A SelfTest is an unmoderated test that the participant carries out at a time of their choice.
You can invite participants to carry out a SelfTest at their convenience by sending them the SelfTest Participant Link.
How to create a SelfTest Round in your dashboard
1) If you already have a Project created, you can skip to step 2. Otherwise, start by clicking the + New Project on your dashboard
2) Click the ➕ (plus) icon next to Rounds to create your new Round
3) Select SelfTest
Round Settings
🚀 At any point during the Round setup, you can click the Save button at the top right to save your progress. If you need to leave and come back later, you'll be able to pick up right where you left off.
4) Add a Round Name & Description
Enter a Round name (required) and Description (optional). The description is just for you and your team – your participants will not see it. It may seem unnecessary to add a description, adding a description to your rounds can be helpful when you later need to organize your work.
5) Set the Localisation language (Optional)
The Participate apps for mobile & our desktop experience support several native languages. You can learn more about that (link).
6) Set the Transcription language (required)
This is the language that your participant will be speaking. It will help ensure the most accurate transcriptions.
7) Device requirements (optional) use this option if you want to limit your participant to using a particular type of device; only check the device types you want to be available to your participants.
🚀 As of September 6, 2024, the Chrome Extension option is no longer available on new rounds, but it is still currently available for older rounds and will appear as a separate option: Legacy Chrome Extension
8) Hide controls on Mobile browsers (optional) - when selected, we will attempt to hide the navigation and address controls on mobile browsers to better simulate a full-screen experience (especially useful when testing mobile prototypes).
9) Participant camera
Optional. The participant can choose whether or not they want to enable the camera for their session. They will not be able to change it once the session has started.
Required. A camera must be selected before starting the session.
Disabled. The participant will not be given the option to use their camera
10) Session Limit (optional) - sometimes it's helpful to over-recruit participants for a study because life happens and sometimes participants sign up but don't show up. By setting the session limit, you can invite as many people as you want but only the first X participants will be able to do the study. For example: if you set the limit to 10 and invite 20 people, only the first 10 people who do the study will be able to complete it. Anyone after that will get a message that the study is no longer available.
11) Click the Next button at the lower left to save your progress and proceed
Test Setup
12) Set the Welcome Message (optional) for participants
This is shown to the participants before they start a session and allows you to explain the context of the session, add links to external consent forms, and add any explanations needed to help your participant through setup & instructions
13) Set the Instructions (optional)
This section will be shown to the Participant during their session and is helpful to guide them through the test. This section is especially helpful in an unmoderated section because there will be no moderator to guide them through. Include things like what you'd like them to do, reminders to think out loud so you capture their reactions, etc.
🚀 If you are testing on desktops, you may want to consider using markdown formatting to add a reminder for the participants in each task not to close the small window as it could result in them having to redo some steps. If your participants will be using mobile device or a mix of mobile and desktop, we would not recommend adding this notice.
For example, if you format it like this in your round:
This is what the participant will see in that window:
14) Add a Final Message (optional) for participants
This message is shown to Participants after they have completed the final task of the session.
It allows you to thank the participant for his/her time and/or add links to an external (post-session) survey.
🚀 Format the text in your Welcome/Final message, using Markdown!
15) Click the Next button at the lower left to save your progress and proceed
Invite Participants
16) Click Copy link to copy the Participant Link. This will be use for participants to start the session. You'll send the same link to all participants in the same round.
🚀 If you don't want to copy the Participant Link at this time, you can always get it later from the Round page in the dashboard
17) Click the Next button at the lower left to save your progress and proceed
Observer Lobby
18) Select the option you want for the Observer Lobby
Organisation members only: they will need to have a user account associated with your Lookback organisation. This option is recommended if all of your observers are colleagues/employees at the same company. Please note: as our Freelance plans only have 1 user account, this option will be disabled for those plans.
Anyone with the link can enter: they do not need to have a Lookback user account to access the Lobby. This option is recommended if you are inviting external stakeholders to your sessions and don't want to add them to your Lookback organisation.
19) Click Copy link to copy the Observer Lobby Link. This will be sent to your observers so they can access any live sessions in the round as well as any previously recorded sessions that have finished.
🚀 If you don't want to copy the Observer Lobby Link at this time, you can always get it later from the Round page in the dashboard
20) (Optional) If you'd like to test out your setup before going live with participants, click on the Preview Session link at the top right & copy the link. To learn more about how Preview Sessions work, please see this help article (link).
21) Click the Done button in the lower left corner to save your settings
That's it! You'll now be taken back to the Round page of the project where you can edit the round and find the Participant & Observer Lobby links.
On the Participant's Side
When a participant clicks on the SelfTest Participant Link, they may be prompted to install our Participate app (for mobile) or the Chrome extension if you're using the Legacy Chrome Extension. This collection of help articles will walk them through the steps they need to get up and running!
Find your completed SelfTest Sessions
Once a participant completes a SelfTest, you'll find a recording of the session, under the relevant Round
