Before we could finalized our website project, we had to first perform A/B testing with our Hi-Fi prototype. This is a method where we had multiple options, not just two, to test which performed best with our user. I had aspects of my website that had troubled me. I would either rework it at least 20 times or find myself staring at the screen, willing the keyboard to magically give me a solution to why autolayout wouldn’t work or why a design wasn’t working for me. When Professor Raju had shown us in class the method of A/B testing I had actually felt a lightbulb shine. It was basically letting others choose for us but in a way that showed which design option of what was in your head was more effective while discovering what your user preferred at the same time.
A/B Test Findings
I had taken this method of testing, the A/B testing, and chosen my top three UI aspects that had made me the most indecisive and would require a user’s perspective to see what would be more useful and simple to understand. This included my home page:
I had toyed with the idea of having an additional visual, thinking the top was busy as is, yet everytime I had shown it to my users, each and every time they had preferred the visual. They had said it made them want to look around, it made them curious of what was next and how it had tied to the information next to the video and below the main video. They felt that the second page was too much text on its own and would need something to make it pop. I hadn’t thought it to be too much but could definitely see what they meant as it had been brought up in the multiple tests I had done.
The second test I ran as with my organization page with the inclusion of the calendar icon in the information that would share when an event from the organization would occur.
Creating consistency is vital in design, so when I noticed this was devoid of icons unlike other aspects I had kept like that for informational sake, I wanted to include them in this page but didn’t know how. I felt I was just placing the icon in the second option. I had one that felt the same yet every other person I spoke to said it had brought their attention to the date and had allowed them to tie the two concepts together, seeing the calendar has answered their question on when the upcoming event would be. I had made sure to use the same icon sets I have been using and made it create a set of information for the event.
The third test I had ran was with my application page. This was the hardest one as I had struggled with matching my page to what I envisioned in my head. I had needed to work with keeping the style consistent and the layout easy to read.
I had one or two say they had thought of the first one as being nice but that it became clumped together, it wasn’t easy for them to read. They in turn liked the second option, preferring it to be more laid out and simple in design. Some had liked the lines being brought back to show each topic. I had found the layout that truly worked and it had calmed my mind, helping me realize that this was my most successful form of testing.
I’m a truly indecisive person, quick to make multiple versions and hold off on decisions which often makes my works misunderstood until I’m near the finalization stage. This project has helped me in turning to other classmates to get their quick opinion or working for hours and having options, things for people to look through and give me feedback on. It was my most productive time yet with discovering new opportunities and even speaking to my Core III professor on possibilities through Figma and web design.
Throughout this project I have learned new softwares, new methods, and new design opportunities through research, experimenting, and external feedback. Collecting all of this experience feels like I have a new grasp on a tool that will always be in my hand as I grow as a designer. I find myself using Figma more and more, whether it’s to do some fun tutorials or to make presentations for fun as I love making and presenting information I’m passionate about. I’ve even considered recreating the game screen of a mobile game I play often through this experience of shifting screens, animations, and just what is possible through this software.