Finding "website beta testers"

[JLRodgers]

Didn't know exactly where here (if anyplace) would be a good place to ask this.... but does anyone know of anyplace you can find many (tens-hundreds) of people to beta test a website?

Basically it's just visiting, finding problems/errors/things-to-change and reporting them. Like for a newly released site, or one where you can't get your visitors to do it.

One website I'm redesigning is a drastic change -- the two sites don't even appear to be the same site. But there's so many new features being designed that it's almost impossible to test it all myself.

Or do people just put "beta" on the website and expect people to know to report problems, and people know that's what they should do?

[powerboy]

I would be interested in helping out.

[gunsage]

Hey, count me in. Honestly, I was thinking about developing my own site soon. First, I need to think what about, though.

[lordlundar]

I always thought beta testing websites was "put it up and have a separate email client for the complaints"

[JLRodgers]

I always thought beta testing websites was "put it up and have a separate email client for the complaints"

That's what I was actually expecting of the site's original website. Know what happened? Despite text in big red colors that said "you must enter what cities you want a post listed, otherwise it will not be visible" (or something to that extent), all the "it doesn't work" posts involve people complain about what the warning said. No comments or anything other than spam.

I'd post where it is, but I don't know if it's allowed (and it's alpha-beta right now, not even the standard pages are up and functioning completely yet)

[Seshat]

Jakob Nielsen has a whole website on user testing. I'd strongly suggest reading at least some of it. The Alertbox archive is the most important (and free).

Of particular usefulness:
Fast, Cheap and Good Usability Methods
Usability for $200
Why you only need to test with 5 users