Book Image

Remote Usability Testing

By : Inge De Bleecker, Rebecca Okoroji
Book Image

Remote Usability Testing

By: Inge De Bleecker, Rebecca Okoroji

Overview of this book

Usability testing is a subdiscipline of User Experience. Its goal is to ensure that a given product is easy to use and the user's experience with the product is intuitive and satisfying. Usability studies are conducted with study participants who are representative of the target users to gather feedback on a user interface. The feedback is then used to refine and improve the user interface. Remote studies involve fewer logistics, allow participation regardless of location and are quicker and cheaper to execute compared to in person studies, while delivering valuable insights. The users are not inhibited by being in a new environment under observation; they can act naturally in their familiar environment. Remote unmoderated studies additionally have the advantage of being independent of time zones. This book will teach you how to conduct qualitative remote usability studies, in particular remote moderated and unmoderated studies. Each chapter provides actionable tips on how to use each methodology and how to compensate for the specific nature of each methodology. The book also provides material to help with planning and executing each study type.
Table of Contents (18 chapters)
Title Page
Copyright and Credits
Dedication
Packt Upsell
Contributors
Preface
8
What to Consider When Analyzing and Presenting the Study Results
Index

Informing the participants


When attracting potential participants for a study, it is important to explain the expectations upfront. If expectations are clearly set at the start, a larger number of participants will be inclined to complete the study.

Time commitments

Potential participants need to understand how much time they will spend on the overall study, and how that time will be spent. For instance:

  • Will there be one single session, or multiple smaller sessions? What is the duration of a session? If there are multiple sessions, what is the total duration? For instance, if the study requires three sessions, will these sessions occur over the course of a week, two weeks, or one month?
  • How much flexibility is there in the timeframe for completion, once the participant is notified that the session can be started? Does each session need to be completed within an hour or a day?

Not only is it important to explain the time commitments ahead of the study, it is equally important to communicate any...