Producing an unbiased finding during a moderated usability testing yield better results for analysis.
DO’s
Use clear and neutral instructions.
It is ill-advised to lead the participants. Instructions should be given clearly to prevent planting ideas in their consciousness. It should be easily understood that participants will not misunderstand the instructions. They should be as straightforward as an IKEA assembly manual.
Watch out for verbal cues and body language.
Actions speak louder than words. This common adage hold truth to understand the participants’ behaviour. In certain scenarios, participants may not realize they are using the webpage or application incorrectly – provided it appeared normal to them. Valueable assessment can be gained from observing their interactions with the product prototype.
Maintain a neutral tone
Remember that you are gathering feedback for analysis. There, a biased outcome is not ideal to understand the shortcoming of a product. To avoid this, one should not influence them or give them a distinction of right and wrong. The participant may feel pressured to please you when you agree or disagree with him, Therefore, it is best that you keep a poker face.
DON’Ts
Be talkative.
Let your inner monologues take control. Refrain from interfering with participants’ thought processes. Issue instructions with sufficient information to get them started on the tasks and speak no more. Grant liberty to participants for their minds to think freely and observe their reactions to draw conclusions.
Take control.
Usability testing will go haywire without actual input from the users. Therefore, one should never try to take control of a task on behalf of them. It is your purpose to observe, and never get insinuate how things can be done. Grant liberty to participants to think freely and act upon their own judgement.
Be too observant.
Being constantly monitored by another person can put one in an uneasy state. Rotate from one participant to another periodically to keep the monitoring going. The participants will feel more comfortable when they are not constantly being watched like animals in a zoo.
Conducting usability testing studies with participants is a paramount to uncover any issues overlooked by the developers. It is not surprising that people may not possess the same viewpoint of something. Therefore, usability testing can change that by producing a product that satisfies everybody.
