About

Use the Test Checklist in the TEST stage of the design thinking process to get feedback on your design concept from your users. A user is a person for whom you are designing. The TEST stage is when you get users to try out your prototype for themselves. Testing is how you will find any faults or problems in your design idea, and therefore, it is how you improve it. If your prototype passes the test, good. But, if problems arise, that is also good, because solving problems is your job as a designer. If a product fails in a test, that is far preferable to failing later when it is in use. A bridge failing a test when it is being designed is far preferable to a bridge collapsing when it is being traversed by vehicles. Therefore, your aim during the TEST stage is to find problems in your design idea.​​​​​​​​​​​​
 

What you need

• A notepad and pen.
• One or more users to do the test.
• About an hour to test your design prototype.
   

Method

Before you begin, decide which functions or features of your prototype you must test. If you do a good test, you will find out if your prototype, and therefore your design concept, is successful or not. Here is a list of questions for you to ask the user during your test. You may change the questions to suit the design topic. Write the questions on a notepad to prepare for the test.

• ​​​​​​​Function
  • Does the product or system do what it should do?
  • Does it work?
  • Is it safe, or is it harmful?
  • Is it essential, or useful, or enjoyable, or fun?
  • Is it comfortable to use or not?
• Size and shape
  • Is the product or system the right size?
  • Is it too much or too little in some dimensions?
  • Does it have the right shape to do the job?
  • Is it attractive or not?
• Materials
  • Are the materials used right for the job?
  • Will the materials used be strong enough to do the job?
  • Will the materials used be too costly or not?
  • Is the construction right for the job?

​​​​​​​Tips

• Finding something wrong with your prototype will certainly be disappointing, but it also means that you had a successful test.