Usability testing
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Interested in how users use your product? Usability testing is the answer !
First rule of usability? Don't listen to users..
"To design an easy-to-use interface, pay attention to what users do, not what they say" (J.Nielsen)
During a user test, we invite real users to take part in an individual session to evaluate your product. The main focus during such a test session is observing. They have to do real tasks. We don't ask them if they think your product is easy to use; we observe them while they are using your product !
The best way to observe your users, is in a controlled environment like a usability lab. In such a lab, all user actions & reactions can be captured with specialized equipment and logging software. Of each user test, we have video about the navigation behaviour and the verbal & non verbal ractions of each test user. Good material to convince your team or manager !
We can conduct user tests in a stationary lab (in Leuven) or on location with a portable usability lab.
Afraid that users will behave differently in a lab environment? This is not the case ! After a good briefing and an easy task to start with, they feel at ease and act naturally ! A major advantage of a usability lab it that you as our client can follow 1 or more user tests behind the one-way mirror in the observation room.
Large study? No. Research has pointed out that testing your product with 5 users in enough to obtain 85% of the usability problems of your product.
Time-consuming study? No. Organizing user tests has a run time of 6-10 days. A good indication to start immediately with the evaluation of your product, don't you think? Of course, we have to recruit the test users in advance.
What kind of information do you get?
Overview of usability problems like:
- Where do users get stuck?
- Do they become frustrated or irritated by the problems they encounter?
- Which labels/buttons/... are not clear?
- Do they understand the flow?
- Can they find the answer on the task?
- Can they find a product and buy it?
- Do they have to search for functionalities or is the product intuitive to use?
- Is the content understandable & readable?
- Are there problems with the error handling?
- ...
Other insights by conducting user tests:
- How do users navigate through my website/application/product?
- If in combination with eyetracking: where do users look, how long, what attracts the attention immediately?
- What about the likeability of my product?
- How many tasks can be solved correctly and in time?
These results and insights will be gathered in a report with:
- A detailed overview of all usability problems.
- Concrete & detailed recommendations about how to improve your product.
- Screenshots, priority indication & video compilation of the most important problems.
- Results of additional questions we asked the user after the user test.
- An overview of the profiles of the recruited test users & the methodology.
- ...
What kind of products do we test?
Actually: we are experienced in doing user tests on everything that has a user interface...
- Applications, websites, e-commerce applications, ...
- Touch screens
- Intranet & Extranets
- Newsletters
- Remote controls & television menus
- Interactive television applications
- Hardware devices
- ...
Of course, each product requires a specific testing situation. When a user tests a television application, he must be able to lean back in a nice coach. When testing an e-commerce application, a home or work environment is necessary. In the usability lab, we are able to adapt to these needs to make the user test as realistic as possible.
Thrilled to observe how your end users react on your product? Call us ! We can explain into detail how we could test your product ! At last, you want a happy user... the best way to reach that objective is to start testing your product with your target users.
Case ?
To many good cases to select one out of them !
We did user tests (or several of iterations of user tests) for the European Commission, FedEx, Electrabel, Belgacom, Nationale Apotheek, Duval Guillaume, Hallmark, Kind & Gezin, NDS, Philips, SPA, Toyota, Whatever, UZ Leuven, ...
Interested in how we handled the organisation of a specific user test, just contact us ! We would like to tell you more about the opportunities of conducting user tests !