Usability research at a user conference

[Mary Deaton]

If you do usability testing at the conference, it should not be to impress
the users, but to actually learn something. If you determine how and what to
test in order to entertain the users, I would be very dubious about its
actual validity as meaningful user research.
-- 
Mary Deaton
Deaton Interactive Design and SodaBlue Partners
Tools of the UX Trade - http://uxtools.blogspot.com

On Tue, Feb 26, 2008 at 12:29 PM, Jerome Ryckborst <
JRyckborst at gemcomsoftware.com> wrote:

>  Our Marketing dep't wants me to do "usability testing" at an upcoming
> user conference -- a gathering of our software users. The conference's
> purpose: for users to improve their software skills and to learn about
> upcoming product advancements.
>
>
>
> I proposed a card sort, because it's low-tech, relatively quick, and needs
> little setup. This meets my needs (I have something I need sorted), but does
> not meet the conference goals; it won't help users improve their skills or
> learn about upcoming product advancements. So it got lots of thumbs down. I
> think it's also about the lack of glamour that a card-sort has -- users must
> leave with the right impression of Usability work.
>
>
>
> I can think of something else -- Morae-based usability testing of an
> upcoming feature -- but ... is there a glamourous or edu-taining Usability
> activity that I can do, instead?
>
>
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