What methods do you use to evaluate the usability of a product during the design process?

During my final year in college, I worked on a project to design a mobile app for students to navigate our campus effectively. To ensure its usability, I conducted user interviews with fellow students, gathering feedback on their navigation struggles. I created wireframes and turned them into clickable prototypes using tools like Figma. After sharing the prototypes, I organized usability testing sessions where participants completed tasks while I observed their interactions and noted any confusion. This feedback was invaluable; we made several iterations based on user suggestions, which ultimately led to a more intuitive design that helped students find their way around faster.

In my volunteer role with a local non-profit, I helped organize community events. To evaluate the usability of our event registration process, I sent out a survey to past participants asking about their experiences. Many mentioned that the registration form was too lengthy and complicated. Using this feedback, I collaborated with the team to simplify the process, reducing the number of required fields and clarifying instructions. The next event saw a 30% increase in registrations, showing how attentive we were to user experience, even in a non-digital context.

In my first job at a startup, I was part of a team working on an e-commerce website. I participated in A/B testing for different layouts of the product page. By analyzing user behavior and conversion rates, I learned which designs led to higher sales. Additionally, we conducted usability tests where real users navigated the site while we observed. This hands-on experience taught me the importance of iterating designs based on user feedback and data, ultimately contributing to a more user-friendly website that increased our overall sales.