SayPro Conduct Usability Testing with Disabled Users

SayPro Tasks to be Completed During the Period Conduct Usability Testing with Disabled Users Gather feedback and identify any areas where the site is still difficult to use for certain groups of users from SayPro Monthly February SCMR-17 SayPro Monthly Inclusive Design: Ensure the site is accessible to users with disabilities by SayPro Online Marketplace Office under SayPro Marketing Royalty SCMR

As part of SayPro Monthly February SCMR-17, which focuses on inclusive design, conducting usability testing with users who have disabilities is a crucial task. This process ensures that the SayPro website is effectively designed to be usable by individuals with different types of disabilities, including visual, auditory, cognitive, and motor impairments. The goal is to identify areas where the website may still present barriers or challenges for users, even after implementing initial accessibility improvements.

1. Planning the Usability Testing with Disabled Users

1.1 Define Testing Goals

The first step is to clearly define the goals of the usability testing session. These should align with the key objective of identifying areas where users with disabilities may still experience difficulties. Specific goals include:

• Evaluate Navigation: Assess whether users can effectively navigate the site using keyboard-only navigation, screen readers, or other assistive technologies (e.g., voice commands, switch devices).
• Assess Accessibility of Content: Check how easily users with disabilities can access content, including images, text, and multimedia, ensuring that all elements are perceivable and operable.
• Assess Interactivity: Test the usability of interactive elements (buttons, forms, links) to ensure they are accessible to users with disabilities.
• Identify Cognitive Barriers: Determine if users with cognitive disabilities can understand and complete tasks on the site.

1.2 Select Participants

Choose participants from diverse disability groups to ensure the testing reflects the varied needs of users:

• Visual Impairments: Individuals who are blind, have low vision, or are colorblind.
• Hearing Impairments: Individuals who are deaf or hard of hearing.
• Motor Disabilities: Individuals with limited motor skills or those using alternative input devices (e.g., adaptive keyboards, voice recognition).
• Cognitive Disabilities: Individuals with cognitive impairments such as dyslexia, ADHD, or learning disabilities.

Recruitment can be done through community organizations, online disability forums, or existing networks of users who have expressed interest in participating in usability testing.

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2. Preparing for the Usability Testing Sessions

2.1 Develop Testing Scenarios

Create realistic, task-based scenarios that simulate real-world use of the website. These tasks should focus on key user activities, such as:

• Making a Purchase: For users with motor or cognitive disabilities, test the process of completing a purchase, including browsing products, adding to the cart, and checking out.
• Completing Forms: Test the accessibility of forms for users with motor disabilities (keyboard navigation) and cognitive disabilities (clarity of labels and instructions).
• Navigating Information: Test how easy it is for users to find and navigate key information, such as product details, shipping policies, and customer support.
• Using Multimedia: For users with hearing impairments, test whether videos and audio content are accessible via captions and transcripts.

2.2 Set Up Assistive Technologies

Ensure that the appropriate assistive technologies (AT) are available for the testing process. These may include:

• Screen Readers: Software such as NVDA or JAWS for visually impaired users.
• Magnification Tools: Tools such as ZoomText or Windows Magnifier for low-vision users.
• Speech Recognition: Software like Dragon NaturallySpeaking for individuals with motor disabilities who use voice commands to interact with the website.
• Captioning and Transcription: Make sure that the multimedia content on the site is accessible via captions, transcripts, or sign language interpretation for users with hearing impairments.

These tools will allow you to understand how well the site works for users relying on assistive technologies.

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3. Conducting Usability Testing Sessions

3.1 Facilitate the Testing Process

During the testing sessions, facilitate each task to encourage participants to complete their goals while providing feedback along the way. The primary aim is to identify any pain points or challenges users face when interacting with the website. Key aspects to observe include:

• Task Completion: Ask participants to perform common actions on the site, like searching for products, adding items to the cart, completing checkout, or filling out a contact form.
• Think-Aloud Protocol: Encourage users to verbalize their thoughts as they complete each task. This will provide insights into how they are approaching the task and any difficulties they encounter.
• Record Issues: Take detailed notes or use video recording tools (with consent) to capture the users’ actions, especially when they face barriers in navigation or content comprehension.

