Guerrilla Usability: Insight on a Shoestring

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Presented at Iowa Code Camp, May 2010: Iterative and Agile development mean shorter cycles and a desperate need for quick feedback. Luckily, improving the user experience of your software doesn’t require days in a lab. This session will present more than twenty-five tools and techniques for gaining insight into your users’ minds and actions.

Transcript of Guerrilla Usability: Insight on a Shoestring

guerrilla usabilityinsight on a shoestring

David Sturtzdavid@davidsturtz.com

twitter: @sturtz

Hi, I’m David.Product Manager, Geonetric

Information Architect / UX Designer

Certified Scrum Master

Usability

Exceptional productsrequire exceptional

UsabilityThe effectiveness, efficiency and satisfaction

with which specified users achieve specified goals

in particular environments.

ISO 9241

UsabilityThe effectiveness, efficiency and satisfaction

with which specified users achieve specified goals

in particular environments.

ISO 9241

Defining

UsabilityThe e!fectiveness, e!ficiency and satisfaction

with which specified users achieve specified goals

in particular environments.

ISO 9241

Measuring

Usabilityis not about what people

think they will do or will feel…

Usabilityis about what people actually do,

and their satisfaction with the result.

Usabilityis created and evaluated through

observation, conversation, & collaboration.

By minimizing process…

guerrilla usability embraces agility.

Be agileIndividuals & interactions

Working software

Customer collaboration

Responding to change

Be a guerrillaIndividuals & interactions

Working software

Customer collaboration

Responding to change

Principles over processes

Output must be input

Pull together

Keep it small, but aggregate

INTERVIEWS + ETHNOGRAPHY

ToolsTelephoneSkype / Video ChatWeb conferencing/screen sharing applicationsDigital photosBlogs, notebooks, diaries

understand + observe

What is it?An open-ended conversation with users about your area of interest.

Why do it?The best bang-for-your-buck as a first step in getting to know your users.

Allow these conversations to snowball using a!finity diagramming and mental models.

Pay attention to tasks and goals.

PARTICIPATORY DESIGN

ToolsPaper, scissors, glueYUI Design StencilsOther images

understand + observe

What is it?A tangible representation of a system

Why do it?Fun for everyone. Allows participants to express needs in a different format. We’re not interested in the actual

prototypes as much as the conversations about the reasons behind them.

PARTICIPATORY DESIGN

understand + observe

PARTICIPATORY DESIGN

understand + observe

CARD SORTING

ToolsIndex cards (!)UX SortOptimalSortUserZoomWebSort

understand + observe

What is it?Participants organize items into groups.

Why do it?Develop or test categorization and labeling; understand mental models.

Pay attention to the interesting di!ferences in how various people label and group items. What things are on the fringes?

CARD SORTING

understand + observe

An open card sort. Spencer, Donna. Card Sorting: Designing Usable Categories. 2009. New York: Rosenfeld Media. www.rosenfeldmedia.com/books/cardsorting/

CARD SORTING

understand + observe

MENTAL MODELS

ToolsPaperVisioExcelPowerPointOmnigraffleAdobe Illustrator

What is it?Represents a thorough understanding of user needs, activities, and mental states.

Why do it?Ensures alignment of product features with user needs.

understand + observe

MENTAL MODELS

understand + observe

Slot “Theaters Near Me” under “Choose Easy Theater” as its primary location.Young, Indi. 2008. Mental Models: Aligning Design Strategy with Human Behavior. New York: Rosenfeld Media. www.rosenfeldmedia.com/books/mental-models/

USER FLOWS

ToolsPaperVisioOmnigraffleAxure RP

What is it?A representation of the various paths a user may take through the system.

Why do it?Refining ideas, preparing for storyboarding, prototyping, or cognitive walkthroughs.

visualize

STORYBOARDS / COMICS

ToolsPaperdesigncomics.org

What is it?A scene-by-scene visual depiction of a user’s interaction with a system.

Why do it?Provides a useful artifact for user and stakeholder feedback. Faster and less complex than a full interactive prototype.

visualize

Many of the unmoderated testing tools mentioned could be used to share and gather limited feedback on storyboards.

STORYBOARDS / COMICS

visualize

STORYBOARDS / COMICS

visualize

Kevin Cheng, http://kevnull.com/creating-concepts-through-comics

STORYBOARDS / COMICS

visualize

http://www.google.com/googlebooks/chrome

PROTOTYPING

ToolsPaperHTML/CSS/JavaScriptVisioPowerPointOmnigraffleBalsamiq MockupsAxure RPMockflowMockingbirdMicrosoft SketchflowFlash

What is it?A tangible representation of a system

Why do it?Exploration, idea generation, and sharing. To create an artifact for use in other testing.

visualize

PROTOTYPING: SKETCHBOARDS

visualize

PROTOTYPING

visualize

Balsamiq Mockups

PROTOTYPING

visualize

Axure RP

HEURISTIC EVALUATION

evaluate

Metrics(Potential) Errors(Potential) Efficiency

What is it?Reviewing a system against a set of guidelines or usability principles.

Why do it?Quick results, no user recruitment necessary

http://usability.gov/guidelines/guidelines_book.pdf

COGNITIVE WALKTHROUGH

Tools

evaluate

Metrics(Potential) Errors(Potential) Efficiency

What is it?After a task analysis, a group of designers and developers step through the software asking questions at each step.

Why do it?Quick results, no user recruitment necessary, can do at virtually any phase.

ANALYTICS

ToolsGoogle AnalyticsOmnitureWebtrendsPinch Mediacustom data/reporting

What is it?Reporting on data collected about user’s actions in the system.

Why do it?Relatively easy way to identify possible issues for further investigation.

evaluate

MetricsCompletionErrors(Bounces, Abandonment, Exits, etc.)

ANALYTICS

evaluate

CLICK TRACKING + HEATMAPS

ToolsClickTaleClixpyCrazyEgg(smt) Simple Mouse Tracking

What is it?A visualization of the user’s actions in a system.

Why do it?Relatively easy way to identify possible issues for further investigation. Able to collect large number of actual users.

evaluate

MetricsCompletionErrors

CLICK TRACKING

evaluate

HEATMAPS

evaluate

HEATMAPS

evaluate

REMOTE EVALUATION

ToolsUservueSilverbackWebEx / GoToMeetingVyew / Dim Dim / etc.

What is it?A task-based usability test where the moderator and participant are not in the same room.

Why do it?Easier recruiting or scheduling, contextual or geographic reasons.

evaluate

MetricsCompletionTime on TaskErrorsSatisfaction

UNMODERATED EVALUATION

ToolsLoop 11OpenHallwayUserTesting.comFeedback ArmyChalkmark

What is it?A task-based usability test ‘moderated’ by an automated system with no participation by a human moderator.

Why do it?Easier scheduling, less time commitment.

evaluate

MetricsCompletionTime on TaskErrorsSatisfaction

SURVEYS

Tools4QSurveyMonkeyGoogle Forms/SpreadsheetsWufoo / Formstack / etc.HaveASec (iphone)

What is it?A tangible representation of a system

Why do it?Exploration, idea generation, sharing, artifact creation

evaluate

MetricsCompletionSatisfaction

SURVEYS

evaluate

Usabilityis not about what people

think they will do or will feel…

Usabilityis about what people actually do,

and their satisfaction with the result.

Usabilityis created and evaluated through

observation, conversation, & collaboration.

`

Recommended…

guerrilla usabilityinsight on a shoestring

David Sturtzdavid@davidsturtz.com

twitter: @sturtz

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