Inled inte projekt med användartester

Donald Norman varnar i Weaving Usability and Cultures: Why Doing User Observations First is Wrong för att inleda projekt med en långdragen period av användarstudier.

“Field studies, user observations, contextual analyses, and all procedures that aim to determine true human needs are still just as important as ever – but they should all be done outside of the product process. This is the information needed to determine what product to build, which projects to fund. Do not insist on gathering this information after the project has begun. Then it is too late; then you are holding everyone back.

Once the project is underway, it is going to be severely constrained by time and resources. That’s a fact of life: All product teams feel these constraints. Our goal is to work in multidisciplinary teams to produce effective, pleasurable designs rapidly and efficiently. Design first, on day one, if you can. Review, test, and redesign. Let the programming and marketing teams know how the product will look and behave at the very start of the project. Have faith in our ability to design well-crafted, understandable interfaces and procedures rapidly, without the need for (lengthy) research. Become an essential part of the team, so our input comes simultaneously with everyone else’s.
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Usability testing is like Beta testing of software. It should never be used to determine ‘what users need’. It is for catching bugs"

Se även Extrem användarorientering