In college we used 5 second tests to see if our slide presentation got the point across in the first 5 seconds. If not, it may have been too overwhelming and we needed to slim down the amount of information on the slide. Well, this useability test crossed over to the web design world too.

I stumbled across this cool 5 Second Test tool and within 20 minutes I had a test set up and was already getting feedback on my new site design. (The bonus to this site is that you don’t have to have a subscription – they have a “karma points” system – where you take tests in order to get users to take your tests.)

Here’s how it works:

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You upload a screenshot of your website (or even a mock up of what your website might look like) and then the site will show that file to it’s users for 5 seconds. They collect the data and give you the results.

The goal of the 5 second test is to find what your most prominent details on the page are. If the visitors aren;t getting what you want them to get to, you most likely need to re-think the design.

The first test I ran was a “click test.” It allowed me to track how long it took people to find the registration button. – similar to the 5 second test, but not exactly the same. In this example, I’m able to see where people are clicking, and how long it takes them to find the right button.

Here’s my first 5 second test:
I uploaded a picture of my tour page [see below] – this is where I send new traffic.

Took a few minutes to set up the test with 5 questions. Those were:

1. What was this website about?
   (wanting to know if it was easily understood the website was a tool for tracking. )
2. What color was the registration button?
   (did they see the registration button in just 5 seconds?)
3. What is this websites target customer?
   (this was to see if the headline that specifically says “Marketers” affected their opinion on who this tool was for)
4. What was the purpose of this page?
   (to see if they got the gist that it was to sign up or to get more information about this tracking tool)
5. What was the name of the website?
   (this one was mostly curiosity on if they logo/branding caught their attention at all)

I got some pretty basic feedback, for this basic test. I can definitely tweak the test to be more specific and target a specific aspect of the website to get more targeted responses. One of the feedback comments really stood out to me…  “Was very confused by the fact that the text described some metrics I knew — then said that’s what it’s not. I wasted my first 5 seconds reading what you’re not, rather than what you are.”

Although the majority of the viewers got it, this feedback was pretty helpful in seeing a different point of view on how I can split test the text in that position to something more specific to the users needs. This one change could affect how many people are turned away from the software because of what we “don’t do.” (added to our next split test).

Enough about my test… if you’re interested you can see the full results for this test here. Now on to how you can use this valuable feedback to help your conversions.

Why a every website owner should run a 5 second test:

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Why should you run this test? What value would you get out of putting your effort into this? That’s easy – a 5 second test gives you unbiased responses. We can all get a little to “close” to our projects… by running one of these tests we get responses that aren’t based on the body language you’re presenting or the relationship you might already have with the person testing.

We all know that if we asked our friends or family – they might say “It’s great!” even though they have no clue what the topic of your website is. Which is nice to hear sometimes, but in reality… you need unbiased feedback on the effectiveness of your web page.

Here’s a great article on how a 5 second test changed the Red Cross donation page.

Benefits of a 5 second test:

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A 5 second test, lets you know that you’re hitting you’re mark or WAY off. Plus, it’s only 5 seconds. Literally, takes you minutes to set up the test and users only a couple of minutes to complete the entire process.

To me the most beneficial part of the 5 second test is the almost instant feedback. You can know within minutes if one of the changes you want to make will have an affect on the page. Not only that, but you don’t have to have it completely implemented into your site – you can simply use a mockup to know if that change would have a negative or positive affect on the website viewers.

I’d say the next best benefit is how “to the point” your responses are. Because the test is only 5 seconds the viewers don’t take forever critiquing the site with their personal preferences. You’re getting the initial impressions of the message or purpose of the page…which is what you want.

How to get the most out of your test:

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One complaint I found and related with was this:

5 seconds is too short to take in that much data and that leaves the user feeling like they gave you a bad response on your website. So, have a purpose to your test. The Red Cross 5 second test was solely on “what ways a person could donate” – when the user went to the page, they saw the donation box. In the second test they saw the many ways they could donate.

To get the most out of your tests here are two important points to remember:

1. Have one focus for your test.
Don’t ask everything from design, to product, to action… you won’t get accurate results. Keep your questions focused on one aspect of your website (like the red cross did in the example above).

