How can you apply Usability Testing methods throughout the design process?

In design, every pixel counts. Problem definition works as compass, illuminating our path. It's a beacon of clarity in a dark room—aligning designers, stakeholders, and teams toward a common goal. Understanding the problem means understanding users —needs, pain points, goals. With a defined problem, we streamline design, saving time, resources, and effort. No more guesswork. Here's the roadmap to define a problem effectively: User Research: Connect, listen, gather insights. Data Analysis: Support findings with data. Empathy and User Personas: Humanize the problem. Scenarios and Journeys: Visualize real-world context. Stakeholder Collaboration: Gain diverse perspectives. Storytelling: Craft compelling narratives for shared purpose.

In UX, it's said if you choose the right problem to solve, you are half done. it's seen that lot of time people solve a problem but don't see the impact because the problem itself was not correct. So be very specific during defining your problem statement, feel free to validate your problem with Metrics / Data, User Research Insights & Impact. Check if this problem is worth solving by below approach: One thing that has worked for me in the past is that - 1. Conduct user interview to know what is the problem 2. Conduct the Quantitative Research like Survey to check the size of the problem 3. Check the data know the impact of the problem If your your problem pass above criteria, believe me this is the right problem to solve.

An effective design has to follow a user/customer first approach.During the design phase we identify & define the user persona, social, sentimental aspects & environmental factors. For example, the usability really matters while deciding the color, size of UI widgets and elements for an indoor or outdoor (a mobile banking v/s food delivery agent app) using applications or where we are expecting the people has the color identification problems. So, this type of decision has to make during the design phase itself so that this can be communicate and align with stakeholders / product owners. So, the usability testing methods in design phase can reveal such things - influence effort estimation and match it with core purpose

Design for the Edges Think about who you are including and who you are excluding and make that decision on purpose. Test with the youngest and the oldest people to improve the experience for everyone in between.

In my UX career, I've learned this: start by defining the problem. Design without clarity is like navigating without a map. What's the user issue? Identify it. Usability testing is our guide. With a clear problem, testing ensures we're on track. Every design step gets tested, showing if we're closer to solving that initial problem. Remember: Begin with the problem. Let usability testing steer the solution.

I Found these 3 processes helping me a lot in generating ideas: 1. Double Diamond Brainstorm : Discover (Research)-> Define (Insights) -> Develop (Ideation)-> Deliver (Prototype). In this process you diverge & converge to discover the problems, and similarly diverge and converge to figure out best solutions with the filter of business, experience & tech. Attendees: cross functional team 2. Design Thinking Workshop- You follow the design thinking process in the workshop to know your user, brainstorm, define the problem and work on possible solutions with wireframes. Attendees should be cross functional team. 3. Design Sprint - it's a 5 Days process with all the stakeholder to figure out and test all the possible solutions.

After mastering Problem Definition and gaining insights into your users, your creativity becomes limitless. It's the perfect moment to join Design Thinking Workshops and craft innovative solutions. Enhance your designs using sketching, whiteboarding, wireframing, and prototyping. Paired with compelling narratives. These tools will add clarity and appeal to your ideas. Validate your ideas through usability walkthroughs and evaluations, aligning them with user needs and real-world tasks. In design, where every detail counts, these strategies pave the way for exceptional user experiences.

Once you understand the problem and know your users well, your creativity becomes boundless. You can foster innovation by bringing different teams together for Design Thinking Workshops, where everyone brainstorms ideas and solves problems as a team. To make your designs even better, you can use tools like sketching, wireframing, and prototyping. These tools help you create simple designs that come to life with stories. These methods help you quickly and inexpensively show and explain your ideas. You can also check if your ideas work well with users by using methods like usability tests and evaluations. This way, you can be sure your designs are easy to use and meet user needs.

The best and the closest test to the idea generation phase is the practice of role play. Early role plays give your users or sponsor users, representative users in your cohort, a great vision of how their lives, tasks and perspectives are likely to change with the ideas generated in the brainstorming session. It does not need prototypes or needs very low fidelity, early versions of it to validate the ideas.

Some of the ways that always stood by me has been earthy and human centric - Contextual enquiry: Used this in field research especially at Nokia and Sapient to generate ideas from users in their social context. This unearth opportunities for feature enhancements & usability improvement - Design sprint: In a defined period (ideally 5 days, but if time is a constraint, even a shorter period is helpful) and for defined problem statements, bring as many approach thoughts and try-test them with users & stakeholders. - Fusion workshop: Used this with large clients and it helps to get stakeholders in the same rooms for a period. Thus enabling validation of ideas, close on a approach and enable stakeholder to plug into the solution picture

A great way is to use low-code tools to create first higher-fidelity versions of your product or service. Low-code platforms are software tools that enable creating applications with minimal coding, using a visual development environment with drag-and-drop features, built-in data connectors, and code templates. Low-code platforms, such as Microsoft Power Apps or OutSystems can help you create more realistic and interactive mockups, prototypes, or even fully functional products, and test them with users. Low-code platforms can also help accelerate the development lifecycle, reduce costs, improve agility, and foster innovation.

