How to user test in 5 simple steps

User testing enables you to -

• Understand your customers
• Reduce errors by identifying pain points
• Work towards an online experience that is easy to use, increase efficiency, and ensure fit for purpose
• Achieve business goals such as KPIs or CSAT, and ROI

This is the golden opportunity to listen, embrace feedback, and help your customers, working towards creating a fabulous online experience and increase customer loyalty. 

Online remote user testing tool

New tools and resources are available online, they are powerful remote user testing tools, e.g Userlytics, hotjar, to usertesting.com. The benefits are - 

• Quick to set up, save time and money. The speed and logistics at which participants are screened to fit user group personas and demographics is fast and can cover multiple countries. Avoiding the need to book or schedule a room set up with equipment or have the participant travels to undertake the test. 
• Allows participants to undertake user testing in their own natural environment using their own device such as a laptop, tablet or mobile. 
• Compare the same task with your competitors, as well as your own site.
• Qualitative and quantitive data feedback is captured, such as task completion rate, System Usability Scale (SUS), NPS, to average time on task.
• Video playback can be presented to key stakeholders and team, from my experience a major buy-in when you see customers struggling on tasks, this tends to get teams engaged in working towards customer-centric solutions.

Be aware there is a difference when comparing to face to face user testing, you don’t have the same connection, detect subtle cues, due to the online nature and some non-verbal communication such as body language is lost.

1. Define the goal of your test

A typical goal is to perform a number of tasks on your website or prototype. For example, if a new banking app is to be launched, typical tasks identified will be log-in, check current balance, download bank statement, check dashboard display monthly spending habits, set up a direct debit, send a payment, cancel and report a lost credit card. 

Alternatively, you may want to explore further why data is showing a high bounce rate, or customer surveys comments reveal pain points are commonly occurring, through user testing you can further explore insights.

Plan to keep the length of test, half an hour to forty-five minutes max to keep the participant’s engagement and feedback focused on the test.

2. Preparation plan script for test

It is important to have clear and simple written instructions, questions and defined test tasks. Your checklist - 

An introduction to the test, inform the participant the test is not to test the tester but to improve the site. Also, remind Participants to ‘think a-loud’, so we know their thought processes on completing tasks, reveal pain points, ease of use, etc.

Pre-test research questions are recommended to find out preferences, needs and requirements. For example, how do they choose and short-list the ideal product, helps identify factors that will determine purchase choices. The benefits -

• Helps participants ease into the test
• Understand their digital footprint, e.g. preferred social media platforms. Different devices used at different times during the day. This can be helpful for media campaigns across social platforms.
• Understand where your service or product stands in relation to your competitors
• Spot trends or confirm behaviours (e.g. when shortlisting a new product such as a new portable speaker, the pattern tends can be google, reviews, price, Amazon) 

The task itself, if it is an e-commerce site, your goal could be to test the new product filtering tool to find product x, e.g a new home printer, the tasks can be scripted, 'Starting at this website you are looking for a new printer for the home, the key features are colour printing, copy and scan, with wifi connection. Remember to think aloud as you find and select the ideal printer.' With a follow up question, 'Were you able to complete this task?' (this will capture success task completion data), and 'How satisfied are you in completing this task?'

This can be followed by System Usability Scale (SUS) questionnaire. The SUS consists of 10 questions that can be answered on a five-point scale of ‘Strongly Disagree’ to ‘Strongly Agree’.

Online tools will capture qualitative data on task completion and SUS from participant this is then translated into data at the end of the test.

3. Recruit participants

5 to 8 is the ideal number of participants to capture a pattern of behaviour or trend. When recruiting participants, it is important they reflect your customer demographics and website personas. Screening questions will filter through the right participants, this can be -

Age, gender, locations, profession, income, education, technical proficiency, existing customers or non-existing customers or user of service or product. 

4. Pilot test run

A pilot test is recommended, by one team member to ensure the script flows well, it is clear and concise to follow, validate links and the site is working without technical issues. check length of time is not too long that the participants will lose track and focus.

5. Findings and recommendations

Capture and note your findings. Make observations, identify issues

• Observe carefully with an open mind, note direct quotations and observations of behaviours.
• The overall pattern of what is working and not working.
• Record and identify errors, this can be form errors preventing form completion, visibility of call to action button and placement, navigation links not flowing, labels are too technical, to 404 error pages, to a slow page loading. Evaluate content, is the language consistent, e.g. are there internal business terms not familiar with participants? 

You are now ready to put together your key findings, analysis, and list of key recommendations to action.

Engage and share your feedback

Share your findings to help the team develop a deep understanding of users and their needs. Watching highlighted video playback is a great way to bring the voice of your customer. This is rewarding for the team user testing makes it easier to understand what works and where improvements need to be made without second-guessing.

Key recommendations and findings go into agile sprint user stories to action, that lead to improved valuable online features.

References and resources

Don’t make me think - Steve Krug 

https://www.hotjar.com/usability-testing/template-checklist/ a comprehensive resource for user testing resources, templates and checklists