WHY MEASURE UX?
In the working environment, we measure things in order to make performance visible because we want to evaluate how well we’re doing, define targets and allocate resources for achieving those targets. Making performance visible means it can be managed objectively in order to uphold a certain standard or improve the bottom line. Performance measurement improves communications internally among employees, as well as externally between the organization and its customers.
WHAT IS THE USERINDEX?
The USERindex is a standardised means of measuring the user experience of a digital interface. While usability refers to how successfully a user can carry out a task with a given product, User Experience takes a broader view, taking the user’s individual perception of his entire interaction with the product and even the brand into consideration. Today, the success of a digital interface is determined not only by the functions it offers but also, and maybe even more importantly, by how the user feels about interacting with it.
HOW DO WE MEASURE USER EXPERIENCE?
We have developed the USERindex because we want to measure the user experience of a digital interface in a repeatable, scientific manner. This enables the product owner to determine the quality of the user experience. As a result, the product owner can derive insights for improvements, monitor the evolution of the user experience over time and benchmark it against other products.
“When you can measure what you are speaking about, and express it in numbers, you know something about it, when you cannot express it in numbers, your knowledge is of a meager and unsatisfactory kind; it may be the beginning of knowledge, but you have scarely, in your thoughts advanced to the stage of science.”
― William Thomson, 1st Baron Kelvin
What is the USERindex?
The USERindex is a standardised means of measuring the user experience of a digital interface.
Each dimension is in turn defined by aspects which comprise both very objective facets of good user experience such as the accuracy of the information and the responsiveness of the interface, as well as very subjective ones such as whether the user liked using the interface.
View image below.
The USERindex comprises 10 questions which have been worded neutrally, avoiding jargon and which can be applied to any digital interface, be it a web application or a wearable device. This makes the index very powerful because it can be used to compare the user experience of different products even if they are very dissimilar in function and interface type.
DIMENSION | ASPECT | STATEMENTS |
---|---|---|
Reliability | Performance | I felt the site responded quickly |
– | Accuracy | I found the information on the site to be accurate |
Usefulness | Effectiveness | The site does what i need it to do |
– | Usefulness | The information on the site was useful to me |
Ease of use | Ease of use | I found the site easy to use |
– | Navigation | It was easy to find what I was looking for on the site |
– | Learnability | It didn’t take me long to learn how to use the site |
– | Efficiency | It didn’t take me long to complete my task on the site |
Satisfaction | Appeal | I found the design of the site appealing |
– | Engagement | I liked using the site |
Summarising:
-
The USERindex measures more than just the usability of a digital interface; it takes the emotional aspect of user engagement into consideration
-
The USERindex is a tool for measuring the holistic user experience of a digital interface
-
The USERindex can be used to compare the user experience of different digital interfaces regardless of the devices or technology they run on
-
The USERindex can be used to continuously monitor the evolution of the user experience of your digital interface over time.
Why measure UX?
Today, we are constantly measuring how we perform
-
it was developed prior to the emergence of the web (and digital interfaces such as mobiles, wearables and intelligent fridges)
-
it does take the design of a digital interface into consideration
-
it does not measure the user satisfaction.
“If you can’t measure something, you can’t understand it. If you can’t understand it, you can’t control it. If you can’t control it, you can’t improve it.”
― H. James Harrington
How to use the USERindex
Ask your users to rate the 10 USERindex statements on a 5 item Likert scale
-
The USERindex can be used during formative usability tests to determine, mould and monitor the user experience during the development phase.
-
After go-live, it can be used in summative usability tests to validate the expected user experience; to determine a benchmark value and monitor its improvement during the subsequent product lifecycle.
-
It can also be used to compare the user experience of different digital interfaces in a competitive analysis.
-
Make the questions optional in order to avoid forcing users to evaluate an aspect they might not find applicable.
-
Replace the word ‘site’ with a more meaningful term if you feel ‘site’ does not work for your digital product. For instance, use ‘mobile site’ for a mobile website, ‘app’ for a native app, ‘watch’ for connected watch, etc…
Downloads:
Use this spreadsheet for entering your user data and generating charts.
Unformatted statements for copying into your online survey
Printable questionnaires
About Us
The USERindex was created by 2 user experience professionals
News:
Contact Us
Share your data