Are you in the Loop11?
Every now and again I come across things on the internet which are really unique, and awesome. Today while I was browsing the Holroyd City Council website, I found this fascinating tool which they were using to test user experiences – Loop11. Here’s the blurb from their site:
Loop11 is a web-based user-experience testing tool, allowing companies to conduct online, unmoderated user testing on any kind of digital interface. Loop11 is not a survey or web analytics tool, but a user experience tool… helping you to understand user behaviour.
Loop11 is opt-in from the user’s point of view. You have to choose to undertake the tests – they are not forced upon you. Loop11 allows you to setup tests for your users to undertake, and record the results of their experience. For example, you could be asked to find information on council waste services. When you find what you are asked to find, you press the “Complete” button. Simple.
All of your experiences are recorded, and the web developers of the site can evaluate the results to help improve the site. You can see where users have difficulties in navigation and finding information on your site.
It’s currently in private beta, but I am holding out for a public beta to be released soon. I seriously haven’t seen something like this before – it’s quite unique.
There’s only a couple of problems I can see with this approach to usability testing:
- Users have to opt-in
- Users who opt-in are more likely to be more computer literate, and may be able to complete the tests easier than non-computer literate folks
As a result of the above two points, I can see that this approach could deliver skewed results. However, if used in combination with other metrics, it could really help developers create more user-friendly sites.
I reckon we should all watch Loop11 closely to see if they deliver a successful product, and a successful approach to user acceptance testing.