The Do's and Dont's of Usability Testing

Usability Do’s

• Speak to the User: Use a language, tone, and style that the user would relate to and expect
• Identify a Reasonable Journey: Note specific activities that are typical of your users’ interactions with your product (read more about customer journey maps)
• Set Goals and Measurements for your Test: Each task should relate back to your product’s functionality and the data you’d like to collect. Eg. Does a square button make more sense to a user over a circular button?
• Capture Everything: Collect as much information as possible; whether it’s an email address, payment detail, or contact information
• Use Data to Make Decisions: Focus design decisions only on received information
• Address the Root of the Problem, not the Symptoms: Some responses will be symptomatic of a bigger problem, try to identify the problem, not the cause Ie. poor email open rates may be symptomatic of misspelled email addresses not user disinterest  
• Make it Visual: A picture paints a thousand words — make things easier for your users
• Gravitate Towards Minimal Changes: The aim of usability testing is to see if your product works, not to redesign it! In a usability test: Ask open-ended questions and make the participant feel comfortable, provide hints or prompts based on answers received and be concise. 

Usability Dont’s

• Use Product-Specific Terminology: Don’t describe the product and refrain from using technical jargon
• Lead the Participant by Describing the Task: Avoid direction or telling people what they need to do
• Create Dependent Tasks: If something needs more information, provide subsequent tasks
• Mislead the Participant: Don’t direct the participant away from the test. Avoid giving the participant clues with responsive body language, facial expressions, and words.
• Avoid Making Recommendations that are based on opinions, are vague, un-actionable, create a new set of problems for users, or target a single type of user. 

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