You have probably heard about how important it is to conduct detailed, well-thought-out, user-centered designed and straight-to-the-point user testing for your mobile app. (it is also called design testing, design validation, usability testing, product testing, and so on.) This is because it is unsafe to assume what users want and spend painstakingly long hours writing algorithms and developing a fully functional app only to discover that you haven’t effectively solved the problem, which sucks by the way. That is why a developer can only accomplish it by repeated testing with many iterations on the design, meaning it is an on-going process from the conceptual stage through to the mobile app development / Android, iOS stage up until the app is completely developed by top software development companies and is ready for use.
However, the major challenge many people face is how to conduct a smart and professional user testing for their app. In this post, you will take a head dive straight into the world of design or product testing and explore 4 must-know ways to do it effectively without screwing the whole thing up. It does not have to make the mobile app development / Android, iOS process unnecessarily complicated. All you need to do is follow these 4 steps and you will be fine. So without wasting any more seconds, it is time to get right on it.
Conceptualize the app and develop a prototype
It all begins with forming a concept in your head and writing it all down. It is advisable to go through to make sure the project will be viable. Once you are convinced that it will be, it is time to develop a prototype of the design process until it has been completed. Note that prototypes are not the first finished product, but only a model of the app with limited functionalities. This is done to test the design concept. If you know what you are doing, you will know that there are many mobile app development / Android, iOS tools to use to achieve this feat.
You can build multiple variations and design different prototypes. One major advantage of doing it this way is to discover the prototype that will work best under testing. Also, it will enable you to discover new concepts that will boost efficiency and make your app a success when it is all over.
Lay out a plan for the test
Now it is time to start drafting a user testing protocol. This will prevent you from making irrational assumptions that will only make your life so much harder down the road. So here is what you should do – Draw an outline by answering these questions:
• What do you want to test? Is it functionalities, features, task? Write it down.
• How would you measure it? Try to imagine a real-life scenario where the apps are application and see how functional it is going to be.
Get your ideal users onboard to conduct your design validation
It is true that your product was tailor to satisfy a certain need. Or designed for some certain demographic or age group. So it is vital to get the right people that the app is meant for onboard. What they will do is to try the prototype based on the test plan you have written earlier. This way, you will fish out areas of your app that are not properly conceptualized, and where to make proper modifications. Do not be shy to ask questions and get them to open up. What you want is honesty. Just because they are paid does not mean that they are obligated to give positive reviews. Take constructive criticism in good faith and improve on your design.
Another thing worth mentioning here is that you MUST pick a suitable location to do this test. Then get your target audience to this location to do the user testing. This is more preferable for a lot of reasons as it will make the test more effective. And then run the tests asking more relevant questions as you go along. You want to make sure you do not miss any vital part of this process by recording the test so that you can go over it again.
Write down the results of your test
As you are conducting the test, you should be writing down points that will help you in designing a better application in your mobile app development / Android, iOS process. Once you have done this, make the appropriate modifications to your initial design. On the other hand though, if the first user testing has a 95 percent or above success rate, you do not need to conduct any more test.
However, this is highly unlikely. Why? Because there is a lot of things you have not to consider during the conceptualization stage of your mobile app development / Android, iOS. This is why you cannot do without user testing. If you have done this, you can start developing the app as you run more test down the line to make sure you are trekking down the right path.
In all, usability testing is about making sure that the design works well. Also, it gives everybody the unique opportunity to make sure that all hypotheses and assumptions work efficiently after or during the mobile app development / Android, iOS stage till completion of the app. But lay down pattern needs to be followed based on functional specifications, which as you saw will enable the creation of well-thought-out finished products.
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