A UX practitioner's primary goal is to provide every user with the best possible experience of a product. The only way to do this is to connect repeatedly with users and make sure that the product is being designed according to their needs. At the beginning of a project, this research tends to be more exploratory. Towards the end of the project, it tends to be more about testing the product.
We have previously discussed various ways of connecting with users in Chapter 5, Set a Solid Foundation, when we described UX research. In this chapter, we explore in detail one of the most common methods of testing a product with users--the usability test. As we describe the steps to plan, conduct, and analyze usability tests, this will provide insights into how to practically plan, conduct, and analyze any user research.
We begin by describing how to make sure that you get the most value out of user testing. Then we delve into usability...