How to conduct a usability test

Are you committed to building a product that connects with your users and provides them with a smooth and enjoyable experience? Then you need to know how to conduct a usability test can.

It's important to understand how users interact with your product, and usability testing can help with this. By getting into your users' heads, you gain insights to find hidden usability problems, improve the user experience, and successfully bring your product to market.

This comprehensive, step-by-step guide will give you the skills and strategies to conduct usability testing.

What is a usability test?

Usability testing is a technique for evaluating the usability of a product, system, or interface. This involves observing how real users interact with the product to identify usability issues, collect feedback, and evaluate the overall effectiveness and efficiency of the design. The main goal of usability testing is to ensure that the product meets the needs and expectations of the target users.

During a usability test, participants are given specific tasks while researchers observe their behavior, listen to their feedback, and record any difficulties or problems they encounter. This method provides important information about how real users use the product and highlights areas where usability and user satisfaction can be improved.

See also some of the Benefits of usability testing.

Why are usability tests so important?

Usability testing is absolutely essential when it comes to creating a user-friendly experience. This technology plays an important role in product development for several reasons. Let's take a closer look at these factors to understand why conducting usability testing is so important.

• User-centered design: Usability testing ensures that a product or system is developed with the needs, expectations and capabilities of its intended users in mind. Product designers can gain meaningful insights into users' habits, preferences, and problem areas by including them in the testing process, leading to user-centered design decisions.
• Identification of usability problems: Tests help identify Usability problems, which may have gone unnoticed during the design and development phase. Researchers can identify areas where users struggle, feel confused, or feel frustrated when researching while interacting with the product. Product designers can use these insights to develop informed changes and remove usability barriers.
• Improving user experience: Conducting usability testing allows you to improve user experience and make your product more intuitive, efficient and user-friendly. By collecting feedback and analyzing interactions, designers can identify areas for improvement and make changes that address user needs and preferences.
• Lower development costs: After a product is designed and deployed, troubleshooting usability issues can be a time-consuming and costly task. Usability testing at various stages of product development enables early detection and resolution of usability issues, reducing the need for major redesigns and redevelopments. This can save a lot of money in the long run.
• You gain a competitive advantage: Ease of use can be a key differentiator in today's competitive industry. Companies can stay ahead of the competition by conducting usability testing and developing products that meet or exceed user expectations. Investing in usability testing demonstrates your commitment to quality and customer satisfaction and gives you a competitive advantage.

Types of usability testing

When learning how to conduct usability testing, choosing the right type of test for your goals is critical. There are different types of usability testing, each focusing on a specific aspect of the user experience.

Let's take a look at some common types of usability testing that can provide meaningful insights into your product's usability and effectiveness.

• Qualitative testing: Qualitative usability testing focuses on gathering user experience insights, interesting stories, and detailed feedback. This qualitative data helps understand how customers interact with a product, identify hidden pain points, and improve usability.
• Quantitative usability testing: Quantitative usability testing focuses on collecting numerical data on various usability metrics to quantify and analyse user actions. This data collection method collects quantitative information such as success rates, processing times, error rates, and satisfaction ratings.
• Moderated usability testing: In moderated usability tests, a moderator guides the participants through the testing process. The moderator gives instructions, asks questions, and observes how participants interact with the product or interface.
• Unmoderated usability testing: Unmoderated testing take place without a moderator. Participants complete the activities independently, typically using usability testing tools that provide instructions and record their interactions.
• Remote usability testing: Remote usability testing allows participants to conduct usability testing from the comfort of their own location. You can moderated or unmoderated using online tools for usability testing and communication software.
• Personal usability tests: In-person usability testing takes place in a physical environment, such as a usability lab or research center. The benefits of in-person testing include close observation, quick follow-up questions, and a controlled environment.

Now let's learn how to carry out a usability test.

How to conduct a usability test

Now that the need for usability testing has been established, it is time to discuss how to conduct a usability test. A test includes planning, selecting participants, carrying out the tests, evaluating the data and presenting the results.

Step 1: Planning the test

When conducting usability testing, planning is crucial as it lays the foundation for a successful testing approach. You can ensure that the results provide meaningful information by carefully considering and defining the most important aspects of your usability testing.

How to plan a practical usability test:

• Define goals: First define the goals of your usability test. Set your goals, e.g. B. finding specific usability problems, analyzing user satisfaction or checking the overall experience. Clearly defined goals can guide the entire testing process.
• Create test scenarios and tasks: Create realistic scenarios and tasks for participants to complete during the test. The usability test scenario should be realistic and consistent with the test objectives. Describe the tasks clearly and make sure they are specific and measurable.
• Prepare the logistics of the test: Determine practical aspects such as the location of the test, the equipment required and the length of each testing session. Ensure the testing environment is comfortable and conducive to receiving unbiased feedback from participants. Set up the necessary equipment, e.g. B. Recording devices or screen recording software to record participants' actions and comments.
• Prepare test materials: Prepare all necessary resources for usability testing. A well-crafted test script describes the tasks to be performed, the instructions to be given, and the questions to be asked. Make sure these materials are well organized and easily accessible during testing sessions.