3.2 Observe User Interaction

While the user is completing the tasks, observe and record:

• Visual Feedback: Watch how visually impaired users interact with the site. Are they able to perceive all content? Is there sufficient color contrast? Are screen reader users able to get useful information from the content and forms?
• Keyboard Navigation: Observe how users with motor disabilities interact with the site using only the keyboard. Are they able to access all interactive elements (forms, buttons, links)? Is the focus order logical?
• Cognitive Load: Assess whether users with cognitive disabilities can follow the site’s structure, understand the content, and complete tasks without confusion. Are there unnecessary complexities or barriers that may hinder their progress?

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4. Gathering Feedback from Participants

4.1 Post-Test Interviews

After completing the tasks, conduct post-test interviews with participants to gather more detailed feedback on their experience. Ask questions such as:

• What parts of the website were easy to navigate?
• Which tasks were particularly difficult to complete?
• Did you encounter any technical issues (e.g., with assistive technologies)?
• What suggestions do you have to improve the website’s accessibility?

This qualitative feedback will help identify areas of the site that may not have been captured during the task-based sessions.

4.2 Surveys and Questionnaires

Distribute surveys or questionnaires to capture participant feedback on their overall experience. Key questions could include:

• How would you rate the ease of use of the site?
• Were there any barriers that prevented you from completing tasks?
• How well did assistive technologies work with the site?
• What improvements would you recommend to make the site more accessible?

4.3 Track Issues Identified

As the sessions progress, track any issues or areas where the site falls short in terms of accessibility. Categorize these issues based on severity and frequency. Look for patterns, such as:

• Missing Alt Text: Images that do not have descriptive alt text, hindering the experience for screen reader users.
• Form Issues: Forms that are difficult to navigate with a keyboard, or have unclear labels, which may confuse users with motor disabilities or cognitive impairments.
• Multimedia Accessibility: Missing captions or transcripts for videos or audio content that may be inaccessible to users with hearing impairments.

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5. Analyzing the Results and Identifying Areas for Improvement

5.1 Categorize and Prioritize Issues

Based on the feedback gathered, categorize the issues based on severity and impact:

• Critical Issues: Barriers that prevent users from completing essential tasks or accessing key content, such as non-functional interactive elements (buttons, links), missing screen reader support, or navigation issues.
• Moderate Issues: Issues that cause difficulty but don’t completely block user access, such as small text size, insufficient contrast, or minor navigation problems.
• Low-Impact Issues: Issues that are infrequent or have minimal impact on the user experience, such as minor UI inconsistencies or unnecessary elements that don’t greatly hinder task completion.

5.2 Prioritize Fixes

Work with the development and design teams to prioritize and address the most critical accessibility barriers first. Implement fixes to improve the user experience, especially for the most vulnerable users (those with severe visual, auditory, or motor impairments).

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6. Reporting and Recommendations

6.1 Document Usability Testing Results

Create a detailed report summarizing the testing process, findings, and recommendations. This report should include:

• Overview of Testing: A description of the testing objectives, methods used, and participant demographics.
• Findings: A breakdown of issues discovered during the sessions, categorized by severity and frequency.
• Recommendations: Specific changes to improve accessibility, such as modifying UI elements, improving keyboard navigation, adding alt text for images, or adding multimedia transcripts/captions.
• Next Steps: Actionable steps for resolving the identified issues, as well as suggestions for continuous accessibility improvements and future testing cycles.

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7. Implementing Improvements Based on Usability Testing Results

7.1 Work with Design and Development Teams

Collaborate closely with the design and development teams to implement the necessary changes based on the feedback. This may include:

• Text and Contrast Adjustments: Increasing font size, adjusting contrast for better readability.
• Improved Navigation: Modifying the keyboard navigation flow to ensure users can access all interactive elements.
• Accessibility Features: Adding or improving alt text for images, providing captions for videos, and adding transcripts for audio content.

7.2 Re-test the Site

Once the changes are implemented, it’s important to conduct follow-up testing to verify that the changes have resolved the issues and improved the overall accessibility of the site.

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Conclusion

Conducting usability testing with disabled users is a vital step in ensuring that the SayPro website is accessible and usable for all. Gathering detailed feedback and identifying areas where users with disabilities face difficulties allows the development team to make necessary adjustments and improvements. By prioritizing these changes and continuously testing, SayPro can ensure its website provides a truly inclusive experience for all users.