Empowered To Test

I didn’t think I could until I read, Don’t Make Me Think.

For the past four years as a digital designer, I’ve always hoped I could find my way into user experience research and design work but never knew how without a supporting team. When interviewing for past user research and experience jobs, I frequently was getting stuck when asked about user testing. I felt as though there was no way to be able to incorporate UX methodologies unless I paid for some sort of certification or education.

What was I doing wrong? What about faking it, until you make it?

And then I read Don’t Make Me Think by Steve Krug. Don’t Make Me Think walks through web usability and how easily you can implement user experience principles into your web design work and projects. This book has given me hope that I can take my own initiative in user testing for any future work or passion projects. Steve walks you through how to set up your own tests and implement them into solving the most pressing usability problems. He starts by stating that “testing one user early in the project is better than testing 50 near the end.” (Chapter 9, 115). In his “do-it-yourself” testing guidelines, there are a couple of steps any designer can easily implement into their work.

If you’re like me and you’re eager to start implementing UX principles and user testing into your work, here are a couple of steps to get you started:

• Buy and read through the full guide of Rocket Surgery Made Easy: The Do-It Yourself Guide to Finding and Fixing Usability Problems by Steve Krug
• Understand the difference between focus groups (determining audience abstract wants/needs) and usability testing (watching users actually use those products)
• Start scheduling tests one morning per month, don’t add too much pressure on who those test users are
• Focus on qualitative (for improving) vs quantitative (for proving) testing
• Testing website scripts to download and use as a reference

So, be empowered! Research, test, and create some badass products.