Prototype Testing: User Autonomy vs. Necessary Directions
In recent iterative testing projects, I have been conducting concept testing with participants to learn about their experience with our mid-fi clickable prototype. In the prototype, there are 20+ screens, and they are of a linear step-by-step fashion. The selection of each step should feed into the following steps—and ultimately the final step.
In this case, how might we make sure that we learn as much as possible from the participants while also giving them directions to click through the prototype with minimal frustration?
Develop Persona Profile Pictures Using iOS Memoji
Two weeks ago, as part of the discovery phase research activities, my teammates and I were building personas based on our understanding of the users. After we put together the characteristics of each persona and their respective pain points, it was time to turn them into profiles with profile pictures. As the “UX person” on the team, I easily claimed the task. For my teammates, they thought I had more experience in “making the avatar graphics.” For me, truth to be told, it is just always fun to find those avatars, often from some open-source platforms like sketchappsources.com.
The personas for our user group were mostly Asian. Although I had spotted a few line-drawn avatar sets in manga style that bring an Asian-representing feel, I didn’t think there would be beneficial for conversations about our users. Suddenly, one set of avatars caught my eye: “Memoji Style Avatars.” I downloaded them and found one that seemed to be representative of one of our personas I had in mind. For the rest of the avatar collection though, there wasn’t much room for manipulation on Sketch to turn them into something I could use.
Then I thought, why not make some myself? I have an iPhone!
Challenged by Choosing The Color of Your Kanken Backpack? I Want to Help
I wanted to give my boyfriend a Kanken backpack as a gift. I know he always wanted one, so it should be a very safe gift. But what color? When asked, he said he wasn’t sure.
Could I help? I asked myself.
What can I do to help him make a decision of the color of this Kanken backpack without rushing him, and more importantly, while making him that he knew it was his own decision?
Turning "Inappropriate" Questions in Usability Testing to Meaningful Ones
A few years ago, I went to a UX training day-long conference on usability testing led by Nielsen Norman Group (NN/g), the leading research & consulting group in the UX industry. This month, I was luckily invited to do an intro-level training at my company on usability testing for some research assistants who are interested in the UX world. I decided to review my notes from the NN/g training.
The training would be an overview of UX interviews and usability testing. There is one part that covers interview techniques. From my NN/g conference notes, I found a few questions that were “inappropriate to ask” during interviews as a UX researcher. I decided to use them as examples to walk through, while I offer suggestions to improve the questions. I’d like to share my writing and thoughts here.
1. “What do you think of the colors and fonts?”
Check design standards when designing; use other tasks to find out if the colors and fonts work, like a comparison.
“YOU Take Control as a User Researcher”
After two days of preparing materials, practicing the protocol, and setting up technologies, I finally am able to lead a one-hour pilot session. My mentor and peer teammate are observing behind my participant and me, offering support when I need.
After thanking our pilot participant after the pilot, my mentor closes the door.
I see. I am about to receive the first official “performance feedback” from the team. It’s big for me. It’s exciting. Until then, I have never received a sit-down feedback thing for moderating a user research test session. All I know about myself is that I love saying “I love receiving feedback from my mentors and improving myself based on that feedback.” I’ve said that so many times so that must be true.
“So, what do you think?” My mentor asks.
Shall I Complain, They’re Already Wearing Headphones
Someday from five years ago, I was working on an assignment in a computer lab at UC San Diego. There was always a sign on the door reminding us not to talk or eat at any time in the lab. The lab was normally really quiet and clean.
Until it wasn’t quiet anymore. I heard music being played in the room. I turned my head around to see what happened.
Nothing in particular, I thought. Students scattered in the lab were either working on homework with serious looks on their faces or chilling with their headphones on. Where could that sound come from?
I listened in more closely to locate the source of the sound. I scoped down the target range to one guy, who was sitting a few seats to my left near the aisle. He obviously had his big headset on though.
Weird.