Among all the definitions that exist to explain what usability is, the simplest one we found is Steve Krug's: "Usability really means making things work well." There are many ways to explain it, but the fundamental thing is to ensure that a person can perform a task and achieve their goal using a product, service, or website.
Previously, we thoroughly discussed what usability is and why it is important to ensure a good user experience. Now, we will tell you how you can simply conduct a website usability test to evaluate your e-commerce site.
No matter how much you've invested in design to have the most beautiful e-commerce site on the market, if people can't figure out how to navigate it to achieve their goal, which is none other than buying a product or service. If you fail in that aspect, they will immediately go to another competitor's e-commerce site.
In other words, having a properly functioning e-commerce site increases user satisfaction, which immediately translates into a higher conversion rate, more sales, and higher revenue for the business. Furthermore, a user's experience with a brand's website will heavily influence the opinion they form about it.
As you can see, working on improving the usability of your e-commerce site can encourage people to visit it again and again to repeat the shopping experience, gaining an advantage over direct competitors.
Specifically, a website usability test will help you:
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Obtain real data about the user's experience with your e-commerce site and not base your decisions on mere assumptions.
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Immediately detect, while the test is being developed, the flaws in your design and possible solutions in vital flows for the purchase process.
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Make all improvements before new functionalities are available to potential and current customers.
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Get to know and better understand your potential customers, as well as detect their needs.
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Obtain new ideas for improvements and for the development of other functionalities through the opinions of users participating in the tests.
- And most importantly: design a high-level user experience for your e-commerce site.
A usability test is a technique for evaluating a product or service (in this case, a website) by testing it with users who represent the target market. It consists of a person performing a series of tasks, just as a real user of the website would for the first time, without prior exposure to it.
An evaluator observes, listens, and takes notes while the person performs the tasks, and then draws conclusions about whether or not the web usability parameters are met. Note... it is the design that must meet these parameters, not the person chosen to do the test, because they are responsible for putting it to the test.
For a web usability test to be beneficial, the observer must explain each task, ask the user questions to delve into their experience, and pay attention to all the details in performing the tasks, but never guide, induce a response, or give clues on how to perform the tasks (these are some of the most common errors in a usability test). The idea is for the user to be able to perform them on their own, to test whether the website meets the minimum web usability requirements. And if they are not able to, it is very likely that your design is deficient.
With a usability test, you could evaluate everything, so it's important to start by setting your objectives and precisely defining which tasks are a priority for a user to perform to achieve those objectives. First, consider that a web usability test can measure:
- if the design is intuitive,
- the ease of use of the flows, and
- the usefulness of the content.
For example, you have a new product page structure for your e-commerce site. You could evaluate the following:
- Does the division of functional spaces allow users to intuit the actions to follow to achieve the objective?
- Is the product information sufficient to decide on a purchase?
- Are the calls to action clear and do they encourage purchasing?
- Are the buttons clear and relevant to encourage the action you want the customer to take? Here you can evaluate the text, location, and color.
Second example. You will make changes to the main and secondary menu:
- Is the menu easy to identify?
- Do the nomenclatures used to define sections and categories represent the content they include?
- Is the font size adequate?
- Is the number of sections in the menu reasonable?
And a third example, now about the purchase flow:
- Are the registration and login accesses easy to identify?
- Is the shipping form clear and easy to fill out?
- Is the shopping cart easy to use? Does it have all the functionalities the customer requires?
- Is the payment flow clear and does it generate trust?
After defining what you want to evaluate in your design, it's time to develop the task guide you want the users participating in your web usability tests to perform. Remember that these tasks must be useful to verify whether your design meets usability parameters. For example, a guide to evaluate a new menu, calls to action, and purchase buttons could be as follows:
Task 1: You want to buy a Mother's Day gift on our e-commerce site. Where would you click to start browsing?
What to observe: How they navigate, where they start. For example, if they go to the menu and easily find the category. If they click on the Gifts menu / Mother's Day subcategory.
Task 2: Now browse the section and choose a gift. As you browse, tell me aloud how you choose the gift.
What to observe: If they observe the titles, photos, and prices of the available products. If they click on the "View details" button. If the product page has several tabs, observe if the person tends to review the details of each tab.
Task 3: Now that you have chosen that gift. Tell me, what did you consider before buying it?
What to observe: If they have reviewed the description, photos, and price. If they seem clear and relevant to decide on the purchase.
Task 4: You have decided to buy that gift. What would you do? Tell me: did any text encourage you to buy?
What to observe: If they have read the calls to action, if they caught their attention. If they click on the "Buy now" button.
Here we will give you four options; three of them you or your team can perform. The important thing is to have clear objectives for your web usability test, that the tasks are useful to achieve those objectives, and that you take good notes, along with obtaining audio and video recordings as backups if you want to delve into the observations.
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Hallway test: This is useful for testing a new website, page, or flow during its development. Simply grab a tablet or your phone, select random people, and show them your prototype asking them to perform a quick task.
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Remote test: Ideal for current times when we must maintain physical distance to avoid COVID-19 infections. It also allows you to access people located in different parts of your country or the world. There are specialized programs to conduct web usability tests remotely, but you can use video conferencing platforms: send the person the URL where you have hosted your prototype and ask them to share their screen and narrate their actions while performing the tasks, so you can see where they clicked. You can even record the session whether you use Zoom, Skype, or Google Meet.
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In-person test: For this, you simply need a computer and a smartphone if you will be performing tests on a mobile version. Your potential customers will perform the usability test there, while the observer asks them to perform the tasks and takes notes in their guide. There are extensions and applications like Screencastify that allow you to record device screens to keep a record of user interactions with the prototype as well as audio of their comments.
Have you conducted web usability tests for your e-commerce site? Are you encouraged to do one on your own?
