Usability Testing Strategies That Unlock Revenue
Website usability is essential for business success. Have you ever felt frustrated with a company's website? You may be looking for information you couldn't find or struggling over site malfunctions. Sometimes, there’s a feature that simply doesn’t feel intuitive.
When we encounter usability issues, most of us abandon the site. Users then search for a company that will provide the information or products they need without the hassle.
Usability testing focuses on surfacing opportunities to improve the customer experience and conversion rates, ultimately impacting profitability. Marketing departments and large organizations may become blind to website usability issues because they spend more time on the site than anyone else.
They tend to see and design websites on large monitors at the office. Yet that website experience may differ from how the customer engages with your brand on mobile. Failing to see website usability through customers' eyes leads to user frustration and lost revenue.
However, usability can be improved dramatically by identifying where and why users are bouncing from the website. You could open the revenue floodgates by updating one single form, one conversion point, a series of CTAs, or simple messaging.
This article explains how to implement usability testing to convert more of your website traffic and increase revenue.
Usability Testing is Quick & Effective
What is website usability testing?
As the name implies, usability evaluates your site's functionality across various devices and operating systems. It helps uncover areas of confusion or pain points website visitors encounter while navigating the site.
Your website is likely tested internally during the website redesign or evaluation process. While this is important, more is needed. Capturing a cross-section of usability data from ages and demographics that are relevant to your brand across mobile, desktop, tablet, and iOS/Windows/Android is critical.
Strategically implementing usability tests with users outside your company removes internal bias to unlock opportunities.
Don’t be blind to website usability testing
Companies often become blind to problems on their website. Your teams' in-depth knowledge about your site and brand may mask usability issues. Usability testing with users outside your organization can help uncover these problems.
Be wary of just following “best practices” or your gut
Best practices can be helpful, but you need analytics or data to inform your decisions. Your new site can have all the best practices in place, but it can still fall short without data that describes how it's used.
These concepts should never overrule user experience. Some best practices may not be helpful to your audience because they use your site in different ways.
Don’t carry your usability issues forward
You can only fix steps along the buyer's journey if you know they are broken. A company could bring the same issues without usability testing through the redesign.
Additionally, you could lose revenue without usability testing. Customers could be trying to download an asset, convert, or contact you. But usability issues might make this impossible.
Confusing site navigation structures, forms with too many fields, or unclickable buttons that are too small or the wrong color. These examples of UX issues lead to customer frustration and lost revenue. Usability testing brings these issues to light and helps refine your digital strategy
How To Do Usability Testing
Before beginning your usability test, consider the following:
Usability technology and strategy: Usability testing can involve bringing in outside testers to test your site physically. You may also use technology that allows you a "peek over the shoulder" of the user.
Seeing a user's path on your site in real-time is critical. You'll gain these insights by incorporating technology into your usability testing method.
Highlighting a user's attempt to click a non-clickable area, look for navigation that isn't there, or content above the fold isn't practical could all signal opportunities to improve usability on the website.
Usability testing goals: While primary goals include identifying site design and function issues, don't forget data.
Seek out a cross-section of usability data from relevant ages and demographics across devices and operating systems. This data will give you a clearer picture of problems and opportunities.
Usability Testing Script: Create a script to answer questions about how testers choose which action to take. The script will also help keep your testers on task.
Questions you could use include:Pretend you are looking for a [product] - does the product page include enough detail for you to make a confident purchasing decision?
Perform a search on the website. Do the results match what you had in mind? How / how not?
If this was not a test, would you have abandoned the site at any point in time? If so, why?
Visit a category page. Do you see the filters and sort options that would help you narrow down your purchase selection?
How satisfied are you with [attribute] of [site] or [feature]?
How do you use [site feature, form, or area of site]?
If you could change one thing about [website section], what would it be?
What do you expect [website feature, form, etc.] to do?
Don’t forget about gift-givers: Although testing focuses on your target audience, a broader scan can help. Notice the experience of people coming to your site to make a one-time purchase like a gift.
Capture data from those who may be shopping during the holidays, especially if outside the typical demographic.
Usability testing methods
The most commonly used types of usability tests include:
Hallway/guerilla usability testing
Remote, unmoderated usability testing
Remote or in person, moderated usability testing
Hallway/guerilla usability testing
This method involves setting up in a public area with a lot of foot traffic and asking passersby to evaluate your site. This type of test may be beneficial because these people may not have heard of your brand or site.
Remote, unmoderated usability testing
This test uses third-party software to recruit testers. It also lets the testers evaluate your site in their home or other usual environment. Because the test is unmoderated, the tester can give you more objective, realistic feedback.
Moderated usability testing
Moderated testing allows you to ask testers questions while they are evaluating your site. You can also help testers better understand their tasks. Ask them to elaborate on their comments or help keep them on task. While this was traditionally done in person, we prefer to do it using a solution like Usertesting.com that allows us to find the right audience and devices.
Usability testing steps
Your usability test should include all or some of the following elements:
Decide which website or parts of your website you'd like to test.
Choose everyday tasks someone using your site would do. This may be submitting a form, downloading an asset, or purchasing.
Know what success looks like. Success is more than just having a website your customers can navigate and use. Create or select what criteria determine success for each task your testers complete.
Build a study plan or script. Before beginning, create a testing plan. It should outline the test's purpose, script questions to ask users, and helpful background information about your site or brand.
Common site issues uncovered during usability testing
At Eyeful, we’ve conducted hundreds of usability tests for our clients. Here are some of the common issues that we’ve seen on websites that may cause customers to abandon their journey:
Drop-down menus that don't work across devices
Problems adding an uncommon amount of products or an uncommon combination of products
Mega menus on the desktop where the cursor closes the menu
Required checkboxes or options on a PDP that are not clear to the user they are required
Issues with explaining a product — does the average person understand your product description? Is it clear why your product is valuable?
Usability testing FAQs
What is usability testing?
Usability testing evaluates the functionality of your site. Observe users in real-time as they test your site across various devices and operating systems. Testing aims to uncover areas of confusion, pain points, and where you can improve user experience.
When to do usability testing?
Test usability annually or once per quarter. Additionally, test when you redesign your site. Test before beginning, once you have a wireframe, before launch, and then at regular intervals after launch.
What are the three steps of usability testing?
The three steps of usability testing are:
Plan
Test
Analyze
A significant pillar of your usability test is the plan. It should include the test's purpose, script questions you'll need to ask users, and background information about your site or brand.
When you test, ensure your testers aren't too familiar with your site or brand. Don't guide them by asking leading questions. Remember to analyze your data and what you learned when your test finishes.
What are the four usability test questions?
The four usability test questions are:
Screening
Pre-test
In-test
Post-test
Screening questions help define your ideal audience for testing. Pre-test questions gauge your testers' experience and usage patterns.
In-test questions help guide your testers and allow them to provide feedback about their experience. And post-test questions will enable you to ask follow-up questions from the test.
What is the rule of 5 in usability testing?
Testing five users uncovers most issues someone might experience on your site. As you conduct usability tests with more people, you find fewer insights at a higher cost.
Next steps for usability testing
Eyeful can help you meet usability session goals by running user testing for you and prioritizing opportunities. We also conduct a website audit, deliver the next steps in presentation format, and provide instructions for how to set up a usability test in the audit presentation.
While running tests isn’t difficult if you have a usability service, the most important part is the interpretation of the data. Our team of experts can identify what is essential and less relevant to help prioritize the next steps, while setting more insignificant comments aside. T
Contact our team to learn how we can help unlock website revenue with usability testing.