Having users freely carry out their real-life activity reveals systemic issues when using your product as it evolves
Every product release introduces incremental changes to the user experience, each typically user tested individually before release. However, how is the overall user experience affected as the product accumulates these incremental changes over time? An improvement in one area might result in experience degradation in another area.

We work together to identify target use cases that cover entire product experiences (e.g., researching and buying a new TV with a retail app) then conduct interviews typically with 3-5 users who, in real life, are carrying out the target activity. During the interview, each user uses the product “for real” following a path through the product that fits their needs. As such, they will typically transect different areas of the product—sometimes in surprising ways—allowing you to test how well individual product elements string together to support your user’s goals.

Interviews are recorded and reviewed afterward to identify and capture design issues, which can range from low-level UI issues to large issues such as inefficient navigation. After each round of interviews, the issues are reviewed by appropriate product stakeholders to decide on resolution recommendations and priority.

Production UX Testing can be carried out on a regular basis, each time testing different areas of user activity. This way you can to build out comprehensive user experience test coverage over time. To make UX testing a regular business activity, you have the option of having team members trained in the application of contextual interviewing principles so they can properly carry out testing on their own.