The first step in conducting a usability test is to figure out whom the site is for. It is important to be specific (eg. age, interests, problems, what differentiates them from other people, etc. )


The next step is to figure out what the key product features are. Determine what your product is about and why it would be valuable to its users. 

Define the Audience and Their Goals

Brainstorm the most important functions of the site. Make a list describing each function in a few sentences. With each function, describe a situation in the user's perspective where they might perform that function. Then, order these tasks from easiest to hardest (starting with easy tasks will make user's more comfortable with  your product and process).

Create Tasks That Address Those Goals

Find people that fit your target persona and resemble the people you expect to be interested in your product. This should involve people who are unfamiliar with the product or interface and are unbiased toward it. Try to avoid people who design or market digital products and services for a living because they have prior knowledge. 

Contact these people and inform them that you want to evaluate the effectiveness of a product you are working on. But, it is important to not disclose information other than the short description in the task list. Also, tell your participants that no prior preparation is needed. 

Get the Right People

Steps Involved in Task Performance Preparation:

- Write a script that you and your evaluators will follow
- Put a short description of the website at the top of the page, don't tell them anything else
- Write each separate task on different pages (Don't include information that real users wouldn't have if they just started using the service)
- Find a quiet place to conduct your test
- Set up the necessary devices, tabs, and resources you need for the tasks and create the most generic configuration as possible (eg. removing custom toolbars, display options, extraneous bookmarks, creating a new user account) 


Watch Participants Perform the Tasks - Preparation

Questions to think about once the usability test is over: 

- What worked well? What didn’t?

- Did the users consistently misunderstand anything? If so, what?
- Were there any consistent mistakes? If so, what?
- Did they do what you expected them to do? If not, what did they do?
- Did they do things in the order in which you had expected? If not, what order did they do them in?
- What did they find interesting?
- What did you expect them to find interesting that they did not find interesting? And vice versa: what did you expect them to ignore that they found fascinating?
- Did they know what the product was for? Did they miss any big ideas?
- How many of the tasks were they able to do? Which ones gave them trouble?
- When did they look frustrated? Confused? What were they doing?
- Did the site meet their expectations? If not, where did it fail them?
- Do you know what their expectations were?

Evaluation - What Did You Learn?

There are four major steps in conducting this type of testing:
- Defining the audience and their goals
- Creating tasks that address those goals
- Getting the right people to test the tasks
- Watching participants perform tasks and evaluate

Boston University

A more full-fledged usability evaluation that involves more time and effort.

Micro-Usability Testing

Goodman, E., Kuniavsky, M., & Moed, A. (2012). Observing the user experience: A practitioner's guide to user research. Elsevier.

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