Remote usability test: here’s all the tools you need
Hi UX folks,
Here I am, a Grumpy User.
Sorry about being so grumpy, but are you guys actually doing a user test for your design either during design ideation, prototyping or a pre-release phase?
There you go — I hear you complaining about all the constraints of doing onsite tests in the midst of COVID-19. Why then don’t you try remote usability tests? No excuse about the pandemic situations. OK, let me walk you through on the tools you would need for doing your first remote usability test.
1. Building your test mockups
Whether you are doing a guerrilla test, a fully-fledged psych experiment or any test that comes in between I recommend that you first prepare clickable prototypes. It’s because a UX design never comes in a linear, static interface. Thus an interactive mockup (vs non-clickable mockups such as a paper prototype) will make your test results much more meaningful. A clickable prototype can be easily created by putting hot spots in your existing XD or Sketch design.
- XD (https://www.adobe.com/products/xd.html)
- Sketch (https://www.sketch.com/)
- How to create prototypes in XD (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EBQ4ZRsie9U)
2. Making your mockups easily viewable
Some UX folks say that these mockup viewers are not a must. However as a test participant I find them pretty helpful because they let me see the XD or Sketch prototypes as crisp on my test device as it can be. Also because I use an iPhone X, using these viewers help me and the designer get around some scalability issues coming from variable device sizes.
- XD viewer (Download for iOS ; Android)
- Sketch viewer (Download for iOS; Android)
- InVision (https://www.invisionapp.com/ Still popular with some project folks!)
3. Building test/ interview questionnaire
Nothing innovative here, but just a simple co-editing tool such as Google Docs will be good enough when ## of editing will be inevitable in getting the finest quality test guides. From the participant’s viewpoint, I just find it easier when I receive a URL to the copy of the test guide either for my quick review of the doc or for signing a consent form before the test session.
- Google Doc (https://docs.google.com/document/u/0/)
4. Scheduling your tests
Are you still spending # of hours just trying to schedule test meetings? Well, as a participant I find it hassle-free when the test facilitator sends me an URL to an online scheduler, instead of buzzing me by Phone, SMS or emailing a # of times. Frankly, I don’t want to be bothered by a bunch of people saying “hello!”, questions and what not way before the appointment date/time. So here you go, a meeting scheduler that will create a shortcut to our test meetings.
- Online appointment/ scheduler (https://calendly.com/)
5. Test in action — Meeting online & video recording
Most companies prescribe such and such policies and tools for doing online meetings in this COVID-19 context. Check out the compliance policy with your organization/ team/ project regarding the use of a web conferencing app and video recording and distribution of the test data. Otherwise, a free meeting app like Google Meet (1 hour limit) will be just enough, because most “good” test sessions usually run for 45 minutes in my experience. Once we both land on the test screen, please don’t forget to start video recording your test session for your in-depth analysis afterward!
- WebEx (https://www.webex.com/) : Mostly for corporate video conferencing
- Google Meet (https://meet.google.com/) : Unlimited meetings, 60-minute maximum group meetings
- Zoom (https://zoom.us/) : Unlimited meetings, 40-minute maximum group meetings
Ughhh…..
I’m surprised that most UX folks still think of a usability test as something of ethnographic research, where you should really really make your way to the participant’s doorstep!
Well, please save your effort (and $ too!) by thinking about doing it online. The reality is, during COVID-19, just about everyone would feel reluctant to do things in person, no matter what Holy Grail design you try to sell to recruit test subjects.
So make sure that you can facilitate a virtual test as hassle-free as a real one in a socially distanced context… Not much excuse for grumpy users like me to turn down your test invitations.
Cool. That’s all for today from me, a Grumpy User…! 🤓😎
