User testing is crucial to making sure the app is staying true to my user stories and is intuitive to use. Before I can begin the tests however, I need to create a test plan and script. This will make sure all my tests follow the same pattern, cover the same topics, and that I don’t ask leading questions. I created a one page research plan to outline how I will be conducting my testing.
Prototype:
I built my screens in Adobe XD. XD a really nice prototyping feature I utilized to make my first prototype. I used this prototype for testing remote users. All the user had to do was open a link to see and interact with the prototype.
I also created a prototype using InVision. I used this prototype for my in-person interviews. It allowed me to load and save the app to my phone so I didn’t have to worry about internet access.
Results of Testing:
Thanks to this testing I learned about two crucial elements I forgot to include:
- A “subscribe” button on the podcast channel pages
- A “share” button on the podcast channel pages
One user was also confused about podcast search. He wants to be able to shop by show title and by categories, not just the show title. To solve this issue, I added tabs across the top of the search page. They include Title (search by title), Tags (search by category), and Popular (search by popularity).
Because this is an image prototype instead of code, my users frequently tried to scroll and tap where they couldn’t which lead to some confusion for one user. However, all users responded positively to app, and in particular to the social pages.
Conclusion:
Thanks to user testing I have found a few areas of my app that need adjusting. But on the whole the app and the structure are good to go and ready to be handed to a developer team. As the app continues to be built and then used, there will still be a lot of work to be done. More user testing, more iterating and improving. Also, it’s important to remember this is the MVP. There is still more functionality I hope to include in future releases.