Research: Usability Testing

This month in Ask UXmatters, our expert panel provides some helpful tips about conducting effective remote UX research and usability testing.

As COVID-19 has forced UX researchers to conduct research and testing remotely, both participants and the teams conducting remote research and testing have had to learn to deal with new testing tools and conditions. There are multiple factors to consider in transitioning to remote UX research, including the following:

• making remote research and testing possible
• making remote research and testing effective
• understanding the bias that remote research and testing introduces because participants are likely more technically sophisticated Read More

In this Ask UXmatters column—which is the first in a series of three columns focusing on usability—our experts discuss the use of usability testing versus expert reviews. In the upcoming columns, we’ll discuss what usability techniques to use when money or time is tight and how to best conduct remote usability testing.

Look to Ask UXmatters for answers to your questions about user experience matters. If you’d like to see our experts’ responses to your own question in an upcoming edition of Ask UXmatters, please send your question to: [email protected].

Q: Under what circumstances is it more appropriate to do usability testing versus an expert review? What are the benefits and weaknesses of each method that make one or the other more appropriate in different situations?—from a UXmatters reader. Read More

How many times has this happened to you? You’ve finished presenting the results of your usability testing, heuristic evaluation, or other user research activity, feeling great about the positive impact your recommendations will have on a product’s user experience. The audience smiled and nodded along during your presentation. Most of them agree with your findings and seem genuinely impressed by the work you’ve done. But, later on, you face the reality that few of your recommendations have gotten implemented fully—and many, not at all.

Why don’t usability problems get fixed? If we point out obvious usability problems and provide reasonable solutions for them, why doesn’t someone fix them? In this column, I’ll explore these questions and provide some tips to help ensure your recommendations get implemented. Read More