Good user experience demands usability testing at every step

Introduction:

User experience (UX) testing is more commonly known as usability testing and is a testing method that helps measure the user-friendliness of software applications.

A group of end-users use the application to uncover usability flaws. Usability testing enables organizations to determine the flexibility of their system to handle different user inputs along with the functionality of the application to satisfy its objectives.

In the current business landscape, companies are not only focusing on building web applications that fulfill desired functionality, but they are also focusing on user experience. Furthermore, the look and feel of the application plays a vital role in the overall success in the market. The global market continues to become more customer-centric and competitive every day. Hence, it is important for organizations to create user interfaces that have a positive user experience.

What is the usability testing scope?

To make informed decisions about any application, it is important first to understand the targeted audience’s needs. However, the targeted audience for software applications can be complex. The users of software applications are diverse, so the development team needs to consider various aspects when testing the application. The team will need to study the audience, carry out tests in which they watch them use the application, discuss their experiences, and understand what they liked, why they liked it.

Things to consider:

• Understand the User
• Figure out the problem
• Realize the objective
• Understand what features are needed
• Make a strategy to resolve the problem
• Build up a functional solution
• Examine the solution through testing

An efficient usability strategy should contain a transparent and effective user experience design. Typically, the design thinking approach is used in building the UX and UI plan for an organization. The process is quite simple, you just need to consider yourself as a user and understand the customer requirements. Additionally, you are required to have a clear and comprehensive understanding of software products and the corresponding user requirements.

Usability testing includes user experience and user interface:

There is a misconception that usability testing is a test on the user, whereas it is a test on the software and the interfaces with insights from the user. The software quality assurance team performs the testing on the UI, validates each control, and makes sure the UI elements are formatted as expected.

Usability testing requires thorough verification along with functional testing. These are some key points a tester should examine:

• The functionality/control works as expected by the user.
• Consistency (for instance, red for stop rather than green).
• Accuracy for control labels (for instance, home for main page).
• Stability of logical flows.

AlphaBOLD’s  testing approach involves diverse development methodologies lining up with any group whether they are utilizing waterfall, agile, or a combination. Our teams use demonstrated industry-standard testing procedures, devices, and techniques to guarantee intensive functional testing that will support usability testing.

Conclusion:

Every software serves a specific purpose and therefore deserves a unique testing strategy. Successful usability testing ensures the smooth connection between functional, UI, and UX aspects of the system.