Who to Test - Website Usability Testing Guide

Who To Test

Who to Test - Participants

The idea of finding individual participants to test your site can be overwhelming and a stumbling block to routine user testing.  However you do not need hundreds of testers to obtain good information.  

The Nielson Norman group indicates that 5 users can uncover 85% of the major usability issues, and 15 users can find 100%.*

How many testers will I need?

The same studies suggesting small testing groups also stresses the need to conduct several rounds of testing on your site.  

If you are testing at several stages (i.e.: beginning and during your design process, and prior to launch) consider testing with multiple groups at each point.

With these small and agile groups, it is important to define your audience and find representative users.  Most sites have several user types, such as clients, advocates, community members, and the press.  Your user testing should reflect each of the user types accessing your site.   If you do not know who is using your site, look at your analytics, or engage users from groups you want accessing your content.  

*Nielsen, Jakob. "Nielsen Norman Group."  Why You Only Need to Test with 5 Users. Nielsen Norman Group, 19 Mar. 2000. Web. 19 Dec. 2014. http://www.nngroup.com/articles/why-you-only-need-to-test-with-5-users

Click Here to Go Back to the Website Usability Testing Guide

Last updated on .

Table of Contents

    NEWS

    News & publications

    The news about recent activities for needed peoples.

    More News

    10 Oct 2024

    LSNTAP Announces Access to Comprehensive Technology Initiative Grants Database

    Ypsilanti, MI – October 10, 2024 – Legal Services National Technology…

    Continue Reading

    18 Jul 2024

    Blue file cabinet drawers are shown with some drawers open with colorful file folders inside

    LSNTAP Launches a New Resource for the Community: the RFP Library

    Over the last two years, LSNTAP staff has pored over the listserv archive to…

    Continue Reading

    Our Partners