Usability Testing: Be sure to test content as well as navigation
Too many usability tests focus only on finding information – not on how the information itself works for people.
Testing “finding” (navigation) is critical – but not enough. People come to web sites for the information (content) not for the pleasure of hunting for that content.
We have to test finding to be sure we can get our site visitors through that part quickly and easily. But we also have to learn whether we have the right information for them, organized in a way that is logical for them, written in a style that is easy for them to understand, and presented on the web page in ways that make them want to work with the information.
It’s okay to start with just navigation
If you are doing early, iterative usability testing, you’ll probably start with prototypes that don’t reach down to the information pages. That’s okay. It’s important to test the overall design and the navigation, to test the home page and pathway pages.
But don’t stop there
Don’t stop testing once you have the structure and navigation working well. I know some teams think the work is over when they have templates and a design. They consider the content to be a poured-in afterthought that gets done just before release. Bad idea. Remember it’s the content that people are coming for.
Test with a sample of the content first
You can test when you have only a little content in the prototypes. Choose content for the test prototype that is typical for the site. That way, you can apply what you learn to other content that may not yet be written.
Set the scenarios so that participants are reaching the content in the test prototype. Match the scenarios to typical tasks people will do with your content. Will they be looking for general information on a topic? or for very specific pieces of information? If both are typical scenarios, include both in your usability test.
Watch and listen for how people work with information
Pay particular attention to what people do and say on the information pages. How much do they actually read? If they skim and scan, what are they looking at? What do they say they looking for? Do they complain about too much text? Do they focus on what you have in bulleted lists? and so on.
Ask your test participants to be specific about the content
If your scenario has them trying to answer a specific question, have them tell you the answer and where they found it. If they are looking for general information, don’t just let them say “okay, that worked.” Have them tell you what they found or learned. Keep them thinking out loud; you’ll hear not only reactions but also whether they have understood the information.