Our Recordings feature allows you to easily capture your participants' face, screen and audio as they complete tasks during your test. These recordings are meant to help you identify potential usability issues by gauging your users' initial reactions and providing valuable insight into their thought processes as they navigate your design or information architecture. Recordings are only available on paid plans.
Enabling test recording
Recording is enabled per section and is supported for the following section types:
Card sort test
First click test
Navigation test
Prototype task flow test
Tree test
Live website test
Only the task will be recorded, follow-up questions are not recorded.
Live website test sections are setup slightly different. Instead, they require recordings to be enabled and will continue to record follow-up questions.
To enable recording for a section, simply follow these steps:
Add a new section or navigate to an existing section
While hovering over the section, click on the Record button that appears
Select the recording requirements for your test
When enabled, recording is mandatory for all participants. However, due to iOS and Android restrictions, screen recording is not possible on mobile devices.
If you select screen recording but do not target desktop devices, you may still receive responses from users on mobile devices. If that happens, you will only be able to hear their audio, you will not be able to see their screen.
Viewing test recordings
On the Results page, you'll find your recordings at the bottom of the test section:
They will appear in a list on the righthand side — a blue dot will appear on unwatched recordings that will disappear as soon as they're watched. You can star any recording that you want to save for later.
Recording transcriptions
You can generate a written transcription for any recording with audio by clicking the Transcription button below the video player:
A modal will pop up, from which you can select to transcribe only that recording, or all recordings. You can also select whether to have the language auto-detected or manually select the language you want the video to be transcribed in.
Only Editors and Admins can initiate transcriptions, but once recordings have been transcribed, Viewers can see them.
To view the text for a recording that has already been transcribed, click the Transcription button under the selected recording:
You can play the video and follow along with the text at the same time, or click a word in the transcription to skip to that part of the video:
You can also copy the full text of the transcription by clicking the three dots in the top right corner of the text box and selecting Copy to clipboard:
Transcription storage
The amount of transcription storage you have access to depends on your Lyssna plan. Limitations are as follows:
Plan | Storage limit |
Free | 5 hours (one-time offer) |
Basic | 15 hours per month |
Pro | 50 hours per month |
Transcriptions for both interviews recordings and unmoderated test recordings count toward your storage limit.
If you reach your storage limit, you won't be able to create more transcriptions until the month in your billing cycle restarts. Transcription storage does not roll over month-to-month.
Participant experience
When recording is enabled, participants will be guided through a setup process at the start of the test. If your test contains a screener, those questions will be asked first.
At the beginning of each test section with recording requirements, participants will be reminded that recording will begin:
Recording is mandatory for all participants. If permissions are not granted at the beginning of the test, the participant cannot proceed. If revoked partway through, their test session will be terminated. You will not receive results for sessions that are terminated before completing the test.
Common questions
How can I preview the recording feature from a participant’s point of view?
Our test preview will only display the recording requirements on the welcome screen. If you would like to preview the full recording experience, we recommend using the Lyssna link for your test instead.
Can I record the entire test from beginning to end?
Only individual test sections are recorded. If you would prefer to record the entire test from beginning to end, please reach out and let us know!
Can I record participants from the Lyssna panel?
Yes! Orders from the Lyssna panel incur an extra charge when recordings are enabled, you can learn more from our Pricing article. At this time, recordings are not supported for orders from our partner panel.
How can I share feedback about this feature?
Our Support team is available to answer your questions or take feedback. Reach out to us at any time from the chat bubble in your account or by emailing support@lyssna.com.