Your PT User Test

Site Description:
The website is designed to give users the information needed to decide on the care professional, and type of care given by physical therapists. It also provides a search to find the location of different care professionals near the user. The site includes testimonials from previous users, and links to the company’s social media pages.

User Descriptions:
User 1: User is a 26 year old male, recently married, and a head club swim coach. He is comfortable with technology and frequently uses the internet for information. He is also comfortable using google maps to find a service or location.
User 2: User is a 53 year old female science teacher at an alternative school. She is very comfortable with technology and frequently uses the internet for information. She uses computers with different operating systems, knows a little programming, and has previously been the lead technician on her campus. She is also very comfortable using google maps to find a service or location.
User 3: User is a 74 year old female retired travel agent. She is mostly comfortable with technology, has a laptop and smartphone. She uses google maps regularly, and books appointments online frequently.

Test Tasks:
Task 1: The user will go to the website to learn the differences between a Medical Doctor, a Physical Therapist, and a Personal Trainer to decide what professional is best for their needs.
Task 2: The user will go to the website to learn about the differences between vestibular, acute, and chronic injury treatment on the PT vs PT page.
Task 3: The user will go to the website to find a Physical Therapist location near their city of choice.

User 1:
Test 1 Description:

Scenario: You are a 26 year old male that rolled his ankle playing football with some friends. You toughed it out through the game, but now it is swollen, bruised, and the source of throbbing pain. You are now seeking a possible treatment to your injury.

Task: You visit yourpt.com to find an explanation of the differences between a medical doctor and a physical therapist.

Please verbally express your thoughts and actions as you work through the task. State everything you like and dislike upon viewing the site, every action you take to accomplish your task, and your perception of opinion of the site as a whole. Remember you are not being tested, but are evaluating the site.

Notes/Observations:
User read the information provided above before viewing the site to gain an understanding of the task he was to test. Upon viewing the site, the user said he had no particular impression. “The site didn’t turn me off, distract, or catch extra attention. I was focused on what I needed to click on.”
The user scrolled to the bottom of the page and was confused about which tab to visit first. In response to this he said: “I think I need more information”. I redirected him to scroll back to the top of the page. He was then temporarily confused about which tab in the navigation would be best as the tab said PT vs PT and he was looking for PT or MD. He settled on the tab labeled “PT vs PT” and spent a few seconds reading the information provided on the page.
After reading the information, the user was asked if he felt the site allowed him to accomplish the task he was given. He agreed that it did. He was asked about any changes he would suggest making. He said “I was confused about where to go at first. I was looking for triggers like PT and MD and didn’t find anything on the page for medical doctor.”

Test 2 Description:

Scenario: You are a 26 year old male with an ache in your knee. You have no idea what brought it on, or why you might have this pain. Your wife suggests you look into visiting a physical therapist to better understand your pain and possible treatments.

Task: You visit yourpt.com to find a physical therapist close to your location.

Please verbally express your thoughts and actions as you work through the task. State everything you like and dislike upon viewing the site, every action you take to accomplish your task, and your perception or opinion of the site as a whole. Remember you are not being tested, but are evaluating the site.

Notes/Observations:
User read the information provided above before viewing the site to gain an understanding of the task he was to test. Upon viewing the site, the user said he had no particular impression. “The site didn’t turn me off, distract, or catch extra attention. I was focused on what I needed to click on.”
The user selected the tab labeled “PT vs PT”. He went directly to the section about physical therapists and to the link below the description paragraph. The user then commented after mousing over the link “Oh that’s a link. I thought it was a list title and the locations were missing from the list below.” He clicked the link which took him to the “Find One” page. The user then said “This page is very easy to use. I looks like google maps and is laid out clearly.”
After finding this page, the user was asked if he felt the site allowed him to accomplish the task he was given. He agreed that it did. He was asked about any changes he would suggest making. He said “I was confused about the link below the paragraph. I actually read ‘Personal Trainers Near Me’ because the words ‘Personal Trainers’ were just below the link and in larger font.” He was asked if he noticed the tab in the navigation labeled “Find One”. He said he did not. The user added that this may have been because he had visited the site before and seen the “Physical Therapists Near Me” below the paragraph.

User 2:
Test 1 Description:

Scenario: You are a 53 year old female that was in a minor car accident. You differed treatment at the site, and are noticing a few days later that your wrist is very sore.

