Usability Testing is a method of evaluating a product by testing it with actual users who are going to use the product. And this is done by observing the user’s behaviour when they interact with your product, we can identify the areas where they struggle or experience any frustrations or facing any difficulty in completing a particular task.

Usability testing is important because it helps designers and developers to uncover so many problems in the design and helps to learn about the user’s behaviour and preferences while using the product and this also helps to discover the opportunities to improve the design by identifying issues in the initial stages of design process.

Let us talk about when to conduct usability testing 

We can conduct usability testing in any of the following phases;

Before Design

We will conduct usability study in the before design phase only if we have an early idea about the product we are going to build and have a tangible prototype of that product for the users to test.

For e.g., if you are going to build an app and you have a clear idea about what the app is all about then you do the usability testing. But you need to make sure that there will be a prototype to test with the user then only we can identify the usability issues. 

Another scenario is if there is an existing product, and we are going to redesign that product by identifying and rectifying the current pain points of the user. 

During Design

We can also do Usability testing in the design phase, and it is a crucial step in the iterative design process. And this allows you to evaluate the usability of your design concepts, identify potential issues and this helps to take many design decisions. 

Post Launch

In the post launch we will conduct usability testing to understand how the user is interacting with the product in the real world and check if they face any difficulty in using the product. 

Core Elements of Usability Testing 

There are many diverse types of usability testing, but the core elements in the most usability tests are 

Facilitator

The role of a facilitator in the usability testing is critical for ensuring a smooth and productive testing session. The facilitator first setup the testing environment with necessary equipment, software and materials and then welcome the participant and build a rapport to create a positive testing environment that makes the participant give honest feedback throughout the session.

Facilitator then explains the testing process to the participant like why we are conducting this session, and its purpose and guide the participants to each task they need to perform. During the testing process the facilitator also encourages the participants to talk aloud and verbalise their thoughts and feelings when they interact with the design. 

Facilitator then observes the participants and take notes on their behaviour, comments, and any difficulty they face during the testing session. Facilitator also ensures that the testing session stays on track and the participants must finish the required task in the allotted time. If they stuck in between facilitator can give additional guidance to move forward. 

Facilitator also asks follow-up questions to get more in-depth insights and clarification from the participants about the tasks they perform. The facilitator remains neutral throughout the session to avoid personal suggestions that influence the participants responses. After completing the session, the facilitator thanks the participant for joining the testing session and asks for any other questions or concerns they have. 

Participants

The participant should be a realistic user of the product or service being studied. That might mean that the user is already using the product or service in real life. Alternatively, in some cases, the participant might just have a similar background to the target user group, or might have the same needs, even if he isn’t already a user of the product. Participants are often asked to ‘think-aloud’ during usability testing. The facilitator might ask the participants to narrate their actions and thoughts as they perform tasks. The goal of this approach is to understand participants’ behaviours, goals, thoughts, and motivations.

Tasks

In Usability testing the tasks are the principal component that the participants are asked to perform to evaluate the usability of a product. The tasks are designed to simulate the real-world scenarios and interactions the users typically engage in. Tasks assigned to participants may vary depending on the goals and objective of the usability test. 

Some of the common tasks used in usability testing are;

Onboarding: where participants may ask to complete the registration or onboarding process of a web application. This task helps to evaluate the clarity and efficiency of onboarding flow 

Scenario based task: As the name mentioned the participants may give realistic scenarios to perform like Flight ticket booking, Purchase a product etc. 

Usability Testing Environment 

This is the picture of a usability testing environment this is called in person testing 

Here you can see the participant sits on the left side and facilitator is sitting on the right side. The facilitator has task sheets and explain each task to the participant to perform. The participant laptop consists of screen recording software and web camera to capture the facial expressions and behaviours. The facilitator administrates each task and listens to participant feedback while taking notes. 

 Remote Usability Testing  

There are two types of remote usability testing 

1. Moderated

In the Moderated testing the participants and facilitator are sitting in different physical locations. Here facilitator interacts with the participants and ask them to perform the tasks via screen sharing software’s like, Teams, Go-To Meeting or Skype 

The advantage of moderate testing is the Facilitator can build rapport with the participants and can guide through each on the task throughout the study and can ask questions in the real time 

2. Unmoderated

In the unmoderated testing there is no facilitator and interaction as in person like moderated testing. Here facilitator uses remote testing tools to setup tasks for the participants. These participants can complete the task alone in his time. The testing tools deliver each task one by one after completing a task. Once the participants complete the test the researcher receives the recordings and task matrices. 

The advantage of unmoderated testing is the participants can perform the task on their own schedules and in comfortable premises. Participants use the product in the real-world environment, and they are extremely comfortable in giving honest feedback 

How To Conduct Remote Usability Testing 

Setting up the environment

• First, we need to build a rapport with the participants to make them feel comfortable before starting the testing session. This is extremely helpful for getting honest feedback from the participant
• Facilitators need to thank the participant for giving his valuable time for the participation in usability study of the product.
• We need to ask permission of the participant for video recording the testing session.
• We need to explain the the task to the participant they are going to perform.
• We need to remind the participant to give honest feedback otherwise we cannot improve the usability of the product and remind them that they are not going to be tested and you feedback is only for improving the design solution.
• Do not force the participant to perform the task. The facilitator must behave neutral not on the participant side and not in the product side. The facilitator intention is to get as much information from the user to make the product user friendly.
  

Things to capture

• Basic details of the participant like age, location etc.
• What device they are going to use for interacting with the design solution.
• Need to record the time taken to complete each task.
• We need to catch the words the participant is using while using the product. e.g., “oh, this is not loading; this button is not working”
• We need to record the actions and gestures used by the participants.
• Questions they ask while performing the task.
• Suggestions and recommendation from the participant. 

 Participants Data Capturing Form 

This is an example of a user testing form. Through this form the facilitators are capturing the user’s feedback against each task they are asked to perform 

Here you can see the task details like  

2. 2. • Opening mobile application, sending money, change password etc 
      • The time user takes for performing each task 
      • Facilitators capture the user behaviour for each task 
      • Ask for user thoughts on each task 
      • Checks the task performed is success or a failure 

Based on these findings from the usability testing the design team need to iterate the design and repeat the testing process to evaluate the effectiveness of the changes. This is an iterative process. The more you test the product will be more user friendly. 

In conclusion, usability testing stands as an indispensable tool in the realm of product evaluation. By engaging real users in the interactive process, it sheds light on areas of struggle, frustration, and difficulty within the product’s design. This practice not only aids designers and developers in identifying and rectifying issues, but it also offers a profound understanding of user behaviour and preferences. Through early-stage detection of problems, usability testing unveils valuable opportunities for design enhancement, ultimately fostering a more user-centric and effective product. 

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