Tree Testing

Tree testing tools leverage a wide reach and speedy test execution to produce focussed data. This data helps researchers to quickly identify where digital structures need improvement. With these cost-effective tools data organization structures can be easily tested without creating a full design. Examples of these tools include:

• Optimal workshop

• Userlytics

• Maze

• UXtweak

• PlaybookUX

a. Quantitative Tree Testing- Focused on getting numerical data including task completion rates and average time taken to complete each task.

b. Qualitative Tree Testing- Focused on getting the context on why users struggle on certain tasks or why they took certain paths to complete the tasks.

a. Set Research Goals- Define what you want to learn about your product or (intended) users and what kind of information you want (Qualitative and/or Quantitative).

b. Define the demographics of your participants- Define the demographic makeup and diversity of your participants.

c. Build Tree Structure- Create a simplified version of your site or app’s information architecture including categories, subcategories and other key items. This should be completely in plain text form.

d. Define the Tasks for the Test- With the goals, demographics and structure defined, decide what tasks are most common to your (intended) userbase or most important to achieve your research goals. These will make up the tasks for the tree test.

e. Define follow up questions to fulfill Qualitative goals- Ask about users general opinions of the structure, why they might have found certain tasks convenient or challenging, and how they would improve the structure themselves.

f. Choose Testing Tool- Choose a testing tool that supports your goals, tree structure and tasks. For example, UXmetrics works well for both online and in-person testing, Maze is integrated with design tools and UXTweak features and an advanced user session filter.

g. Consider Compensation- Determine what compensation is needed to incentivize participation and when to offer compensation.

h. Discuss and finalize Research Guide with your team- Develop an understanding of participant recruitment, questions and note-taking/recording between interviewers, notetakers and stakeholders.

i. Prepare and Test your tools- Conduct a trial test and follow up interview (if necessary) and refine your tree, tasks, tools and data collection.

a. Start Easy- Introduce yourself (moderator) and the goals of your study. Let participants know you are looking for honest feedback and their opinions are valued.

b. Address any Privacy Concerns- It is important that you let participants know all data shared will be respected and kept private before conducting the interview.

c. Collect Data- While Users run through the tasks, the moderator or software records where users click, their time to task completion and the paths they take to complete the tasks. Participant responses to follow up questions should also be noted.

d. Ask Follow up questions- To get qualitative data on why users took certain paths to complete the tasks and what information architectures they are used to.

e. Wrap it up nicely- Ask any final questions. Thank your participants for their time and their assistance. Get the information needed to send them the proposed incentives.

a. Analyze data- Analyze the statistics for task completion to identify the weaknesses of your information architecture. Read through interview notes or review recordings to determine which paths users enjoyed most and why.

b. Present findings- Create Bar Charts to present average completion times and completion rates of each task. Use any interview responses to create user personas or archetypes of your (intended) user segments. Personas and archetypes help teams to understand their users’ priorities and how their users think.