First day of Yoursphere remote usability testing

The first day of usability testing for Yoursphere went really well. I interviewed two kids, one 10 and the other 15. The difference between the two interviews was pretty staggering. The most interesting thing that came out of the process for me personally was a feeling of empathy for our users. As a result of programming and designing in a virtual closet for several months, I've started to make some strange assumptions about our users:

1. They must get really frustrated, because the project isn't all it could be
2. However, certain parts of the site are so snazzy that they make up for it

After spending a couple hours talking to our users, I both identified these assumptions and was able to let them go. The kids on our site might actually be pretty patient, and have found a way to interface with the site in a way that makes sense to them. Also, the parts *I* really like about the site don't particularly stand out to the kids.

Specifically, I was testing a new implementation of Organic Groups / Panels which allows the members to have some more controlled control over their groups. Overall, the feedback was good, and some hurdles were identified and can be easily corrected. In essence, the experience was really quite cool.

A few tips for myself for future remote tests like this:

• Give regular encouragement, i.e. "You're doing great, this is exactly what we're looking for" as the subject bashes their head against your product.
• Practice polite ways to turn questions around. Q: "So, do I click here" A: "What would you do if I wasn't here?". Silence seems weird, and so does "I don't know, what do you think?". There's some finesse that needs to be exercised here.
• Make sure that the remote computer is plugged in and has a mouse (otherwise the subject will run out of batteries and have to use a trackpad. Ick!)
• Print a copy of the script for each test subject so you can make notes on them
• Give at least a 1/2 hour after a test to jot down thoughts and ideas
• Start recording 5-10 minutes before the interview, so you don't forget among the initial hubbub
• Test to make sure you're computer's recording audio before recording an entire interview without it.
• If you're working with kids, be prepared to improvise a bit. You may want to test something they really aren't ready to use or understand, or you may use terminology that's beyond them.
• Try not to say 'um' more than the kids you're interviewing. Bad form, Chris, bad form!