For my usability test, I recruited my parents, brother, and two friends from college. My mother was user 1, my father was 2, my brother 3, and my friends 4 and 5. Possible usability test tasks are:

Opening the top “see our hours and location” link
Opening the “find events” page
Opening and reading one of the library news articles
Opening the “ask a question” chat widget
Seeing the slideshow of “new arrivals” book covers
Seeing and understanding the “library use info” statistics of checkouts, program attendees, etc.
Opening the link to sign up to the weekly newsletter
Scrolling all the way back up to the top of the page with the shortcut arrow button

I settled on the 5 main usability tasks of:

1. being able to open the top “see our hours and location” link (The standard of success for this task is time to completion and overall functionality.)

2. opening and reading one of the library news articles (The standard of success for this task is satisfaction and user engagement.)

3. opening the “find events” page (The standard of success for this task is comprehension, satisfaction, and time to completion.)

4. scrolling all the way back up to the top of the page with the shortcut arrow button (The standard of success for this task is time to completion and overall functionality.)

5. opening the “ask a question” chat widget (The standard of success for this task is time to completion and satisfaction.)

Outline of Usability Test Script

OK, so first on this page, can you see the links at the top above the photo of the library? Can you click on the link to see a full list of the library’s hours?

Next, pick any article from the “latest library news” section and read it. Did you like it? Was it written well, and did it interest you? Did you find any typos?

Third, open the “find events” page. How fast did it open in a new tab? Could you understand the layout of the page? Were you interested in anything you saw?

Fourth, hit the circular arrow button at the bottom of the page. How fast did it take you up to the top of the page again? Did you experience slowdown or page elements popping in or out?

Lastly, please click on the little red “ask a question” tab on the right edge of the page. Did the chat window open quickly, and can you see yourself wanting to use it?

Test Results Summary

User 1 was not able to open the “see our hours and location” link, but enjoyed reading the short article she found about drawing history in Reading schools. She found the “find events” page a little confusing because it was laid out like a grid, not a chronological list of events. The shortcut button worked as well, and the chat widget popped up right away, although she said she prefers email communication with librarians.

User 2 was able to see the page of the library’s hours. He was less interested in the article he chose, but was pleased that it loaded fast. He found the “find events” page easier to read, and liked how fast the shortcut button worked. He was pleased that the “ask a question” chat page came up quickly, but he couldn’t see himself using it.

User 3 was able to see the “hours” page, understood and enjoyed the article he found with a list of back-to-school movies, but found the “find events” page hard to absorb. The shortcut button worked well for him too. The chat came up right away, and he said he might use it if he had an urgent reference question before a deadline.

User 4 was able to see the able to see the “hours” page and enjoyed browsing through the articles to choose one to read. He found the “find events” page easier to understand, but thought the shortcut button, though functional, was unnecessary. The chat came up right away, and he could easily see himself using it.

User 5 was able to see the able to see the “hours” page, but found the articles to be too short, and noted that they didn’t interest him that much. He understood the “find events” page and liked how fast the shortcut button worked. He was also pleased that the “ask a question” chat page came up quickly, but he couldn’t see himself using it.

Table of User Opinions, Scoring 1-10 (with 10 being the best)

	User-friendliness	Functionality	Content Interest	Would you consider this a well-designed website, overall?
User 1	8	7	9	Yes
User 2	8	8	7	Yes
User 3	7	9	8	Yes
User 4	9	8	8	Yes
User 5	9	8	7	Yes

Pie chart of user answers to the question: On the whole, were you satisfied with Reading PL’s 2019 website?

pie chart of answers, 4 yes, 1 no

Test Conclusion Summary

Almost all of my standards for success were met; most users found no typos and were able to open the link to the page of Reading PL’s hours, open the link to the events page and follow the calendar, and use the shortcut button with no elements popping in or out or slowing down. However, some users were less satisfied with the features of the chat widget and short article section, finding them extraneous to an otherwise concise, colorful, and engaging webpage.

What did I learn?

I learned that the more complex and well-designed the website, the more difficult it is to come up with a concise, effective usability test. My own website felt much simpler, older and amateur-ish in comparison with Reading PL’s great current site. I also learned that it is difficult to please every possible user of a webpage, since some may really enjoy certain elements of the page (ex. library news articles and chat box), while others may feel they are unnecessary or just add visual clutter. I hope to neither overwhelm nor underwhelm with my webpage, though it is a complicated process to figure out what looks good, works, and pleases most users.

Back to "about me" page

Link to comparison of Reading Public Library's websites at 3 different times