Information Technology Reference
In-Depth Information
When planning any UX study, a few high-level questions should be answered.
First, you need to understand the goals of the study. For example, are you try-
ing to ensure optimal user experience for a new piece of functionality or are you
benchmarking the user experience for an existing product? Next, you need to
understand the goals of the users. Are users looking to simply complete a task
and then stop using the product or will they use the product many times on a
daily basis? Knowing both study goals and user goals will lead toward choosing
the right metrics.
Many practical details come into play as well. For example, you must decide
on the most appropriate evaluation method, how many participants are enough
to get reliable feedback, how collecting metrics will impact the timeline and
budget, what the best tool is to collect data, and how data will be analyzed. By
answering these questions, you will be well prepared to carry out any UX study
involving metrics. In the end, you will likely save time and money and have a
greater impact on the product.
3.1 STUDY GOALS
The first decision to make when planning a study is how the data will ultimately
be used within the product development life cycle. There are essentially two
ways to use UX data: formative and summative.
3.1.1 Formative Usability
When running a formative study, a UX specialist is much like a chef who checks a
dish periodically while it's being prepared and makes adjustments to impact the
end result positively. The chef might add a little salt, then a few more spices, and
finally a dash of chili pepper right before serving. The chef is evaluating, adjusting,
and reevaluating periodically. The same is true in formative usability. A UX pro-
fessional, like a chef, evaluates a product or design periodically while it is being
created, identifies shortcomings, makes recommendations, and then repeats the
process, until, ideally, the product comes out as close to perfect as possible.
What distinguishes formative usability is both the iterative nature of the test-
ing and when it occurs. The goal is to make improvements in the design prior to
release. This means identifying or diagnosing the problems, making and imple-
menting recommendations, and then evaluating again. Formative usability is
always done before the design has been finalized. In fact, the earlier the forma-
tive evaluation, the more impact the usability evaluations will have on the design.
Here are a few key questions you will be able answer with a formative
approach:
•
What are the most significant usability issues preventing users from
accomplishing their goals or resulting in inefficiencies?
•
Whataspectsoftheproductworkwellfortheusers?Whatdousersfind
frustrating?
•
Whatarethemostcommonerrorsormistakesusersaremaking?
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