2025 is already proving to be an exciting year for UX research, and we’re just getting started! With a range of new features and updates that empower teams to move from design to decisions faster, Optimal is bringing the best tools to the table for everyone and making research accessible across all teams. Let’s dive into what’s already here and what's coming next!
Video Recording for Prototype Testing
We’re excited to announce that the closed beta for video recording for prototype testing has launched. By capturing screen, audio, and/or video, this feature takes research beyond metrics to give you a deeper understanding of user intent and pain points. Our Optimal Recruitment service also ensures you connect with the right participants for video recording, driving meaningful insights from the start.
New Study Flow for Faster Study Creation
Say hello to the new Study Flow, an intuitive tab that helps to accelerate study creation, combining the Messages & instructions and Questionnaire tabs into one. Visualize every step of the participant’s journey, from the welcome screen to the final thank-you message with the Study Flow panel. Save time by quickly duplicating questions across Surveys and other study types. Navigate through studies with ease by collapsing and expanding sections as needed.
Dashboard & Templates Library We’re working to make research more accessible for everyone with the release of 15+ new templates designed to help Optimal users get started quickly. No matter which team you’re on, these use-case focused, ready-to-use templates will set you on the fast track. Use them to preview the participant experience or clone the recommended study and tailor for your own use.
What We’re Working On Next
Here’s a sneak peek at some exciting features in the works:
AI-Powered Survey Question Simplification We’re unleashing an AI-powered feature to help users simplify complex question wording and improve clarity. Users can quickly accept, reject, or regenerate more suggestions with a click. By improving clarity and simplifying your questions, you’ll gather more accurate, higher-quality insights that drive better results.
This AI feature is available for surveys questions as well as screening, pre and post study questions for surveys, prototype tests, card sorts, tree tests and first-click tests. This is just the beginning of even more AI-driven improvements to come, all aimed at helping to accelerate your time to insights.
Advanced Logic Capabilities We’re working on bringing more advanced logic capabilities to Optimal - one of the most highly requested features for surveys. With display logic, the study changes dynamically - showing or hiding answer options or subsequence questions based on a participant’s previous responses. Apply display logic to Surveys, screening questions, and pre- and post-study questions. This is just the beginning. We’ll be exploring additional advanced logic capabilities in 2025.
Study Creation Enhancements
Optimal will continue to improve on the new Study Flow to make study creation faster and intuitive. You’ll also gain greater flexibility with customizable sections. These upcoming updates are designed to empower you to create dynamic, tailored study experiences for different audiences, helping you unlock more valuable insights with ease.
With custom sections, you’ll be able to organize surveys and questions into distinct sections, such as demographics or product usage, to create a more structured and engaging study. These custom sections allow you to easily add, rename, reorder, duplicate, and move questions between sections.
Join Us on the Journey Stay tuned for regular updates, and let us know how we can make your research experience even better. Have feedback or feature requests? We’d love to hear from you so we can continue to shape the future of Optimal.
Research just got a whole lot easier. 🚀 With over 15 brand-new templates added to our template library, Optimal is here to help you fast-track your studies and accelerate your time to insights.
Our mission? To make research accessible for everyone, whether you're in product, design, marketing, or research. With templates, finding the right study for your needs has never been simpler.
Fast Track Your Research
Hit the ground running: Get pre-built templates designed to help you quickly set up studies that deliver results.
Accelerate insights: From screening questions to tasks, we’ve done the heavy lifting so you can customize these templates quickly for your own use and focus on analyzing data to inform decisions.
What’s Included in Each Template?
✔️ Clear study goals—know what you'll learn
✔️ Best practices for study setup
✔️ Sample screener questions to target the right participants
✔️ Ready-to-go task suggestions
How to Use Them
✨ Preview: View the participant’s study experience.
✨ Customize: Clone the template and tailor it to your unique needs.
Explore New Use Cases
Our templates are designed to empower teams to tackle a range of challenges. Here are just a few examples from our library:
Optimize your website or app signup flows
Organize and label your content
A/B test email designs
Design a new website navigation
Run usability tests for apps
Conduct market research
Prioritize features
Define your brand tone of voice
Find Templates Built for You
Filter by role or use case to discover the perfect starting point for your next project or get inspired for new ideas.
Start Researching Today
Already an Optimal Workshop user? Head to the Templates section of your Dashboard and explore what’s new.
Inspired by insights from Optimal users, we’ve reimagined study creation to bring you a beautifully streamlined experience with the new Study Flow tab.
With the new Study Flow, you’ll:
⚡ Enjoy faster study set up: Messages & instructions and Questionnaire tabs are combined in a single tab - called Study Flow - for faster editing and settings customization.
✨ See it all at a glance: Easily visualize and understand the participant experience—from the welcome message to the final thank-you screen—every step of the way.
🎯 Duplicate questions: Save time and quickly replicate questions for surveys, screening questions, and pre- and post-study questions.
