Learn how to conduct customer research and validate or invalidate your design solution
What
After your Design Studio and defining your hypothetical solution(s) you'll want to create an MVP that can be share early and often with your customers that you defined as part of your persona work. What you test will vary in both the fidelity of your prototype and what your team is looking to prove out. Therefore these methods are not a one-size fits all. It's up to you to choose the best method(s).
Why
Get customer feedback early before investing too much time building a solution that doesn't solve for the customer.
How to do it
Testing Method 1: First Click Tests
What is it
- Method to assess where the users first click on your product’s entry page/screen
- Provide users with a specific task to complete when they arrive
- By observing where the users first click, it’s a clear indicator of whether they’ll eventually be successful
Questions you might ask
- Where would you click first?
- Are the options clear to users?
How-to
- Start with a specific task you want them to complete.
- Success is determined if users click on the right option.
- Not asking the users to go through the entire clickstream.
- Recruit three to five users for each of the traits you’ve identified to participate in a moderated usability testing session on usertesting.com, invited zoom user testing session, etc. (The traits can overlap.)
Testing Method 2: Task Cataloging Questionnaire
What is it
- An approach to gathering information about your users’ most important and frequent tasks.
- Gain a better understanding of what users want to accomplish with your product.
How to do it
- Ask users to spend 15 minutes completing the survey
- Questionnaire contains
Task description
- List up to 15 specific tasks you (or your team) perform with the product
- Rank the 10 most important tasks, 1 = most important
- Rank the 10 most frequent tasks, 1 = most important
- Recruit three to five users for each of the traits you’ve identified to participate in a moderated usability testing session on usertesting.com, invited zoom user testing session, etc. (The traits can overlap.)
Testing Method 3: Comprehension Tests for existing users
What is it
- For pages/screens containing complex content.
- User comprehension is imperative to their success.
- Questions determine if users understand the content.
How to do it
- Give them no time limit to absorb the content
- You're looking to see if they understand the information they’ve read?
- Ask them specific questions related to the content contained deep within the material.
- Recruit three to five users for each of the traits you’ve identified to participate in a moderated usability testing session on usertesting.com, invited zoom user testing session, etc. (The traits can overlap.)
Testing Method 4: 5-second test
What is it
- A quick technique for measuring homepage and case studies content pages.
- Takes less than 10 minutes to run.
- Measures if homepage and case studies pages quickly communicate their purposes.
How to do it
- Tests are centered around a singular task.
- Start with a specific task you want them to complete.
- Ask them specific questions related to the content contained deep within the material.
- Recruit three to five users for each of the traits you’ve identified to participate in a moderated usability testing session on usertesting.com, invited zoom user testing session, etc. (The traits can overlap.)
Testing Method 4: Cognitive Walkthrough for New Users
What is it
- An evaluation method in which evaluators or potential users who are unfamiliar with a design work through a set of typical tasks and ask questions about the task as they go.
- Gain a better understanding of what users want to accomplish with your product
How to do it
- Identify specific traits for new or infrequent users of a design solution.
- Develop a set of typical tasks/expected actions that emphasize new use or occasional use.
- Recruit three to five users for each of the traits you’ve identified to participate in a moderated usability testing session on usertesting.com, invited zoom user testing session, etc. (The traits can overlap.)
- Ask the user to accomplish their goal using static screens that can be clicked through.
- As they go, ask what they would attempt to do next or how they would learn.
- Ask users to spend 15 mins to complete.
- Don't lead the user through the task, but encourage them to stay focused on what they’re trying to accomplish.
