This is an absolutely brilliant write-up! Nice one Nat.
I think the single most important thing for the success of a usability test is the demeanor of the facilitator. They have to be chatty but quiet at the right times; friendly but not distracting; professional but approachable; detached from the project but involved with the test subject. It’s incredibly hard to get right. Personally, I find it hard to stay focussed beyond 30 minutes or so – it’s quite intense and really tiring.
I also ask subjects to follow where they’re looking with the mouse. It’s slightly more natural than speaking each eye movement out loud and catches some things that the subject might not bother to mention.
Mike Stenhouse
This is an absolutely brilliant write-up! Nice one Nat.
I think the single most important thing for the success of a usability test is the demeanor of the facilitator. They have to be chatty but quiet at the right times; friendly but not distracting; professional but approachable; detached from the project but involved with the test subject. It’s incredibly hard to get right. Personally, I find it hard to stay focussed beyond 30 minutes or so – it’s quite intense and really tiring.
I also ask subjects to follow where they’re looking with the mouse. It’s slightly more natural than speaking each eye movement out loud and catches some things that the subject might not bother to mention.