Consumer Data Right — content testing

ACCC’s challenge

With the new Consumer Data Right website about to launch, the ACCC commissioned user testing to refine the content and ensure it clearly communicated the complex topic to its varied users.

ACCC’s transformation

Salsa Digital and Today ran nine one-on-one user-testing sessions with the website’s three target audiences to test the content's effectiveness and its ability to meet the different audiences’ needs. We then created a backlog of changes, prioritising tasks as before or after launch.

The outcomes

• Conclusive results from user testing
• Content rewrites to further refine user-focus
• Final content ready for launch
• Backlog of nice-to-have changes

“Through the content testing exercises that Salsa Digital and Today designed, we were able to validate our overall content direction and architecture and also shine a light on areas of content which needed refinement in order to improve comprehension. This was vital with such a complex and, for many in the general public, confusing and scary subject matter — the flow of consumer data within the CDR system. Salsa Digital’s content strategist took those research insights and applied them to the content, resulting in content that is effective in conveying its meaning, is discoverable, and while speaking to very different audiences with differing levels of technical literacy, maintains tone of voice consistently which supports our overall brand strategy.”

Lani Gerrish, Director, Strategic Communications Branch, ACCC

ACCC’s challenge — ensuring content was user-focused and ready for site launch

The launch of the Consumer Data Right website marks a major milestone in Australia’s open data landscape, and the website launch was highly anticipated. The ACCC wanted to ensure that the content had been user-tested, validated and refined prior to launch. This was particularly important given the varying needs of the three major audience groups:

1. Individuals
2. Small businesses
3. Service providers

ACCC needed to be confident that:

• Individuals and small businesses understood the complex subject matter and how Consumer Data Right works

• The benefits for individuals and small business were clear

• Individuals and small businesses understood that it was an opt-in service

• Prospective service providers (data recipients and data holders) could access all the information they needed to get ready for accreditation/registration

ACCC’s transformation — iterated content ready for site launch

We ran nine one-on-one user-testing sessions with:

• Individuals
• Small business owners
• Service providers

Each session took one hour, and during that time we focused on both specific user tasks and more open simulations and exploration of the draft content. Some of the specific tasks included:

• Consumers: You want to find out which organisations are part of Consumer Data Right. Use this site to find out.

• Consumers: Imagine that you want to find out more about how this works. How might you go about this?

• Providers: You’ve been asked to lead the team making sure your organisation is ready for Consumer Data Right — what would you do first?

• Providers: You want to find out what information your website or app needs to have in terms of the consumer consent process. Where on this site do you think you might find that information?

More open tasks/prompts included:

• If you landed on this page, where would you go next?

• What would you do next? Why?

• What else would you expect on this page?

Comprehension was also tested during the sessions, specifically asking participants to explain what Consumer Data Right was (in their own words) and how Consumer Data Right would help them. We also gauged individuals’ and small businesses' reaction to the concept by asking them:

• With the information you have so far, how interested are you in using Consumer Data Right? Why?

The outcomes — Confidence in content before launch

After user testing, the ACCC had a clear understanding of how the draft content was received by users. As an integrated project team, we knew what was working and what needed to be changed. Importantly, the user testing also gave us clear pathways on how to improve the content. Salsa’s content writer created a spreadsheet that outlined the user needs and what actions were needed to address those needs.

Some of the changes were small tweaks, some were bigger re-writes to more effectively target user needs and expectations. Each action was assigned as priority 1 or 2 status, and marked for implementation either before the 1 July launch or after launch.

About the ACCC and Consumer Data Right

The ACCC enforces the Competition and Consumer Act 2010 and other legislation. It focuses on promoting competition and fair trading. The ACCC is one of three government regulators for Australia’s new Consumer Data Right. Consumer Data Right gives individuals and small businesses the right to share their data from one provider to another. Providers transfer customer data (if requested to do so) using automated data technology.