Doing period Heuristic Evaluations allows you to do a quick analysis of your prototypes with a few different eyes on your designs. Targeted testing of features with users can also help clarify workflows and usability problems before the final software is developed.

Usability testing isn't a one-off event. In my UX design journey, embedding it throughout design stages has been crucial. Start early with basic prototypes; they can reveal major hiccups before deep investment. As design advances, so does the depth of our tests. From spotting big issues to refining minute details, feedback is gold. Sometimes it aligns with our vision, sometimes it challenges it. But every insight steers us closer to a truly user-centric solution.

Love your perspective on low-code prototypes @Eva! Remote usability tests are very useful and can be done at scale with many users in one go. That's indeed my favourite method to test actual solutions. Successful methods in this phase for me have always been hybrid, a combination of eye tracking and remote testing or hybrid A/B tests that help you decide the best combination of patterns, features and design to take into the final product. Automated tests are very useful in this stage.

by performing user acceptance testing, we could minimize the dissatisfaction of user journey while using our digital product, in terms of accepted criterias, here's factor that we could consider : - Task Completion Rate - Drop Off Rate on User Flow Journey (if the product is launched public) and start to navigate the problem occurred on specific flows - Bounce Rate (to get first layer of why user leave) Feedback surveys is needed if user finished their main journey (e.g : transacted on checkout page) to get their inisghts deeply.

At this stage, with eyes on the outcome, I have always preferred task analysis. This can be done remotely and at scale through traffic analytics like Google Analytics. Setting up a goal or a task early on in the analytics software allows you to keep a constant eye on the outcome you need. You can zoom into any page, any component to know exactly where users are dropping off. I don't feel this is given enough credit or used enough today but I have fine-tuned many products and gotten better results with the same designs through this method.

Before launching, I've prioritized beta testing to catch overlooked issues. Once live, the design meets the diverse real world. This is when real feedback flows in. Surprisingly, some of the most glaring usability challenges pop up now. But here's the beauty: this phase allows for iteration based on genuine use. The design process, I've learned, is never truly 'finished'. Every launch opens doors to more feedback and refinement, ensuring users always come first.

To improve a system effectively, start by gathering data on its current performance. You can do this by conducting usability testing for qualitative insights and working with the Team Data to gather quantitative data. Combining both qualitative and quantitative data will give you a clear picture of what needs improvement, whether it's the information structure, layout, or the user flow.

There's usually room for usability testing post-launch because it's generally quick and low-cost compared to other methods. In this case, it can be used to make incremental improvements or discover insights that can't be uncovered through a survey. An example is improved enterprise-level software for a consistent user base.

Between validation of early ideas and potential solutions lies the battleground of concept testing. This is using the power of user feedback while you are designing. For this method you don't really need a representative user, it can be done with anyone. Test early concepts, drawings, wireframes through questions like 'Imagine you are looking for early morning news, will you be able to find it here?' or 'What does this screen say to you?' 3 users is more than enough to know if your concept is clear or not.

Early in my career, I believed my designs were user-centric. But usability testing taught me otherwise. Real users often interact differently than we predict. Testing unveils these unexpected behaviors, guiding our design adjustments. But one round isn't enough. As designs evolve, fresh feedback is vital. This constant cycle - design, test, refine - ensures our final product truly serves its users. In UX, perfection isn't a one-time achievement but a continual pursuit."

Even before you have a prototype, gather potential users and discuss your concepts to get their feedback and insights. As you develop low-fidelity wireframes or sketches, test them with users to identify initial issues and validate design choices. Test more advanced prototypes with increased fidelity, including interactive mockups and clickable designs. Continuously test as you make design iterations to address usability issues, ensuring your product evolves in a user-centered manner. Monitor user feedback, gather data on user behavior, and make improvements based on real-world usage.

In my experience involving different people from various departments in user research is crucial. When you bring together a diverse group, you get a lot of different ideas and viewpoints. Each person has their own special knowledge, and when you put all these ideas together, it makes the research better. This teamwork also shows how important it is to test the product with users because it's not just one person's job. It's everyone's job to make sure the product is great for the people who use it.