Episode 2 | Toby Biddle, Head of Research and UX at LT Agency

Hi guys, Pete here. Thanks for joining us again for the Sum of Many podcast. Today we’ve got Toby Biddle, a UX gun and research gun. For those that don’t know what UX is, you’ll learn very soon.

Toby comes from a large service, used to be the biggest in Australia, U1 Group. He then created a product called Loop 11, and now he’s at LT Agency heading up the UX and research team.

Welcome Toby.

Thank you Peter. Good to be here, mate.

Let’s start about yourself first. I’ll ask some questions. Maybe tell us some things you do outside of work, away from the desk and the screen. What are you into and passionate about?

Okay. Well, outside of work, I run a lot. I’m an avid runner. I do a lot of fun runs. Over the last five years or so I’ve probably done seven, eight, nine fun runs each year.

I only do 5k these days, so they’re not very long. Most people do marathons, but I used to do 10k runs. A few years ago I injured my hip—got an old man kind of geriatric hip going on—so I cut it down to 5k.

5k is a bit of a sprint. It’s over in about 20 minutes. I did one just this past Sunday. My goal is always to try and come top three in my age group. I won’t tell you what my age group is—you can guess.

I came third on Sunday, which is really good. Even though my time was about a minute slower than prior years, I still came third. So that’s something I’m really passionate about. I run twice a week, trying to stay fit and healthy.

I’ve got two teenage boys I’ve got to keep up with. Running is probably my biggest passion. I love good food, good wine, spirits—tequila, bourbon, whiskey—the finer things in life.

So you’ve got the ultimate balance of health and good times.

That’s it. With all the food and alcohol, I’ve got to stay healthy somehow. Running is the thing I do for that.

Being a new dad myself and you having older kids, any advice for dads just starting out?

Just enjoy it. It’s hard work, life-changing, but there’s a lot of joy and fun—especially when they’re young. Yours is under one at the moment, so that’s a great stage.

As they get older, introducing them to the world is a lot of fun. Just enjoy it. It’s hard at times, but the fun stuff matters most.

Thanks for sharing. Finishing top three in any age group is awesome. I can’t run 5k—it feels like a long way.

You can lift a lot. I can’t lift like you.

All good.

Let’s move into UX. You’re in a unique space. If you’re in it, you understand UX and research. If not, a lot of people don’t.

Can you explain what UX is?

UX stands for user experience. Over my 25-year career, I’ve focused on user experience testing. That’s about testing websites, apps—anything digital—to make sure users can use them properly.

Think about a banking website. You log in, transfer money. If it wasn’t easy, people would go into branches. Banks don’t want that—they want self-service.

So they design websites to be easy to use. That’s usability—making sure users can complete tasks without needing help.

So for older audiences, they might know focus groups. For younger audiences, how has it evolved?

One of my early roles was at an Aussie startup during the boom and bust days. We did website research.

Back then, we brought eight people into a boardroom, each with a PC. I’d give them tasks on a website, they’d complete them, then we’d discuss their experience.

That was how we understood usability.

Then we moved to one-on-one testing because observation is critical. UX is about watching what people do—not just asking them.

We’d have labs with one-way mirrors. Participants would complete tasks while clients observed. We’d ask questions like, “Why did you go there?” to understand confusion.

Now everything is remote.

I created Loop 11, a usability platform. You set tasks, participants complete them remotely, and the system records data—video, audio, metrics, AI insights.

Let’s talk AI agent testing. What is it?

AI agents can explore websites based on prompts. For example, finding the best home loan based on your criteria.

They go off and do the work for you.

For businesses, websites need to be accessible to AI agents. We’re moving from “mobile first” to “AI agent first.”

You can test websites with AI agents to see if they can complete tasks. But you still need human testing for emotional insight.

AI vs humans—different behaviours?

Very different. Navigation and task completion differ significantly. You need both.

You also mentioned accessibility.

Accessibility ensures people with disabilities—like vision or movement issues—can use websites.

That includes screen readers and other assistive tech. You start with checklists, but real testing with users is essential.

Being proactive avoids legal risks.

How often should businesses test?

For new builds, test early—prototype stage—and iterate. Don’t wait until the end or you risk major issues.

For live sites:

• Static sites: test twice a year

• Frequently changing sites: test quarterly

Benchmarking is key—track performance over time.

Do monthly content changes affect UX?

Absolutely. Especially in franchises where local sites vary. Monthly campaigns can impact usability, so they should be tested regularly.

Can franchises benchmark across locations?

Yes—and it’s powerful. You can learn from top-performing locations and roll out improvements across the network.

What types of testing should they do?

Start with AI agent testing for quick insights. Then human testing for deeper understanding.

Also use UX monitoring—screen recordings, funnels, bounce rates—to continuously track performance.

What about Loop 11?

It allows remote usability testing. You send tasks to users, record their actions, audio, and optionally video.

It’s far more efficient than traditional lab testing.

AI now analyses the data and provides insights and recommendations—so users don’t need to interpret raw data.

How can brands test at scale affordably?

Traditional testing uses 6–12 participants. Large-scale testing is possible but can be costly.

AI agent testing is the cheapest—essentially free beyond platform costs.

Remote human testing is also far more cost-effective than labs.

Is UX testing only for big brands?

No. Anyone with a website should do it—whether you have 2 locations or 20,000.

What about training teams on content?

It’s critical. Poor content hurts performance.

A/B testing helps—compare two versions of an offer to see which converts better.

Final thoughts?

If you have a website, you need to understand if users can actually use it.

There are many ways to test—prototype, AI, human, monitoring—but it’s all essential to ensure your website works

This transcript was generated using AI and may contain minor errors or inaccuracies.