UX Snap Test - Welcome Screen Case Study

It is one thing knowing the principles and laws of UX, and it is another thing satisfying users by applying those principles in your toolbox.

I ran a quick test, which I call a snap test, for just 10 hours to decide which design approach to take on a project I am working on for a friend. 

The idea is to decide on one out of three welcome screens, putting into consideration the following;

1. Clarity of the design
2. Easy communication to reduce cognitive load on users
3. Layout of elements
4. Actionable instances (clearly defined CTAs)
5. The simplicity of the design (whitespace in mind)

Below is an image showing the 3 designs side by side, this was presented to the users to choose from and give reasons for their decision;

Function of this screen basically defines the type of user account to create before proceeding to fill any forms since each of the above use cases has its own data set to be collected.

There were a total of 21 users who participated in the test. 

There are no criteria for participant selection, everything was random, and the mode for the survey was basically through WhatsApp status and community groups. 19 participants from Ghana, 1 Senegal, and 1 USA.

The total of 21 was actually the number of unbiased or straight out decisions with reasons. There were extra 6 responses that were not concrete, so I decided to remove them from the valued data.

Some reasons were for unqualified responses;

1. They switched choices when they were asked why they made that decision
2. Some had no clear reasons, all they said; “because it is nice”
3. Another response considered picking a piece of each design

For each of the design approaches A to C, I am going to list the good and the bad that was pointed out.

NB: This feedbacks are directly user responses summarised, no expert analysis, just the lay-mans approach.

The good thing about doing “snap tests” is that it helps you as a UI/UX Designer validate your design approaches quickly with both the clients in question and the users or market you are building for. Your job is to meet the needs of the user as well as clearly satisfying the business goals of the client.

The verdict!

My Take and Learnings

Obviously, as a designer, I would want to make things look really good! But then, is the good usable?

1. Be ready to accept unexpected results from user tests you run. Users may not know what they want, but they are mostly right about what they choose.
2. Sometimes, clients may not want to accept certain designs you present to them. As much as you are the professional, you need to back most of your decisions by doing user testing, because, the client to an extent cares about the users, who are the core of the business model they want to run.
3. Iterate! Iterate! Iterate! There is always room for improvement. No hard feelings, but your designs can only be their best when you iterate and test other options. There is no single complete recipe for all, everyone has their taste.
4. Do not be afraid to share your designs for feedback and criticism. Every great designer has their design trashed once or more in their lifetime. There is always room for improvement. You can only learn more about your users or about the world by asking.
5. Be humble, and open and positive. These things precede empathy, and Empathy is a great tool for designing great Human-Centered Products.

I hope this helps someone somewhere, let me know in the comments what your thoughts are and also share your experiences or approaches to quickly testing design approaches.

God Bless!