I study how people read, especially how they read digital media. I have been trained in plain language. I also understand the impact that graphics and design have on written communications. I have developed research and testing tools based on this understanding.
Organisations commission us to conduct Information usability testing, when they
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Want users to give information to them that is accurate and honest; and
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Want to give information to users that they use in the way intended.
We have conducted hundreds of information user tests over the years for financial services organisations, not-for-profit associations, and government.
We bring research consultancy benefits to our user testing
We design the test specifically for the material we are testing. We may create questions for you that we have never used before to meet your specific needs. We are trained in linguistics, so we bring our technical language skills to this.
We identify what needs to be rewritten or re-designed and how it should be done, specifically:
- User stories: People vary in how they give information, how much they are willing to give. People vary in how well they understand information given to them. The task they want done also affects what information of theirs they will give and what of yours they will use
- User journeys. User journeys have pain points when users abandon giving or using information because it is too difficult.
- Engagement levels vary. Users skim through some sections and pour over others. This is sometimes driven by the content, sometimes by the language and sometimes by the affordances.
We specialise in 'information usability' because we have an extensive knowledge of linguistics and have been trained in plain language.
Tags: Making sense, Disclosure, Consumer testing, Compliance, Information usability