Task: You visit yourpt.com to find an explanation of the differences between a medical doctor and a physical therapist.

Please verbally express your thoughts and actions as you work through the task. State everything you
like and dislike upon viewing the site, every action you take to accomplish your task, and your perception
or opinion of the site as a whole. Remember you are not being tested, but are evaluating the site.

Notes/Observations:
User read the information provided above before viewing the site to gain an understanding of the task she was to test. Upon viewing the site, the user said she liked the pictures and felt they were helpful and attention getting.
The user was inquisitive at first, and had to be redirected to the task after forgetting and trying to find a therapist on the map. Once she was clear on the action to take, she started searching for the item to click.
She, like the first user, had trouble finding the right tab to click on. She settled on “PT vs PT” stating “I assume this will be a page with more information.” She read the information about physical therapy, and found the link below it to use a map. She followed that link, again looking for how to find a therapist and not focused on the task. I reminded her that the task was complete upon finding the information.
She was asked if the site allowed her to accomplish the task. She stated “I had difficulty finding what to click on. I think the ‘PT vs PT’ is very specific and I was confused because I was looking for ‘MD’ or ‘Treatment’.” She agreed that once she understood where to go, she found the information useful. When asked if she had any suggestions, the user felt the label “Treatments” might be more suitable for the “PT vs PT”.

Test 2 Description:

Scenario: You are a 53 year old female that was in a minor car accident. You differed treatment at the site, and are noticing a few days later that your wrist is very sore. You believe a physical therapist might be the right choice for treatment, but want further information about the types of treatment they provide before making a decision.

Task: You visit yourpt.com to find more information about how a physical therapist might be able to treat your wrist.

Please verbally express your thoughts and actions as you work through the task. State everything you like and dislike upon viewing the site, every action you take to accomplish your task, and your perception or opinion of the site as a whole. Remember you are not being tested, but are evaluating the site.

Notes/Observations:
User read the information provided above before viewing the site to gain an understanding of the task she was to test. She was asked to reread the task to ensure that she knew what her goal was.
After the first test, the user was very on task. She accessed the main page again and stated all of her thoughts out loud. The user didn’t understand the section label to mean that she would find the information about treatment through the pictures. She completely bypassed it thinking there was a navigation tab she needed to click on. The user wasn’t certain what information was applicable to her scenario. She said “I don’t know the difference between acute, chronic, or vestibular. It says I have a hand injury, so I will click the picture with the hands.” This is a problem, because her scenario is an injury and not chronic which is what the image was labeled. Upon reading the information, the user said she was more confused because the information about acute or injuries stated that that kind of treatment is for hospital patients. She also stated “The image for vestibular appears to be neck pain, but the description says vestibular treatment is for balance issues.” She settled on the information about “Acute” because the site stated that this treatment was for injuries.
She was asked if the site allowed her to accomplish the task she was given. She said “Once I found the section with the images, I was drawn to see what they meant.” She never saw the title above the pictures.
The user added that the pictures did not seem as useful as she had originally thought they might be. She said “A user with a foot injury would not know what to click on because no injury relates to it.” She still did not feel her task was complete because the information provided was not clear.

User 3:
Test 1 Description:

Scenario: You are a 74 year old female that has pain, tenderness, and lack of flexibility in her hands from years of writing and typing. You want to find alternative solutions to surgery to fix your pain. You searched google and came across yourpt.com.

Task: You visit yourpt.com to find an explanation of the types of treatments a physical therapist can give that might be helpful to you.

Please verbally express your thoughts and actions as you work through the task. State everything you like and dislike upon viewing the site, every action you take to accomplish your task, and your perception or opinion of the site as a whole. Remember you are not being tested, but are evaluating the site.

Notes/Observations:
User read the information provided above before viewing the site to gain an understanding of the task she was to test. Upon viewing the site, the user said she had no particular impression. “The site didn’t turn me off, distract, or catch extra attention. I was focused on what I needed to click on.”
The user scrolled the page a couple of times to see what all it had to offer. She quickly settled on the image of the hands and was taken to the page about treatment for chronic pain. She read the information and said “I think I need the treatment for a chronic problem”.
Upon completing the task, the user was asked if she felt the site allowed her to accomplish the task she was given. She agreed that it did. The user was asked if she had any suggested changes. She did not.

Test 2 Description:

Task: You visit yourpt.com to find a physical therapist close to your location.

