By design, usability testing is a great way for organizations to gather insight on site content, as testers perform assigned tasks, such as reviewing a landing page or completing a transaction. Through the power of observation, that insight can lead to a better user experience for site and app users. It’s like being a ‘digital fly on the wall’ as users perform tasks in a recorded session.
Behind that effort is a usability testing platform and I have used several over the years, including UserTesting. In this post, they highlight how the little things on a web page can shape their whole experience. This is microcopy in action: https://www.usertesting.com/blog/microcopy
There’s also a referenced study conducted by Baynard Institute with some great trends.
To the article’s point, those deep sighs and changes in voice inflection when viewing content can speak volumes. Whether it’s a long form asking for too many fields or a landing page that has a high abandonment rate, understanding the microcopy principle can make the difference in the user experience. If anything, every organization needs to invest in this effort, especially when analytics identifies a trend in site activity or behavior – from the header to the footer. Ultimately, these little things can lead to a bigger problem of site abandonment or a frustrated end user. I have personally seen this firsthand in usability sessions and it does reveal quite a bit, while serving as a great way to really connect with your customers.
Easy (and free) Way to Perform Usability Testing
Given the current pandemic lockdown, Zoom has become a popular destination for people to remotely connect, making virtual meetings, workshops, happy hours and celebrations the new norm. It can also be used to conduct a moderated usability test with your base of customers. The free version offers just enough for a session with a 40-minute limit. In essence, the test is more like a round table focus group or discussion on your content. You can even record the session for future reference. There are also other platforms, including GoToMeeting and Google Hangouts, all of which can deliver the same results at no cost to you.
Feel free to share any thoughts (big or small). 😉
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