The Test phase is the last step in design thinking.
This phase involves collecting and analyzing feedback from users or beta-testers after they’ve tried out your prototype.
During a testing session, it’s important to:
be present.
take all feedback into account.
accept criticism.
be tolerant.
OK, but how many people should I invite to a testing session?
Good question!
There’s no need to invite too many people, as that would complicate things unnecessarily.
But what actually happens during a testing session?
In this chapter, we’ll look at:
How to structure a user testing session.
What attitude to adopt.
How to record participants' feedback.
Structure a User Testing Session
Here's how you might carry out a user testing session:
Welcome the Participants: (2-5 min)
Greet them, offer them a coffee, make them feel comfortable.
Explain why they are there: to test a prototype to give you a better understanding of what works and what doesn't.
Make it clear that what you want to test is the prototype, not them.
Ask Participants to Complete Tasks (10-30 min)
Depending on the type of prototype, they can:
Navigate between pages on a website prototype to test the navigation path, so you can see what they’re trying to do and where they want to go.
Simulate purchasing something or uploading their portfolio on a prototype platform to see what their first reactions are and what they struggle with.
Go through one of the phases of an onboarding process in real-life conditions, using the tools you suggest, to see what difficulties they encounter.
Watch a video including motion design aspects to see what they think of it and how it contributes to their understanding of the content.
In short, ask them to do what your product is made to do!
This works well with onboarding redesign projects, for example. In the preliminary phases, you can start by testing the different parts of the process and then test it from start to finish later on (over the course of several days).
Wrap up and Thank Participants (2-5 min)
Ask them if they have any questions.
At the end of the session, thank them for their contribution—after all, they’ve helped you improve your concept. You can even offer a small reward (goody bag, promo code, etc.).
Remain Neutral During the Session
During a user test, you may need to interact with participants for any number of reasons.
Providing directions or even inadvertently dropping hints may stop participants from using your prototype in the way that seems most natural to them. As a result, you won’t know which parts of your prototype are working well and which parts pose a problem.
What if the user stops talking?
Ask them what their thoughts are.
Ask them questions about what they’re doing and the task they’re trying to complete.
What if the user is unable to perform a task (and asks me for help)?
It might seem cruel, but you shouldn’t help them or do the task for them!
Ask them what’s bothering them and what exactly they’re unable to do—get them talking!
Ask them what they would do if you weren't there.
What if the user gets irritated or loses patience?
Be patient and put your ego aside.
Listen and don't cut them off—you need to know what's bothering them. Being right isn't the point.
Try to get them to pinpoint the source of their frustration.
Take their comments into account and write them down.
Collect Feedback and Analyze Criticism
During the test, keep track of what happens:
What difficulties did users encounter?
What did they like about your prototype?
You can use a table with three columns to organize this information:
Things to keep | Things to improve | Things to get rid of |
This is what people liked about your prototype. | Things that people had trouble understanding but are still important to make sure your future product works well. | Things that people reacted negatively to, were distracting, caused confusion, or made the prototype too complicated. |
When testing more advanced prototypes, e.g., a digital interface, you can use an evaluation grid to record and organize feedback.
Nielsen's evaluation grid is one of the most widely used when it comes to auditing an interactive graphic interface. It comes in handy for projects such as designing mobile apps or websites, for example.
It uses 10 criteria to evaluate the quality of a product:
Visibility of system status: The design should always keep users informed of what’s going on in real-time—e.g., scrollbars, loading icons while moving from one page to another, showing file loading time, etc.
Match between system and the real world: The design should speak the users’ language and use familiar symbols that everyone can recognize, e.g. hamburger menus, buttons, etc.
User control and freedom: The design should provide “emergency exits” to back out of unwanted actions—users should be able to go back and forth, e.g., back to the previous page.
Consistency and standards: The design should remain consistent throughout the product—e.g., the shape and color of buttons should be the same throughout. Industry standards should be followed.
Error prevention: The design should prevent mistakes from occurring—error-prone conditions should either be eliminated, or there should be a confirmation option for users before they commit to these actions, e.g., when closing a document without saving, a dialog box should ask the user if they want to save their changes.
Recognition rather than recall: The design should reduce users’ cognitive load by making sure they don’t need to remember information from one part of the interface to another. Elements, actions, and options should be visible.
Flexibility and efficiency of use: The design should allow users to deviate from the planned navigation path, e.g., put an item in their shopping cart and then continue browsing the site without having to complete the purchase.
Aesthetic and minimalist design: The interface should not contain irrelevant or unnecessary information—keeping the design focused on the essentials.
Help users recognize, diagnose, and recover from errors: Error messages should be clear and easy to understand for users and suggest constructive solutions.
Help and documentation: The design should provide help if needed, such as FAQs, micro tutorials, or a support center.
After your first testing session, you’ll know what you need to do to create the second version of your prototype, based on:
What problems need to be solved.
What you could simplify or improve.
You can then go back to step 4 of the design process to improve your prototype.
With each test, the quality of your prototype will gradually improve.
Let’s Recap!
Like the prototype, the user testing sessions will also change and develop throughout the project. The first one, in which you present a mock-up or diagram to users, may last just a few minutes, while subsequent sessions will become more formal and structured as the prototype takes shape.
During a user test, you’re testing your prototype, not users’ ability to learn how to use a product or service.
It’s important to remain neutral but enthusiastic during testing sessions to put the participants at ease and avoid influencing them as they come to grips with the prototype.
During a testing session, you should write down critical feedback without taking it as a personal attack. The objective is to improve your prototype.