Step 2: Select participants for the test

After defining the goals, you need a detailed strategy for how and when you will recruit test participants to conduct a usability test. Properly selecting participants for your test is crucial to gathering relevant information and ensuring the test represents your target audience.

Follow these steps to successfully recruit test takers:

• Define criteria for participants: Set participant selection criteria based on your target audience and test objectives. Consider demographics, experience levels, or other characteristics relevant to your product or system. This way you can ensure that the participants adequately represent the user group you want.
• Determine the sample size: Determine the appropriate sample size for your usability test. While there is no hard and fast rule for determining sample size, you should aim for a size that allows you to obtain diverse views and is manageable within your available resources and time frame. Even a smaller sample can provide useful information, especially if you do repeated testing.
• Use multiple recruiting methods: To reach potential test takers, use multiple recruiting methods. Examples of these methods include online platforms, social networks, user groups, professional networks and specialized recruiting agencies. Make sure the methods you choose are appropriate for your target audience and reach people who are likely to use your products or services.
• Rate the participants: Conduct an assessment process to determine the suitability of potential participants for the usability test. This may include a simple survey or initial interview to determine whether participants meet the criteria. The assessment process helps ensure that participants have the necessary experience and background to provide meaningful feedback.
• Plan and confirm participation: Schedule selected participants to attend usability testing sessions. Provide detailed information about the purpose of the usability test, the expected duration of participation, any incentives (if applicable), and any technical requirements for the session. Be flexible when scheduling to accommodate participant availability. Send confirmation or reminder emails to ensure participation.

Step 3: Conduct usability testing

Conducting the usability test is a crucial step in which you observe the participants in their activities and gather useful insights about the usability of your product.

Follow the steps below to conduct effective testing sessions:

• Selection of test methods: Choose the relevant approaches for your usability testing. Decide whether you want to conduct in-person sessions, remote testing, or both. When making this decision, consider budget, time constraints, and the type of product you have.
  Learn some methods for evaluating usability.
• Build relationships with participants: Begin each testing session by establishing a comfortable and relaxed relationship with participants. Briefly explain the purpose of the test, ensure that their opinion is valuable and encourage them to actively think during the session.
• Explain the tasks and goals: Explain the tasks and goals in detail to participants so that they understand what they need to do. Allow them to explore the product independently without influencing their actions.
• Observe and take notes: Observe participants' activities, behavior, and reactions as they interact with the product. Make notes about any usability issues, ambiguities, or frustration points. Encourage participants to share their thoughts, impressions and opinions during the tasks. Ask open-ended questions to find out more details. Track both qualitative and quantitative data, such as: B. the processing time, errors and success rates of the tasks.
• Record sessions: Use audio/video recording devices to record usability testing sessions. This allows for further review and analysis and ensures that no important information is missed. Inform participants about the recording and obtain their consent in advance.
• Maintain objectivity: Maintain a neutral and objective approach during testing sessions. Remember, you are observing the usability of the product, not the skills of the participants. Don't jump to conclusions or make judgments based on participants' actions or preferences.
• Record participants' comments: After each testing session, conduct a short survey or interview to get additional feedback from participants. Ask about the overall experience, level of satisfaction, and any specific problems that occurred. Record the comments for future research.

Step 4: Analyze and report test data

Another step in usability testing is to analyse the data and present the results after the testing sessions are completed. This step is critical to gathering valuable information and making informed design and development decisions.

Follow the following steps to successfully analyse and present the test data:

• Compile data: Collect all recorded sessions, notes and comments from usability test participants. Organize the data methodically to facilitate analysis and ensure nothing is missed.
• Recognizing patterns and prioritizing problems: Examine the data for patterns, recurring issues, and expected trends. Prioritize the identified usability issues based on their impact and severity. Determine which issues should be addressed immediately and which can wait for future iterations. Combine similar results to identify common usability issues.
• Generate ideas and make recommendations: Extracting insights from usability patterns and issues. Consider the causes of the behaviors and problems observed. Based on the results, clear and practical recommendations are provided to improve the usability of the product. Suggest design, feature, or workflow improvements to address usability issues.
• Visualization of the results: Present test results and recommendations clearly and concisely. Use tools such as graphs, charts, or tables to illustrate and simplify the facts. To ensure results are interpreted correctly, provide clear explanations and context.
• Test and adjust: Use the results and recommendations of usability testing to continually improve the design. Make sure you take a user-centered approach and include suggestions for improvement throughout the development process.

