is conducted during development, to ensure that developers are aware of user expectations before the site or software product is launched.
Each test session uses a standardized script using frequent and/or critical tasks with questions on each function to provide a consistent, repeatable process. Our clients are encouraged to participate in the script development and must approve the test script in order to make certain that we are addressing their needs. As issues begin to emerge, we can explore design alternatives with test participants to begin to develop effective design solutions.
While most testing occurs in our labs in Ottawa and Toronto, we can also test in other locations more accessible to test participants. We have conducted testing through Canada and the USA. All sessions are videotaped. For testing on existing web sites or software products, we can produce an interim report that allows you to start making core improvements quickly.
Remote Testing
Remote testing for web sites and web applications does not require a usability lab but uses online tools that allow the test researcher to remotely view the screen and mouse movements as the user performs the test tasks. Benefits of remote testing include:
- No need for a physical lab,
- Cost-effective access to widely dispersed, expert users,
- Test participants do not need to travel
- Faster to do because it removes the need to travel etc.
Remote testing is an effective tool in the following situations:
- You have a few expert users who are geographically dispersed,
- You have an international audience and limited budget or schedule,
- You have an intranet application and you want to test it with employees in different countries.
- Regional or cultural differences among user groups is a concern.
In these situations you will get access to users who might not be available for lab testing
Benefits
- Conducted by an independent, unbiased third party
- Reveals obstacles to success based on test outcomes that are not often apparent during development
- Provides an empirical method for resolving internal debates over difficult issues
- Reduces support calls and emails and so reduces support costs since the bulk of support calls are driven by difficulty in using the product
- Increases market and customer product acceptance because the product is simpler, more intuitive and more successful at meeting user goals
- Helps manage develop costs better because gathering user information early in the process validates design strategies, reduces iterations and eliminates "guessing"
- Helps you better understand and resolve any initial design and functionality issues.
- Allows test participants to experience and comment on design and offer suggestions for a "Best in Class" design.
Duration
A typical user interaction or usability testing project takes about 3 weeks from proposal acceptance to presentation of deliverables. We welcome your participation and observation of the testing sessions. Test sessions themselves last about 1-1.5 hours.
Deliverables
- Experience Test Report which includes an Executive Summary, Findings and Recommendations and Data Summary and Analysis,
- Videotapes of each testing session,
- Optional: Highlight CD containing video clips of test highlights.