Show me how Add/remove

Purpose:

The purpose of ‘Show me how’ is to do a walkthrough of your product/service with a user. You would want the user to use your product/service without you explaining how to use it. Observing how users are using it exposes unexpected/alternative uses of your final design.

Step by step Facilitating tips Materials needed Goes well with

Tips to include participants who are not able to:

See

If participants are unable to see, tell the user to tell what they are doing as they are interacting with the product. This could be recorded or written down by a helper, facilitator or another group member. Bringing a person with sight is also helpful to verify the users actions with the person who can not see.

Focus

If participants have a hard time focusing, ask the user to “show me how” to interact with the product/service multiple times and put in breaks between interactions. Bring a helper, facilitator or other group member to help write down is also possible to increase focus on watching the user.

Speak

If participants are unable to speak, communication with the user could be done in written form or through a sign language interpreter.

Hear

If participants are unable to speak, communication with the user could be done in written form or through a sign language interpreter.

Hold

If participants are unable to hold, make sure to have a partner to spar with that can do the note taking. This could be a helper, documenter, facilitator or other group members. Otherwise, the notes could be done through audio recording.

Think

If participants have limited thinking abilities, ask the user to “show me how” to interact with the product/service multiple times in a slow pace and put in breaks between interactions. Bring a helper, facilitator or other group member to help write down is also possible to increase focus on watching the user.

Touch

If participants are unable to touch, make sure to have a partner to spar with that can do the note taking. This could be a helper, documenter, facilitator or other group members. Otherwise, the notes could be done through audio recording.

Overview

Input

Product/service to test

Output

Feedback/potential changes

Complexity

Simple

Time

30+ min

Participants

2-10+

Activity

  • Be observant 
  • Take notes

Step by step:

  1. Ask a potential future user to share and show you how they would interact with your product/service. 

  2. Observe and note down their interactions, while looking for gaps between what they tell you versus how they do it.

When doing this method you should consider:

If you have a large group of participants and you have chosen to add this method to your plan, it could be beneficial to invite more than one potential user to the test. The user might feel a little overwhelmed being observed by 10+ people. So if possible invite more than one user so you can split your participants up in groups of 3-4 for + a potential user.

It can also be a good idea to have prepared a survey or some interview questions after the user has ‘shown you how’. This way, you would make sure that you get the user to really reflect on how to use it as well as seeing if they answer questions in a way that resembles how they interacted with your product/service.

 

Materials needed:

Notepad or template, pens, prototype of either product or service.