Overview. Test Objectives. Methodology & Equipment. Participants

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Sheryl Juliana Murphy
6 years ago
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1 Overview The Nerdery UX team conducted moderated in-person usability testing on the core sales-related pages on ForSaleByOwner.com. 12 participants were asked to perform a series of tasks, which were evaluated based on success rate and time to complete. The following document summarizes our methodology, findings, and recommended next steps. Test Objectives The tasks and scenarios were designed to provide insight into the following: Validate users understanding of the site s purpose Determine whether the site meets users expectations regarding content and functionality Assess whether users enjoy interacting with the site Evaluate navigation, content hierarchy, and nomenclature on key pages: Homepage, How it Works, Packages Overview, Compare Packages, Individual Product Description Ensure that users have enough information to make a decision (or know where to find it) Methodology & Equipment 1-hour usability test sessions were conducted in-person at The Nerdery. A desktop computer equipped with mouse, keyboard, and screen recording software was set up for participants to use. At the beginning of each session, the moderator introduced the topic and engaged the participants in conversation by asking about their previous home buying and selling experiences. Scenarios and tasks were introduced one-by-one, then the participant was encouraged to explore the site and talk out loud at their observations. When necessary, the moderator assisted in getting participants un-stuck or encouraging them to move onto the next task. At the end of the test session, the users were asked a number of debriefing questions and were asked if they had any additional feedback or suggestions. Participants Participants were recruited and screened by Orman Research Guidance for the following characteristics (see the full screener here): Homeowner Some awareness of FSBO Average median income between $60-$200k 4-5 GenX 4-5 Baby Boomers 2 Millennials

2 Name Age Income Tech Exp. FSBO Willing # Homes Andy Hansen 43 $60-$80K M N 3 Braden Thompson 25 $60-$80K H Y 3 (Own + Flip) Brady Moss 35 $80-$120K H Y 2 Denise Olsen 52 $60-$80K M N 3 Dianne Chodek 51 $80-$120K L Y 2 Dustin Rgnonti 33 $60-$80K H Y 6 (Own + Flip) Jill Wicker 30 $80-$120K H Y 1 Kate Kauffman 35 $60-$80K M N 1 Keith Pavek 41 $80-$120K H Y 2 Kristi Scalzo 49 $80-$120K L Y 2 Susan Schwartz 61 $80-$120K H N 3 Tara Bishop 38 $120+ H N 1

3 Scenario 1: Overall Impressions A friend or family member was talking about selling their home FSBO and so you decided to look into it. You typed For Sale By Owner into a Google Search and this website came up. Task 1: Take a few minutes to look at the homepage User Click? Relevant Quote Andy Hansen How it Works I like the kitchen Braden Thompson Brady Moss Not sure what all this is down here [re: icons] It seems like the website is just a little bland and sterile Denise Olsen Seller s Guide Huh. It s FSBO, but you can search homes. Dianne Chodek Typed ZIP into Homes for Sale Looks pretty comparable to what a realtor may do, but doesn t really say a whole lot about the house. They shoudl go off a regular listing. Dustin Rgnonti How it Works Nothing here pops out at me; might be the colors, maybe the old lady picture and small text. Jill Wicker If I m going to this website and wondering where to start, I ll hover over the top bar. Kate Kauffman Seller s Guide I like the kitchen Keith Pavek Homes for Sale Everything is very clean. I ve been to plenty of real estate websites, and these are things you d expect. Kristi Scalzo Susan Schwartz I love that kitchen! Package details means there s cost involved. Major cost involved. Tara Bishop How it Works I thought there would be more on the initial page--how it works, what it is.

