Ahhh testing! Having spent years as a developer, I can tell you this was about the least exciting part of the process next to maintenance. It's brutal on your ego and some of the feedback you'll get can be downright brutal, so be prepared. But like many things that are "less fun" to deal with (e.g. insurance), it's a necessary evil. We need to know how well our product will fulfill it's mission, hold up to abuse and generally provide a positive experience for it's users and give them more than their money's worth (if we ever want them to buy from us again). I usually look to four kinds of testing to get enough feedback to insure I'm not overlooking things:

1. Inspection : The perfect place to start to ensure you didn't over look something obvious, or something you "intended to do" and to be sure the thing just plain works before you put it in someone else's hands. Figure out if it makes sense to you.
EX: If we're talking IP type products, review, listen, watch, spell check.. that sort of thing. If t-shirts does the color look good? Is the print look like you envisioned?

2. Functional : This is like "mechanical testing." Try to break it, poke holes, drop it. Let' others do the same.
EX: IP products: spell check, edit, review, copy, how does it look in digital and maybe hardcopy. T-shirts: wash it a bunch of times and see if the color stays, does the printing last, is the material comfortable, does it breathe, fit well?

3. Usability Testing: How easily can users utilize your product as intended? If it has an interface can someone who has never seen it start using it quickly and easily. Apple are masters of this and making things "easy to understand" is critical! How do people use it in ways you didn't anticipate. How does it feel to them.
EX: IP products: Clean, intuitive interface that doesn't require a lot of "figuring out." If it's a book or e-book, can they easily understand the content, or execute the steps if it's a "how to?" T-Shirts: Are they comfortable to the users? Do they look good on people?

Along the way you'll want to log and compile what is happening so you can go back and make correction. Some might be critical fixes, others less essential for initial launch. Keep in mind potential maintenance issues down the road for things you defer. As you go through several iterations of testing you'll want to grab the good things people say to use as testimonials for the product when you launch.




(Idea Lifecycle Frameowrk, Phase 5. click to enlarge)




















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Labels: framewoeks, ideas