Not just your questions should have focus… but your website pages as well. Each page of your website should have 1 task. For ours – the home page is for signing in current users, the tour page is for getting more users, the blog is for sharing our expertise in conversions and updates about the software.

Here are two examples of how others are keep one focus for their pages:

Drop Box – Registration Page
In this example from drop box – it’s clear they want you to watch a video or download. If you didn’t want to download because you didn’t trust the site yet, you’d most likely click play to watch the video.

Firefox – Download Page
Here’s Firefox’s download page – one purpose and it’s clear that the goal of the page is to get you to download their software.

2. Ask open ended questions:
Yes/No questions aren’t as accurate as asking open ended questions where the user actually has to recall if they saw a particular feature. Here’s an example:

In a recent test I ran, I asked, “what color was the register button?” instead of “Did you find where to register?

This question let me know they actually saw the registration button (as I also had a black button on the page for a video tour). Asking open ended questions will let you know they actually located the item you wanted them to find.

5SecondTest.com has other website test tools too! In addition to the 5 second test I also ran a “Click Test” mostly to test how this particular tool works). In this test, it tracks where the user clicked and how long it took them. Also a great feature for making sure users can find the action you want them to take quickly.

In this test, I asked where they would click to sign up on my home page. Then the user clicked “show image” and saw this:

Once they clicked on the image their test was over. Then I received the feedback. Below is a picture of the feedback I received. You can see he full results report here

NOTE: the results were typical – the home page isn’t where we would send “new users.” In fact, this page is mostly so our current users can just quickly get to a login page. However, we know that many people will Google us and land on the home page, so we do have a basic sign up blurb on this page.

The page we would normally send traffic to (when trying to get new members) wouldn’t be the home page – it’s the tour page because it has more details and answers more questions that new visitors would have questions about. We also have more emphasis on the getting a user to take an action on the tour page.

You can test things like:

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• Where to register?
• How would a user get support?
• Where would they click to donate?
• What the purpose of a page is
• Did the user understand how to find products? (Navigation)
• Did they know what the website sold?
• What was the brand or product on the page? (Brand recognition)
• Did they know where to order?
• Finding your details/faq section.
• How useful the website is
• Product Price
• Would they purchase from your site? (trust in 5 seconds = awesomesauce)

Types Of Questions To Ask:

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When I first started to test using this site… I really wasn’t sure what to ask. But as I started running more tests I found that your questions need to be very targeted to the results you want to know.

Here’s a list of questions I’ve asked and some I’ve answered while taking some of the surveys.

• What ways could you contact the site for services?
• Where was the phone number located?
• What services were provided?
• Do they provide services?
• How would you find their services?
• What would you click on to find services near you?
• What were we promoting?
• What was the first thing you looked at?
• Does it fill you with confidence?
• Would this stand out from other email marketing campaigns?
• Would you click through?
• What do you think this company can help you with?
• What’s the purpose of this site? ie Selling, informing, entertainment
• What was the page about?
• What did you think of the site design?
• Was it easy to read?
• Was the layout of the site natural?
• Where was the Navigation?
• Did you see a signup? (could also replace “sign up” with advertising, video, search box, bullet points, reviews, etc.)
• List 2 favorite things about the site, and your 2 of your least favorite:

A 5 second test is a really easy way to make sure you’re website is to the point about what you want the user to do once they get there. What action do you want them to take? Make sure your buttons are clear to the user. If the purpose of your page is to get users to sign up, make sure the sign up button can be found in the first 5 seconds.

In fact, if you’re using many forms of paid advertising you normally only have the viewers eye for 2-3 seconds. So knowing that your website, advertisement, or message is getting across to your viewer in only 5 seconds is important. This 5 second test could allow you to slim down the clutter on your pages and increase the desired action you want the user to take – and in turn, increasing your conversions in just 5 seconds.

Don’t be shy – drop us a link to your tests so we can see what you’ve got cooking and the results

Tagged as: 5 second test, increasing conversions, website analysis, website tools