⭐ Experience enhanced UI: Enjoy a modern, clean design with intuitive updates that minimize scrolling and reduce mental load.
🗂️ Collapse and expand sections: Easily navigate studies by collapsing and expanding sections, making it easier to build out specific parts of your study.
This Study Flow tab is available across all Optimal tools, except for Qualitative Insights.
What’s next?
We’re not stopping there. We have some significant improvements on the horizon designed to give you even greater flexibility and control.
Advanced logic: Enhanced logic capabilities is one of our most highly requested features, and we’re thrilled to introduce new capabilities to help you build your ideal study experience – available for surveys and other tools. We will first introduce “display logic”, allowing for:
If answer is X for Question Y, then hide/show Question Z.
If answer is X for Question Y, then hide/show specific answer options.
Customizable sections: Organize your questions into different sections to build a better study experience for your participants. For example, segment your questions into relevant groupings, such as demographics or product usage. With custom sections, you can add new sections, rename, reorder, duplicate, and move questions between different sections.*
*Note: Questions cannot be moved to/from the screening questions section.
These upcoming features will empower you to create dynamic, tailored study experiences for different audiences with ease for more valuable insights.
Investing in prototype testing and user-focused design isn't just about creating better products—it's a proven strategy to save costs, accelerate timelines, and drive customer loyalty. According to Forrester Research, companies that incorporate prototype testing in their design process can reduce development costs by 33% and cut collaboration time by 25%. UX-focused companies also see products hit the market 50% faster and loyalty rise by 240% (Forrester Research, Nielsen Norman Group)!
Whether you're refining user flows, testing new concepts, or optimizing your onboarding experience or conversion flows, prototype testing helps ensure your designs hit the mark—before you invest too heavily in the build.
With those benefits in mind, let's dive into how prototype testing can help you deliver user-centered designs efficiently and effectively.
Common Use Cases for Prototype Testing
Test Onboarding and Sign-Up Flows How intuitive is your onboarding process? Prototype testing can help identify friction points, ensuring users can navigate and complete sign-ups seamlessly. For example, you can simulate different scenarios to determine whether users can easily register, set up accounts, or retrieve forgotten passwords.
A/B Test Email Designs Test different layouts, calls-to-action (CTAs), or visual elements in your email prototypes to discover what resonates best with your audience. Measure metrics like click-through rates or time spent engaging with content to refine your design.
Evaluate User Flows and Wireframes Whether you're testing a new feature, redesigning a user journey, or validating a wireframe, prototype testing gives you real-world insights. Observe how users interact with your design and identify areas for improvement before you move to development.
Test Concepts Before launching a new idea, validate it through prototype testing. Let users interact with your concept to gauge feasibility and potential impact. This can save time and resources by helping you focus on ideas that resonate.
Evaluate Conversion Flows Are users completing purchases or achieving desired outcomes? Use prototype testing to analyze conversion flows and pinpoint where users drop off. From landing pages to payment processes, you can optimize every step for success.
Test User Interfaces (UI) Ensure your UI elements—buttons, navigation menus, or forms—are intuitive and accessible. Prototype testing can help you identify design inconsistencies or usability challenges early in the process.
Conduct Usability Tests Have a new feature in development? Prototype testing lets you see how users interact with it, revealing insights that can guide refinements and improve overall satisfaction.
Real-Life Prototype Testing Scenarios
Airline Imagine your flight has been canceled. Ask how your customers self-service on the airline website to find new flight options.
Bank Have a prospect or customer interact with a prototype to open a business account online. Uncover usability issues and streamline the process.
Insurance Imagine you’re interested in switching car insurance. Explore how intuitive it is for customers to view coverage details in an app, helping insurers improve navigation and accessibility.
Prototype Testing Analysis & Insights
Optimal’s prototype testing gives you a variety of analysis options to help you to evaluate the effectiveness and usability of your prototypes. Use these to see exactly how users navigate, where they face challenges, and what areas are proving to be successful.
Task-based scenarios: Observe how users complete tasks like purchasing a product or updating account settings and set correction paths and destinations.
Clickmaps: See how users navigate and locate information. See hits and misses on designated clickable areas, average task completion times, and heatmaps showing where users believed the next steps to be.
Task results: Gather insights into how long it took to take a task (time taken), misclicks, directness score (considering backtracks or incorrect pathways), and success score.
Participant paths: The Paths tab provides a powerful visualization, including thumbnails, to understand and identify common navigation patterns and potential obstacles participants encounter while completing tasks.
Video, audio, and/or screen recording: See how your users interact with and respond to your prototype. Listen to their thought process and pick up on nonverbal cues, like hesitation, frustration, or confusion to pinpoint areas for improvement or exploration.
Ready to use prototype testing to help your team reduce development costs and get a faster time to market? Get started in your account by creating a new prototype test.
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