MEMO

Introduction
Our team is currently creating a total of five deliverables for the John Peter Smith (JPS) Health
Network Volunteer Program. Our deliverables will be used in the JPS Annual Volunteer
Recognition Celebration which will be honoring the former members of the JPS Auxiliary as this
is their last year active. In choosing which deliverable to conduct a Usability Test on, we
considered the complexity of the brochure.
We were tasked with creating a brochure for the JPS Auxiliary members to take home as a
commemorative piece. Our audience would not only include JPS Auxiliary and Volunteer
members along with their families, but a possibility of any other interested groups. The challenge
was to include as much history and details of an organization that was active for 66 years and
make sure the document was also visually pleasing.
In order to determine the strengths and weaknesses of the brochure, we conducted a survey that
specifically addressed the issues that we felt might need improvement. A Likert scale was used
in our survey including four scaled questions along with one open ended question allowing test
subjects the option to add other suggestions and comments. The main concerns addressed were
the clarity of the content, purpose, information, and spacing within the document. The following
sections include the methods and materials used to conduct the survey, results, and an overall
discussion.

Methods and Materials
Seven test subjects were used to conduct a Likert-style survey with one open ended question.
Four Likert scale questions were used with a scale rated from one through five with one being
the least and five being the most. The subjects were all from Dr. Frenchs Technical Writing
class that meets from 08:30am-09:25am. Originally we set out to only include five test subjects,
but one of the surveys was taken as a team, yielding three results instead of just one. In
tabulating the results for this survey anomaly we will simply use the same results three times.
To: Dr. Mary French
From: Jason Bailey
Maria Ramirez
Robyn Riojas
William Sweeney
Subject: Group Usability Test Report on the Brochure for JPS Health Networks Volunteer
Program
Date: April 18, 2014
Memo to Dr. French -2- April 18, 2014

In gathering test subjects we attempted to obtain an equal amount of female and male subjects.
Four female and three male subjects were obtained. To make sure that our data collected was
representative of the class as a whole we made sure to test at least one person from each group,
excluding the group of three that took the survey together. There are four other groups excluding
ours and therefore we had to use two subjects from one group; this was before we were made
aware of our irregularity in the group of three. The following is the survey used to aquire data on
our brochure:
On a scale of 1-5 please answer the following questions: 1 being the least and 5 being the most.
How clear is this brochure in explaining what the JPS Auxiliarys history and purpose?
1 2 3 4 5
How visually attractive do you think this brochure is?
1 2 3 4 5
How would you rate this brochure on organization and spacing?
1 2 3 4 5
How well does this brochure display contrast in the text and background?
1 2 3 4 5
Is the brochure too descriptive or simple? What suggestions do you have to improve the content
and design of this brochure?
______________________________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________________________

Results
Table 1 are averages for the previous first four questions asked:
Question Average answer
1 4.43
2 5
3 3.57
4 4.14
Table 1. Likert-Style Survey Question Averages

Memo to Dr. French -3- April 18, 2014

For the open ended question we received the following suggestions (answers have been
paraphrased but the integrity remains virtually the same):
o Explain the difference between the JPS Volunteer group and the JPS Auxiliary.
o Move the mission/vision statements that in the back panel towards the front panels.
o Improve the spacing in the 2
nd
and 3
rd
panel.
o The information seems vague, also work on transitioning since the brochure seems to
jump around.

Discussion
In analyzing this data, we would like to start off by acknowledging the unanimous approval
received on the aesthetics of the brochure. A perfect five average was achieved from all seven
test subjects. We attribute this to the amount of pictures and the color coordination of the
brochure which we plan to keep. Our weakest point concerning the brochure seems to be the
organization of material and spacing. Keeping in mind that the brochure is still under
construction, we recognize the need to open up more space in the second panel and to fill up
more space in the third. Overall we are pleased with how well the brochure scored.
The most helpful component of the survey was the open ended question at the end. We plan to
address all of the concerns mentioned as follows; explaining the difference between the JPS
Auxiliary and JPS Volunteer group, working on the spacing, making sure the information
provided is specific and easy to understand, and transitioning more seamlessly from panel to
panel. Unfortunately some suggestions cannot be appeased such as moving the mission statement
to the front panels due to the lack of room.