From the 15 interviews conducted by our team, we derived statements that shows the challenges participants encountered in each of the 4 tasks.
The interpreted codes are transferred into an affinity diagram to identify patterns and findings.
Civic User Testing (CUT) Group | Project Duration: 5 Weeks
Team: 1 Project Manager, 1 Project Coordinator, 1 Project Advisor, 5 UX Researchers
Project Overview
Our research, conducted in collaboration with Washtenaw County and Master Rain Gardener,
aimed to evaluate the RainScaping in Southeast Michigan website with the focus on the usability of online form filling and map navigation.
- Measure users’ ability to input project information and navigate the map
- Learn the motivation for users to complete the form
- Identify and address specific usability challenges in both the form and map interface
Objectives:
Research Process
Usability testing with 15 recruited rain gardeners from Washtenaw county. See the Full interview Script
For each user testing, we asked users to do 4 tasks.
- Submit a project: find the project submission form, and successfully complete all required fields.
- Find a rain garden in neighborhood: find rain garden metrics from the images provided on the map.
- Find a rain garden by image: click on a rain garden image you like and locate it on the map.
- Find a rain barrel: locate a rain barrel from the map and its total capacity.
Research Findings
First finding: Users were perplexed about navigating between various pages and features.
- Insight 1.1: Mobile users encountered difficulties in returning to the homepage after submitting the form.
- Recommendation: Add a direct return to homepage button on the submission page.
- Insight 1.2: Challenge in returning to the original page from full-screen map view.
- Recommendation: Add a “Return to Homepage” button on the top corner of the map.
Second finding: Users had trouble understanding the map’s functionalities causing lack of engagement.
- Insight 2.1: The motivation to submit data is significantly influenced by personal relationship with Susan.
- Recommendation: Increase Awareness and Education, targeted informational campaigns.
- Insight 2.2: Many users aren't fully aware of the rain garden map's value.
- Recommendation: Integration with Master Rain Gardener Course. Incorporate information about the website at the conclusion of the Master Rain Gardener course.
- Insight 2.3: Users want more interaction with other rain gardeners and learn from each other.
- Recommendation 1: Introduce a "visibility" feature on individual rain garden profiles by incorporating a matching question in the submission form.
- Recommendation 2: Add a new category titled "Visible from Outside" to the existing filter options.
Third finding: Users were unsure about how their data would be handled through current interaction with the website.
- Insight 3.1: Users were confused by the blank screen when the page was loading.
- Recommendation: Provide more responsive feedback: loading screens or descriptive text underneath input fields.
- Insight 3.2: Some users could not find their rain garden on the map, thus they were not sure how long it would take for it to appear.
- Recommendation: Add text instruction at the beginning of the form to inform users about the processing time.
Fourth finding: Confusion in Image-Map Linkage and Legend Clarity.
- Insight 4.1: Unclear legend.
- Recommendation: Enlarge and change the color of the selected legend icons.
- Insight 4.2: On mobile devices, when a user clicked on an image, they were confused to find that the corresponding location on the map was not highlighted.
- Recommendation: Consider incorporating images into legend.
Fifth finding: Ambiguities in Form Requirements and Technical Queries.
- Insight 5.1: Unclear guidance.
- User did not know there is photo requirements, specifically whether a front or side view was needed.
- Technical questions in the form, such as soil type.
- Multi-choice questions with limited options (e.g. DIY or Professional)
- Recommendation 1: Step-by-step instructions and visual aids for completing the form and addressing technical aspects.
- Recommendation 2: Provide a comprehensive checklist of the information required in the form.
- Insight 5.2: Users expressed uncertainty regarding their current position or progress within the multi-step form.
- Recommendation: Introduce a progress bar on top of each page of the form to notify users their current stage and overall progress.