Usability Testing

Is your software, website or application ready for release? Has your software application undergone Usability Testing with real users?

Usability testing is a method of evaluating a software, website or app’s readiness for release by testing it with real users who are part of the target audience. Usability tests evaluate the overall user experience by measuring the relative ease with which end users can accomplish a set of tasks that a typical user of the app, website or application would need to accomplish.

Why Is Usability Testing Important?

The goal in usability testing is to understand how real users interact with your application and make changes based on the results.

It is important to be sure that your application is easy to navigate and that tasks can be completed with ease, otherwise people will leave and go to a competitor.

The primary purpose of a usability test is to gather the data needed to identify usability issues and improve the design of an application.

Even the best development teams can benefit from usability testing as the tests indicate trouble spots for users and the areas where they are getting stuck or confused.

Test Any Stage of Design

Testing with real, representative users is one of the most valuable and important things you can do at any stage of the design and development process.We can test your ideas, concepts, wireframes, prototypes or live solution. You will learn so much and the findings can be transformational.

Different Types of Usability Testing

Usability Test: Moderated or Unmoderated

In moderated tests, there’s always a researcher present in person or remotely, who introduces the test to the participants, answers questions, and has the opportunity to ask testers additional questions. The direct interaction leads to in-depth insights – but of course, makes it more cost- and time-intensive.

In contrast, no one is present to support the testers during unmoderated tests. Most of the time, testers will be performing the assigned tasks at home and on their own devices. That’s why the usability test script and a proper test scenario is crucial here. But this also means unmoderated tests are cheaper and sometimes quicker than moderated ones. Nevertheless, answers also tend to be more superficial and you don’t have the opportunity to ask additional questions.

If you’re more interested in the reasons why users behave in a certain way then a moderated test might be suitable for you. If you want to test a very specific use case or observe behaviour patterns, an unmoderated test can be suitable instead.

Remote or In-Person Usability Testing

Usability testing can either be done remotely, over the phone or the Internet, or in person, with the researcher being physically present with the tester. The social component of in-person testing shouldn’t be underestimated as researchers get the chance to observe and analyze body language and mannerisms of the testers. But of course, this is more time-consuming than meeting them remotely.

The advantage of remote usability and UX tests definitely lies in the opportunity to have large numbers of testers involved from all over the world – with a significantly low effort. Usually, getting feedback from your target group(s) might be difficult if your product is made for multiple regions or languages. However, testing remotely allows you to query customers from around the world and ensure the usability of your product across all markets.

If you want a deeper understanding of potential usability issues you should consider an in-person setup, but if you prefer a broader set of results or need to test with a variety of target groups a remote setup might be more appropriate