User testing is arguably the most important and probably the most exciting part of my process. The only way you can truly validate a design is by putting it in front of users. I do this as early and as often as possible. There is always something that can be tested - most of the time involving little effort - but the insights are always rewarding.

Remote testing

One popular tool that I use for remote testing of designs comes from Usability Hub. I find it useful for testing things such as CTA placement, instructional copy or simple navigation flows.

A/B preference testing of a branded wireframe for a mobile home page design

Guerilla testing

Testing designs with real people is the best way to elicit qualitative as well as quantative feedback. Park benches, office foyers, coffee shops and the occasional pub are all great places to to get people to look at designs or ask them to perform simple tasks. This is a useful technique to help inform and guide design iterations, but presented properly, it's also a good way to demonstrate to various stakeholders why I have designed something the way I have. Below is a slide from a deck I created when delivering the results from some guerilla testing.

Guerilla testing. Shows a video and audio capture of the user.

Lab based testing

I also have considerable experience with lab based user testing (where budgets allow) with users recruited to meet the target demographic. It's also a good opportunity for a designer not to mark their own homework.

Testing users from Germany in the lab in Berlin with an Interpretor

Expert Evaluations and analysis

As well as user testing, I have conducted a lot of expert evaluations. I have performed many structured evaluations using, for example, Nielsens Heuristics for User Interface Designs, detailing the frequency and severity of usability problems. I will also conduct cognitive walkthroughs, working through a series of tasks and asking a series of questions from the perspective of the user. Below are a couple of examples from some evaluations that I conducted for BT.

Extract from Heuristic Evaluation of BT Vision

Extract from a Cognitive Walkthru of a perfromance management system for BT employees