Please verbally express your thoughts and actions as you work through the task. State everything you like and dislike upon viewing the site, every action you take to accomplish your task, and your perception or opinion of the site as a whole. Remember you are not being tested, but are evaluating the site.

Notes/Observations:
User read the information provided above before viewing the site to gain an understanding of the task she was to test. Upon viewing the site, the user said she had no particular impression. “The site didn’t turn me off, distract, or catch extra attention. I was focused on what I needed to click on.”
The user immediately clicked on the “PT vs PT” link. She found the link below the physical therapist description and followed it to the “Find One” page. She selected the first therapist on the list.
Upon completing the task, the user was asked if she felt the site allowed her to accomplish the task she was given. She agreed that it did. The user was asked if she had any suggested changes. She did not.

Results:
• All users were taken to a quiet room, separate from distractions and interruptions

o User 1 still seemed to get lost or distracted on the site and required redirection
o User 2 seemed overzealous and kept trying to find a physical therapist rather than focusing on the task she was given
o User 3 seemed to want to hurry up and finish the task, but did not seem distracted

• All users were asked to read the scenario, task, and further instructions aloud

o This seemed to work for users 1 and 3
o User 2 had a preconceived idea of the purpose of the site and required redirection to stay on task

• Users 1 and 2 had similar issues finding the information for which they were looking

o The label PT vs PT should be changed

 User 1 suggested “PT vs PT vs MD” for the navigation
 User 2 suggested “Treatments” for the navigation

o There was some level of distraction for both users that might have effected their ability to focus on the task

• The information distinguishing the differences between physical therapists, and medical doctors was useful to the users, but the information about personal trainers only seemed to be in the way

o While the scenarios didn’t include an option to seek a personal trainer, there may not be enough similarity between the two to have a comparison

 User 1 suggested making the link look more like a link
 User 1 thought it was actually a list title that was missing the list
 User 1 suggested putting more space between the link and the title of the next professional description

o User 1 mixed the information about personal trainer and physical therapist when looking at a title and a link

• The images, labels and information about the types of treatment that physical therapists provide may be too concise and can be confusing to the user.

o The labels on the images are not clear to those that do not already know the terminology
o The image for vestibular does not match the definition of vestibular on the linked page
o The information provided about Acute injury is not clear enough for a user to understand without knowing the terminology

• The users felt they were able to complete their tasks, with the exception of User 2’s second task

o Each user had to gain an understanding of the page before proceeding

 This demonstrates a lack of usability
 Each user stated that they never saw the “Find One” link on the navigation even though users 1 and 3 had the task of finding a physical therapist

o Users 1 and 2 both had suggestions to ease the process, but both felt the ability was in the site to accomplish the task
o User 2 needed both more accurate information and navigation to feel comfortable in accomplishing the task she was given

Improvements:

1. The words in the search bar are not visible and should be made visible

a. The font color could be changed to a darker color
b. The fill of the search box could be darker

2. The tabs on the navigation need to reordered to have “Find One” in front of “PT vs PT”

3. The tab labeled “PT vs PT” needs to be changed to “Treatments”

a. User 1 suggested changing it to “PT vs PT vs MD”
b. User 2 suggested changing it to “Treatments”
c. Changing the label to “Treatments” or even “Care” might be more recognizable to a user

4. The comparison of different “PT’s”, while it was the inspiration for the site, might not be useful for a user seeking pain treatment. The section about personal trainers should be removed

5. The labels under the images on the homepage need to be clearer to a user without an understanding in medical terms. They could be changed to “Injury”, “Long-term pain”, and “Balance Problems” This would be a more apt description to lead a user to the information needed

6. The images need to be more accurate to the type of treatment.

a. User 2 stated that someone looking for foot pain would not know where to look and suggested finding more accurate images
b. User 2 noticed that the image under vestibular did not match the description and suggested changing it

7. A fourth type of treatment should be added for head, neck and back. This is called “Neurological” and the image above “Vestibular” could be used

8. The image above “Vestibular” should be more accurate.

a. An image similar to the others but of the inner ear might be more suitable, or might be more confusing
b. A person having fallen might be more suitable with a label of balance

9. The information about “Acute” on the “PT vs PT” page needs to be reworded to allow better understanding of the purpose of this kind of treatment to a user

10. Information needs to be added along with the new image and label for Neurological treatment as it is much more associated with head, neck and back pain.