Examples of question types in surveys to be able to carry out a usability test

Usability testing surveys are useful for gathering feedback and ideas from participants. Surveys provide a quantitative and qualitative overview of the user experience, in addition to observational data collected during testing sessions. Below are some common examples of question types in surveys to conduct a usability test:

Demographic questions

• What age group do you belong to?
  • Under 18 years old
  • 18-24 Jahre sub
  • 25-34 Jahre sub
  • 35-44 Jahre sub
  • 45-54 Jahre sub
  • 55-64 Jahre sub
  • 65 years and older
• How much experience do you have with similar products?
  • Beginner
  • Advanced
  • Expert
• What is your main task or profession?

Satisfaction rating questions

• On a scale of 1 to 5, how satisfied were you with the overall usability of the product?
• On a scale of 1 to 10, rate how satisfied you are with the ease of completing the task.
• On a scale of 1 to 7, how likely are you to recommend this product?

Questions with Likert scale

• Please indicate how much you agree with the following statement: “Product navigation was intuitive.”
  • Completely disagree
  • Disagree
  • Neutral
  • Agrees
  • Totally agree about
• How well did the product meet your expectations?
  • Not at all
  • To some extent
  • Moderate
  • Very good!
  • Extraordinary

Open questions

• What aspects of the product did you find particularly frustrating or confusing?
• Please provide any additional comments or suggestions to improve the usability of the product.
• What were the most positive aspects of the user experience when using the product?

Task-specific questions

• Have you successfully completed the assigned tasks? If not, please indicate what challenges you encountered.
• How easy or difficult was it to perform task X on a scale of 1 to 5?
• Which task was the biggest challenge for you and why?

A balance between quantitative and qualitative questions is important when creating usability test surveys. Using various rating scales, Likert questions, open-ended questions, and task-specific questions helps collect numerical data and gain detailed insights from participants.

Additionally, demographic and background questions can provide context for analyzing data based on user characteristics.

How can you carry out a usability test with the QuestionPro Research Suite?

The QuestionPro Research Suite is a comprehensive survey and research platform with many features and functions that you can use to conduct a usability test. Here's how QuestionPro Research Suite can help with testing:

Creation of surveys

QuestionPro is an easy-to-use interface for creating surveys. You can create custom surveys for your usability testing with a variety of question types and custom survey templates. You can leverage the platform's jumping, branching, and randomization logic to provide participants with a seamless and personalized survey experience.

Question types and multimedia support

QuestionPro offers various question types and features that allow you to design a usability testing survey according to your specific needs and preferences. You can include Likert scale questions, rating scales, open-ended questions, and task-specific questions to collect quantitative and qualitative feedback from users. The platform also supports multimedia elements such as audio, images and videos to create a realistic testing environment.

Real-time data collection

QuestionPro collects data in real time during tests. When respondents fill out a survey, the data is immediately available for analysis. You can evaluate responses, track progress, and get quick feedback on your product's usability so you can make quick decisions and incremental adjustments.

Advanced analysis functions

The platform includes multiple analysis tools that allow you to successfully analyse and interpret test data. Using tools like data segmentation, cross-tabulation, and sentiment analysis, you can discover patterns, identify trends, and gain deeper insights into the user experience.

Visualization and reporting

QuestionPro Research Suite offers comprehensive reporting and visualization options for displaying usability test data. You can create custom reports, visual dashboards, and charts to better explain results. The platform's reporting features make it easy to share meaningful results with stakeholders and work together on action plans.

Data security and compliance

QuestionPro protects data through encryption, secure data storage, and compliance with privacy regulations such as GDPR and CCPA. The platform follows strict security measures so users have no worries while testing it.

The QuestionPro Research Suite offers a wide range of features and functions for conducting usability tests. Whether you're a researcher, designer, or product manager, QuestionPro's full feature set allows you to gather valuable information and make data-driven decisions to improve your product's usability.

Use the free trial version of QuestionPro to get an initial overview of the functions, discover the full potential of your usability tests and be able to successfully carry out a usability test.

1:1 live online presentation:
QUESTIONPRO MARKET RESEARCH SOFTWARE

Arrange an individual appointment and discover our market research software.

Try software for market research and experience management now for 10 days free of charge!

Do you have any questions about the content of this blog? Simply contact us via contact form. We look forward to a dialogue with you! You too can test QuestionPro for 10 days free of charge and without risk in depth!

SHARE THIS ARTICLE

KEYWORDS OF THIS BLOG POST

Carry out usability testing | Usability test | Execution