4 Summary When asked to look at the homepage and describe their initial thoughts, most users responded with positive, design-related adjectives: Clean Inviting Light Calming 4 users commented on the main background image, but did not directly correlate it with the purpose of the site. In fact, for those who commented on the kitchen (3), it seemed more like a distraction. None of them used the content overlaid on the image. 7 users jumped to a navigation item (most commonly How it Works) or used the Sell By Owner or Homes For Sale within 20 seconds. 2 users even navigated away, then clicked the back button and asked whether it was okay that they leave the homepage. Insight While effective at setting the tone of the site, the Homepage does not clearly convey who ForSaleByOwner.com is or what it does. This may be, in part, due to the visual prominence of the background image, which doesn t clearly support the purpose of the site. While many users immediately clicked to another page anyway, many of them returned to the homepage as a starting point to accomplish different tasks, so the homepage should act as a sort of menu showing what can be found in the site. Find more traditional imagery that excites users about the selling process (e.g. home exteriors, for sale signs, etc.). Instead of asking users to immediately enter their zip code, use the Sell Your Home space to explain how ForSaleByOwner.com helps users list, market, and close on their homes. Include a small graphic showing a package cost table (with sample #s). Replace the $395 flat fee MLS callout with Enter your zip code to see package prices - it will have already been introduced by the box above. The icons didn t seem to appeal to anyone - people want to visualize themselves selling their homes. Consider photography similar to that on the Seller s Guide page for each of the 3 main selling points: Save Money - Say up to $18,000, because your target audience is smart enough to know it s based on commission % Get Maximum Exposure - Include Zillow, Realtor.com, and MLS logos, then continue to take users directly to the MLS Enhanced package, since it s the only one where you get the maximum Simplify the Process - FSBO provides step-by-step guidance through the selling process, from listing to closing. Link to the Seller s Guide and also the educational articles.

5 Scenario 2: Researching You ve arrived at this site, taken a look around, and you re interested in learning more. Task 2: Learn what ForSaleByOwner.com Does User Time to Complete # Pages Visited Andy Hansen FAIL 5 Braden Thompson 2-5 min 2 Brady Moss 2-5 min 4 Denise Olsen < 30 sec 2 Dianne Chodek FAIL 3 Dustin Rgnonti < 30 sec 2 Jill Wicker < 30 sec 2 Kate Kauffman 2-5 min 3 Keith Pavek 2-5 min 3 Kristi Scalzo 20 min 5 Susan Schwartz < 30 sec 3 Tara Bishop FAIL 2

6 Summary After viewing the homepage, participants were asked whether they could explain what ForSaleByOwner.com does. 2 participants said, Yes, but were unable to clearly articulate a value proposition. The remainder of participants went to 2, 3, even 5 pages before understanding that ForSaleByOwner.com is a PAID service that makes it easy to market and sell your home by owner. Users who failed to enter their zip code into the packages got stuck in the How it Works and Seller's Guide pages especially once they had clicked Read More and started interacting with the checklist. With no navigation item clearly marked Listing Packages they were unsure if FSBO was just a helpful/educational website, or if they actually offered a product. On the flip side, users who entered their zip code initially were no longer able to see the How it Works page (since it's replaced by the packages) and didn't even realize that it'd happened. Insight There seems to be a bit of cognitive dissonance around the idea that just because you're selling by owner, doesn't mean you can't have marketing, paperwork, and listing assistance. The participants who had expressed interest in FSBO were not aware that websites like this existed; They figured they'd have to go at it alone. Since the concept is unfamiliar to many people, FSBO needs to be much more obvious about their value proposition. Incorporate a basic tagline into the homepage (perhaps the Sell Your Home box, as suggested above): Our Listing Packages make selling your home easy, from marketing to closing. Create an additional navigation item called Listing Packages - do not replace the How it Works, since this information is valuable to users even after they've browsed package options. Add a simple graphic or data visualization at the top of the How it Works page showing the overall selling process and where FSBO fits in. Task 3: Decide whether ForSaleByOwner.com is a reputable company and if you'd consider using them to help sell your home.

7 User Andy Hansen Braden Thompson Brady Moss Denise Olsen Dianne Chodek Dustin Rgnonti Jill Wicker Kate Kauffman Keith Pavek Kristi Scalzo Susan Schwartz Tara Bishop Relevant Quote I think I would certainly consider it. Maybe down the road, if more and more people use it. The website is a little bland and boring, but I d have to see the other pages. #1 by-owner site, that's good, but now I'm thinking about money... Yes. I see the Featured In, where are they located, social, and pricing is really good. I'd want to know how it compares to doing it on your own All you d have to say is 'look like a professional' [It] looks EASY and if it s one easier thing for me to do, we kind of live on a side street, and it gets traffic but not tons of traffic, so we d have to do something besides just a sign. [They look] reputable, I like the guarantee, that they offer the support, and walk you through what everything is. Sometimes it s not even the product, but the person who s giving the product. It s right where you think it should be, right in the middle of the page. It looks real, not cheesy. It looks familiar, like a realtor s website. I honestly think this is a little misleading. You only really instantly reach buyers if you get the MLS package. Yes, it has a nice look. It's clean.

