Focus groups are not usability tests

Usability testing is one of the best things people can do to improve Web sites (or almost anything they’re creating that people have to interact with. Since most organizations can’t afford to hire someone to do testing for them on a regular basis, everyone should learn to do it themselves. There are a lot of different flavors of usability testing. The actual usability testing is very different form surveys, interviews, and focus groups, where you’re asking people for their opinions about things, or their past experiences using things.

The main difference is that in usability tests, you watch people actually use things, instead of just listening to them talk about them.

Focus groups can be great for determining what your audience wants, needs, and likes- in the abstract. They’re good for testing whether the ideas behind your site makes sense and your value proposition is attractive, to learn more about how people currently solve the problems your site or app will help them with, and to find out how they feel about you and your competitors.