By The User eXperience Lab @ the University of Tennessee
Imagine a time when you had a bad experience on a website. Are you now feeling frustrated just thinking about it? How did you respond? Did you leave the site and go somewhere else? On the other hand, think about the last time you had a good experience on a website. Did you feel satisfied? Did you leave a review or tell someone else about it? Most importantly, did you visit the site again?
Your experience with the website is user experience (UX). UX is simply how a user feels as they interact with your site. Good UX provides positive experiences that keep a user loyal to the product or brand. So a user’s experience with your website or product has tangible results that can impact a company’s profitability, performance, and credibility.
How do I measure UX?
The answer is user experience testing. UX testing is a toolkit of investigative methods to learn about user behaviors and preferences, uncover problems in a design, and discover opportunities for improvement. At the User eXperience Lab at the University of Tennessee, we evaluate a product by testing it on users, collecting insights, findings, and anecdotes about how people use it and feel about the product. With this information, we provide an analysis of the interface and deliver recommendations for how to improve the user experience.
A Good Feeling
At its core, UX testing is a way to evaluate whether a customer has a pleasant experience with your product or interface. When users feel good using a product, they remember it and want to use the product again. In other words, a happy customer equals a higher retention rate, which equals higher business success. As trends, technology, and users change, regular UX testing should be a key part of business strategy to keep your customers happy.
