97 Things Every UX Practitioner Should Know

Chapter 80. Always Do a Test of Your Test

Jacqueline Ouifak

You never know what will happen when you combine a clickable prototype, test script, and test plan with a human being, which is why it is so important to be prepared for the unexpected.

The main goal of conducting user research with a prototype is to learn what is and is not working with your proposed design so that you can make informed decisions for the next design iteration. The last thing you want is the distraction of a broken or misaligned prototype, test script, or test plan that could have been avoided.

In my first formal role as a UX architect, my boss would insist that we make the time to do a dry run for any planned usability testing. I would shudder; it was hard enough to understand the business domain, the usage scenarios, and how the users might use our enterprise app, let alone run a usability test. And a dry run on top of that? I already felt the pressure of thinking through all the possible user paths, building them out in the clickable prototype, and having to write a cohesive test plan.

The day came for me to finally do usability testing on my own. I was so confident in my ability that I thought I’d be just fine doing the dry run the afternoon before the first actual test day. As I went through the dry run, one thing after another went wrong, and slowly my heart sank to my toes as I heard my boss’s ...