Usability Testing

What is usability testing?

In a usability test, people from your target audience complete realistic tasks with your product, such as "Create a new project" or "Order this jacket in your size". You watch what they do, where they hesitate and what they say out loud while working. This technique is called thinking aloud.

Tests can be moderated or unmoderated, in person or remote. You can test anything from a rough prototype to a live website. What matters is that you see real behavior rather than collecting opinions.

Why usability testing matters

When you build a product, you know it too well to see it with fresh eyes. A test quickly shows you which assumptions are wrong. Instead of debating taste, your team works from concrete observations. That's why at Layr Eight GmbH every design decision starts with a test: diagnosis first, then design. Your budget goes into the problems users actually have.

How to run usability tests in practice

• Define the goal: Decide upfront which question the test should answer, for example why people abandon checkout.
• Recruit the right people: Test with people who match your audience, not with colleagues.
• Write tasks as scenarios: Describe a goal, not a sequence of clicks.
• Don't help: Hold back when someone gets stuck. That moment is your finding.
• Prioritize patterns: Collect issues, rate them by frequency and severity, and fix the most serious ones first.

Example

A SaaS team is puzzled by low activation. In testing, it turns out new users overlook the import button because it looks like a hint text. A clear, obvious button fixes the issue faster than yet another help article.