Lecture 7: Prototype Review Damien Markey

Lecture 6: Prototype Review What makes a prototype successful Why a prototype is never a failure Review criteria –Clients requirements –User feedback –Feasibility of main build

What Makes a Prototype Successful A successful prototype will generate negative comments on the site Remember no site is perfect (and never will be) A prototype is successful if it provides relevant user feedback to the Design and Build process The extent and ratio of positive and negative responses will determine the success of your site design

Why a Prototype is Never a Failure A prototype is never a failure as it can provide validation of design decisions such as –Navigation –Site structure –Layout If the design does not work with users it can be changed at this point, before resources are committed In many cases the prototype design can form the basis of the master design templates

How to Run a Prototype Lab - 1 Two types of lab –Informal lab –Formal lab Informal –Can be as simple as several colleagues reviewing the site –Can involve small audiences of actual users –Lowest cost of two formats –Shortest lead time

How to Run a Prototype Lab - 2 Formal lab –Hire a usability/Cognitive Psychologist/Human Factors specialist –Recruit sample audience using marketing/ recruitment agencies –Can run across several locations –More thorough than informal method –More accurate information –More expensive than informal method

Stages of Lab Build Falls into five stages –Plan for the lab –Find your subjects –Run the lab –Analyse the data –Make recommendations

Stage 1- Plan the Lab First set the aims/goals for the lab These can be to improve certain area or to find out the effectiveness of particular aspects of the design e.g. –Refine Site structure –Validate Layout/Visual design –Compare to competitor sites –Optimise key processes

Stage 1- Plan the Lab Create a test plan with –The method of testing Formal/Informal –Audience profile Based on user profiles –Tasks you will ask the attendees to do Based on user paths/key tasks –How you will evaluate –How you will report the data

Stage 2 – Find Audience This can be simply asking friends to work through the prototype The client may be able to assist here It can involve ad’s in local papers or in media that your target audience will see e.g. –Nursery notice boards for a Teletubby site Ask them to provide basic details about their expectations for a site and tasks they would want to do

Stage 3 Run the Lab Remember that participants are not being tested, the site is! Make the environment as comfortable and “real” as possible Do not discuss the site with attendees –You are supposed to be letting the users use the site as they would without you there Ask users to perform the key tasks

Stage 3 - Run the Lab - 2 Take notes and record any problem’s with using the site Record both good and bad feedback Get overall feedback at the end of the session –Use a survey to gather their overall impressions of the site See for a sample survey

Stage 4 – Analyse the Data Review the users comments –What went well? –What went badly? What sections were disliked? Why did users not like those sections? –Where there any common problems? –Where there any highlighted useful features?

Stage 5: Make Recommendation s Provide client with feedback in form of –Areas that were successful –Areas that were unsuccessful And the reasons the users gave –The recommended amendments to the design to allow it to better address the users needs

Iterative Process Be prepared to repeat this task several times Prototype labs are one of the most important user feedback tools you have Every time one is completed, and the recommendations are implemented, a site gets better Recommend them at this stage and throughout the build

Prototype Labs, Client’s and Users Involve clients with the labs –Let them see how their customer uses their site –I have not yet met a client who did not find this experience rewarding Keep in contact with the users as they can tell you whether the site has improved

Feasibility of Main Build Sometimes a client will review the site at this point and decide that the project scope has altered due to user feedback –They may want more features e.g “I’d like a ‘Wish-List’” –They may want less features “I want the news section on it’s own” They may decide the users needs are better met by a different method and stop the project!