Controlling the Feedback Loop

Feedback can and should be a positive piece to any project.  Your clients are the experts in their markets and you need them to help you create the best product. The goal, of course, is always to help your clients understand that they hired you as the expert in your field and when you are designing or providing a service, they need to trust you.  But if you have worked any length of time with a client you know collecting feedback can derail the best laid plans, especially when the feedback has to be technical.

The tool of the day is called BugHerd by the team who created the five second usability testing, (which we love).  When you are at the finishing stages of your web development project, there should be a phase built in for testing and bug fixes.  You will need the help of your client to use the site and tell you what they are seeing.  Now the goal is to get them to the areas that are important rather than telling you they are not sure about a color they see, (design should be a separate phase that had been signed off on at this point of the project).  BugHerd has a very simple interface that will help direct your clients to get you the feedback you need.  Check out the product at BugHerd.