Implementing a user research and testing strategy for Student Roost

So, at the kick off for their new website build, we discussed a people-first approach to the discovery and testing process. Engaging with real students and getting their unbiased opinions on what a good student accommodation website looks like.

All research needs a defined plan, so with Student Roost we considered the following:

• Our goals

• Methods of research & testing

• Recruitment of participants

• Full research brief

• Plan to implement findings into the project

We curated focus groups for each of our identified personas, spanning across sixth form, first years, second years, postgraduates and parents. Each persona group had pairs of participants in each session - meaning we could encourage meaningful discussion without overwhelm. The participants were not residents at Student Roost before or had engaged with them in the past - meaning our results would be unbiased. We also used an independent researcher to conduct the sessions to avoid any unconscious bias.

Our discovery stage starts before any pen goes to paper or sitemap is even planned. Our aim is to gain feedback and opinions that we can funnel into our plans for the website.

We started with our focus groups - allowing them to tell us how their ideal student accommodation website would be structured. They also told us what content and functionality they’d like to see on the website. We used virtual white boarding as a tool to help the participants record their thoughts in a freehand way.

Once we were in the early stages of the website design, we had a prototype in Figma that we wanted to gain some insight and feedback on before ploughing ahead. Our focus groups returned in order to test the prototype and give their feedback on a handful of key pages and areas of the website that we were in early designs for. Getting first impressions from students who weren’t Student Roost users was really important at this stage, and helped the direction of the creative going forward

We held workshops at Student Roost properties with current residents, which includes participants from all years. We had a diverse group who brought a lot of informed opinions on their experience being a Student Roost resident. This allowed us to gain more contextual feedback that we may not have gained from the focus groups.

During the discovery phase we asked similar questions to the residents as we did in the focus groups, but the results were significantly different as they were rooted in the context of already being a Student Roost user.

Student Roost residents were also called upon during the creative prototype phase, but we needed to change our tactics. This was during holidays where students wouldn’t be available in person. Instead of hosting workshops, we created a survey that could be sent out to the students to give us insight. Because we changed to a more asynchronous method, we kept the questions relatively simple and rating based, we offered optional further feedback if students wished to.

Once the site was launched, we again engaged with the residents via a survey that could be completed in students' own time. The survey was short and mostly quantitative in its output, with an option to provide more detailed feedback if the user feels they would like to.

Through an online recruitment and user testing platform, we gained insight from anonymous participants who would record their screen and share their thoughts. While the participants weren’t as precisely recruited as other groups, it gave us further insight from unbiased sources, and it also allowed participants to take considerable time to review and give feedback on an existing site.

In the research phase, our online user testing allowed us to look at the current Student Roost website and gain insight into what users deemed to be the positives and negatives of using the site. This would allow us to understand what valuable elements we needed to retain, and what we could redesign or drop from the new website if it wasn’t of value.

During the creative phase we also tested the prototype with remote user testers online, using similar questions that were posed to both the focus groups and residents.

Later in the journey, just ahead of the launch of the website, we opted to prioritise remote user testing to make sure any issues were ironed out, and that we had created a site that ticked all the right boxes.

We set up a longer test and larger pool of candidates so we could thoroughly ensure we’d covered all bases. Outlining scenarios and tasks for the users to complete, they recorded their findings via narrated screenshare and written responses.

Both quantitative and qualitative data was produced which we collated into a priority list for pre-launch and post-launch activities.

Throughout the entire website project, from discovery to launch, we have involved users of all different kinds to help inform our process, confirm decisions and unearth any potential pitfalls along the way.

The results we gained from the Discovery stage helped us scope out a plan for the website, including MOSCOW analysis to prioritise what we needed to include on the website for launch, and what could be roadmapped for the future

Involving users is a key way to remove bias from your process, and take a step back to understand the true needs of your audience.

In Student Roost’s case, we created a bespoke research and testing plan that suited their goals and requirements. We implemented several different methods of research that have been key in ensuring an optimised site and a successful launch.