8 Summary The clean, minimal design goes a long way towards conveying credibility. Users also liked the fact that the Home Search was familiar (looked like other real estate sites). Only one participant had issues with the content, which she found a bit misleading. All users said they'd have to learn more about what the process would actually be like before deciding whether they'd be interested in using the service. Insight Users trust the website, but they still don't know what it does. The website needs to empower users and clearly articulate its purpose. Users want to picture themselves succeeding at selling FSBO. Highlight the customer support & Home Selling Guarantee more prominently, preferably on the homepage AND the listing packages page. Revise the verbiage on the homepage callouts (see above). Keep the clean/minimalist design, but incorporate more realistic photography that will allow users to visualize themselves selling successfully. Task 4: See whether anyone in your neighborhood is selling FSBO. Success Rate: 10/12 Summary All participants were able to use the main navigation or homepage callout and search homes within their area. Unfortunately, once they hit the results page, they did not understand that the site only showed homes that existed within the ForSaleByOwner.com site. Once I pointed it out, they saw the small message saying, No homes in your area, but that actually made them concerned about the efficacy of the service. Insight Having a primary navigation item and prominent position on the homepage made this task easy. Users who did not see listings in their area were discouraged, but I'm guessing that's less of an issue on the coasts (participants were mostly midwestern). Make the button on the homepage the same color and size as the one for finding listing packages (users complained that they didn't see it). Improve the map search and allow users to switch back and forth, or view a split view. Make the photos of the homes bigger. Remove unnecessary text below the initial search box on the Search Homes page. Make the No homes for sale by owner in your area more prominent. Sort the nearby homes by geographical proximity, unless otherwise specified.

9 Task 5: Find out how much it will cost to sell your home on ForSaleByOwner.com, and what you'll get with the package you choose. Success Rate: 12/12 Average Time to Complete: 3:04 Summary There were five main barriers to completing this task: 1. Price-conscious users noticed the $349 on the homepage right away and assumed that that was the flat cost. 2. Lack of awareness of FSBO services in general lead some people to believe that the website was informational only. 3. The photo on the packages landing page (prior to entering zip code) obfuscates the text field and users gloss over it, going down to the FAQs instead. 4. Even while reading one-time cost, users were still concerned that there might be hidden fees, or a commission added on top. 5. Only 2 out of 12 users saw the Cost Comparison spreadsheet. Others asked for it outright, but were unable to find it. Insight The target audience is well aware of the fact that they pay lots of money in commission, and would (of course) like to save some money, but they need to know that going with ForSaleByOwner.com is better than going it alone, and that the package supports them start-to-finish. Add a Listing Packages navigation item Remove the photo on the background of the enter zip code page and make the text explaining what to do LARGER Combine Package Comparison and Overview pages Separate FAQs onto new page, but link to it more prominently everywhere (users loved it) Update internal page tab styles especially on the package detail page Remove the iconography at the top of the package detail page. Showcase more of the screenshots of the seller dashboard, forms, etc. (this is the part users are concerned with) Task 7: Find out how much your home might be worth. Success Rate: 2/12 Summary No one could find the Price Scout. When they did, they were unsure about whether it was part of the site or an external tool. Most were hesitant to enter their information or even CLICK on the Register button. Once I explained what it was, users were very interested in it.

10 Expand the search bar at all times Add a Home navigation item Task 8: Learn about FSBO's Home Selling Guarantee. Success Rate: 4/12 Summary All but 1 user ignored the search button, so when prompted to find something specific, they couldn't. Even if they'd seen mention of it before (FAQs), users found it difficult to re-trace their steps. Expand the search bar at all times Add a Home navigation item Add breadcrumbs Put the Guarantee stamp in multiple places on the site so users recognize it Move the Guarantee stamp into the FAQ that talks about the guarantee

VIDEO 1: WHY IS THE USER EXPERIENCE CRITICAL TO CONTEXTUAL MARKETING?

VIDEO 1: WHY IS THE USER EXPERIENCE CRITICAL TO CONTEXTUAL MARKETING? Hello again! I m Angela with HubSpot Academy. In this class, you re going to learn about the user experience. Why is the user experience