Written by Nadia Volpe
Wonder what happens when you bring together tech enthusiasts, non-techies, testers, and some seriously cool apps? You get Swiss Usability Night – an evening of feedback, learning, and just the right amount of Sri Lankan tea and cashews to keep the ideas flowing!
Don’t worry if you missed it, we’re here to give you a little recap.
Firstly, Why Swiss Usability Night began
What product owners (POs) and developers personally interpret as good usability doesn’t always align with the real end-user perspective. Over time, we can become blind to issues in applications we’ve worked on for too long. It’s essential to take a step back every once in a while to see and hear other perspectives. Who knows? A fresh viewpoint may offer a brilliant idea no one in your team has considered.
Moreover, often POs and developers are already aware of usability issues but are restricted by company policies or infrastructure (e.g., the same login procedure for every app) from making necessary changes. In these cases, it’s incredibly valuable to hear feedback from independent sources, as it can help drive change and influence decision-makers.
What Made It Such a Success This Time?
Integrating usability testing, continuous integration (CI), and user feedback as core parts of the development process is more important than ever. During this event, we highlighted several best practices in modern quality engineering, including the value of gathering diverse feedback and continuous user testing. Here’s what made the night stand out:
- Diverse Perspectives, Bold Ideas
Engineers, casual users, and seasoned testers all shared their unique viewpoints. Every voice mattered, and the feedback? Sharp, constructive, and refreshingly positive. How we did it? By using task-based UX testing, attendees completed open-ended tasks (e.g., buying a product from the store) without hints, capturing real-world behaviour. To ensure a smooth process, pre-arranged test data was used (like coupons or Twint accounts). Each external attendee was paired with an Xebian partner, who noted the experienced vs. expected behaviour, offering fresh insights from both technical and non-technical perspectives.
- Tea, Cashews, and More
Beyond the apps, attendees left with more than just takeaways- in a literal sense. As mentioned before, think Sri Lankan cashews and tea. Seems simple enough, but they fueled discussions and creative thinking around responsive design, cross-browser testing, and multiplatform usability.
- Feedback in the Spotlight
Structured rounds helped participants deliver meaningful insights quickly. They provided in-depth feedback on functionality, performance, and usability across different devices and browsers. This is crucial in today’s cross-platform world, where responsive design and multi-device compatibility are key. Plus, we kept the conversation going post-event with follow-up emails, ensuring valuable insights continued flowing long after the night ended. And with open email follow-ups, the conversation didn’t stop when the night ended.
Key Learnings and Takeaways
✔ Real-world insights: Attendees tested apps in a task-based format, providing actionable feedback on UX and cross-device compatibility.
✔ Diverse feedback: Collaboration between Xebian partners and users with different backgrounds resulted in valuable, multi-perspective insights.
✔ Post-event engagement: Follow-up emails allowed participants to share further thoughts and continue the conversation.
✔ Memorable moments: Attendees received postcards as a memento of the night, reflecting the collaborative spirit of the event.
✔ Usability testing can be enjoyable: While companies received constructive feedback, they also highlighted the enjoyable, collaborative experience.
Coming Next: Swiss Testing Night
Missed Swiss Usability Night? Not to worry; the next act is happening very soon. Join us for Swiss Testing Night, hosted by die Mobiliar on December 5, with inspiring talks, hands-on workshops, and networking to spark your QA creativity.
Swiss Testing Day 2025: The Main Event
Roll up those sleeves and get ready for April 3, 2025.
As AI, digitalisation, and economic shifts shake up the industry, Swiss Testing Day is your front-row ticket to the future. AI-powered testing, hyper-automation, and cloud-native solutions- everything you need, all in one place.
Whether you’re a tester, developer, automation expert, or just someone who geeks out over high-quality software, this is the place to be. Connect, learn, and get ahead in the ever-evolving world of quality assurance.
Attend and benefit from:
➛ Expert Networking: Get to know QA professionals and other industry experts. Whether you want to test your app for usability or are interested in performing usability tests yourself, this is your chance to connect.
➛ Software Quality Insights: Discover how test-driven development (TDD), shift-left testing, and continuous testing can improve product quality, reduce costs, and protect your reputation.
➛ Experienced Testers’ Advice: Explore essential insights on the latest tools, methodologies, and best practices.
Swiss Usability Night showed us the influence of feedback, but Swiss Testing Day will show us the power of what’s next.
Keep up to date with the newsletter and join us at Swiss Testing Day on April 3, 2025 to conquer the chaos.
