Fixing Apps That Aren’t Really Broken But Don’t Really Work
Sometimes, everything in an app works functionally, but users just aren’t engaging the way developers and product teams expect. Maybe all the issues the QA team has reported have been addressed, yet conversions are stalling, carts sit abandoned, and users aren’t taking those crucial next steps. So how do you fix the problem when you’re not sure exactly what it is?
Collect user feedback.
You don’t always need large, in-depth research studies to solve UX issues. Sometimes just asking a few questions as users navigate your app is enough to pinpoint any problems. Applause offers our clients the option to pair short surveys with functional testing, capturing insight into the overall user experience. Those survey responses often shed light on unexpected user attitudes, behaviors and wants. Here are a few examples of how user feedback analysis has helped organizations remove roadblocks that were keeping their customers from fully engaging.
Gathering customer perceptions of peer-to-peer payment experiences
A financial services company wanted to understand customer perceptions of the peer-to-peer payment experience in the company’s app. The company wanted to use this insight to guide design iterations and product improvements, and understand whether the app met customer needs and expectations. Applause was already conducting functional testing of the application, but those tests didn’t provide details on how users felt about the experience.
Working together, the financial services company and Applause developed some survey questions for testers to complete in tandem with functional tests. The survey revealed that many testers found the sequence of steps confusing, along with some of the terminology and layouts the app used. Some also expected payment options that were not available through the app. The financial
Streamlining onboarding for a cryptocurrency exchange
Financial services companies often have complex onboarding processes due to strict regulatory requirements. A cryptocurrency exchange partnered with Applause to collect feedback as users tested the onboarding flows for the equities feature in its app. While users found the app’s visual design pleasing, the onboarding flow itself was dense and time-consuming. Users explained that they would have appreciated clearer calls to action and some sort of progress indicator. They were also uncertain how to add funds to their accounts after onboarding.
Applause UX researchers were able to synthesize the feedback into concise recommendations for the cryptocurrency company, including:
- Adding a progress indicator with milestones to the onboarding flow.
- Chunking related questions and tasks into smaller, logical groups to reduce cognitive burden.
- Removing non-critical elements from the process and saving those for later.
- Making the “add funds” CTA clearer by presenting it as a modal or transition screen just after onboarding.
Case Study
Car Rental Company Tests Chatbot Function With Real Users
Identifying friction in the insurance claims process
Another large financial services company was looking for feedback from its insurance customers. In addition to functional issues with the mobile app, such as crashes and slow loading times, customers found certain features distracting and called out the claims process as overly complex and manual. Testers said that gamification features interfered with their primary goal of checking coverage and submitting claims — they didn’t find those features relevant for an insurance application. Some users found it difficult to locate important information on the status of claims or their remaining benefits.
Overall feedback suggested several ways the company could improve the app for its insurance customers, including both functional improvements and changes to the UX.
Get insight into your user experiences — fast
If your team isn’t getting clear answers from functional testing alone, talk to Applause about adding user feedback analysis. Just a few targeted questions for testers as they complete functional tests can uncover a wealth of information. For example, asking testers how they felt about the overall experience, whether navigation was clear, or if there were things they would change about the process often yields great intelligence. Our UX researchers can summarize results and prioritize recommendations for the improvements that will deliver the greatest impact. Contact us today to learn more.
Thanks to Reem Shafik, Senior UX Researcher, for her contributions to this post.
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