Take the Time to do Deeper User Research
This time where everyone is working from home is an opportunity. Are there small sets of users you can start to do some longer research cycles with such as longitudinal research, diary studies, etc. You'll come out on the other end with some really valuable insights.
“Think about if there’s some longitudinal research...where it’s not just your user interacting with a screen or a set of screens, but really think about their life and their context.”
Transcript
Jim Morris:
Hi there, fellow product leaders. There are many ways to understand users and their needs. In Product Discovery we often focus on prototype-based user testing. Anna Kaley describes other ways to connect more deeply with users in these times where people are reflecting more and spending a lot more time online.
Anna Kaley:
I just encourage everyone to take this time, maybe, to think less about in-the-moment user research, on prototypes and screens, and things like that. And take this time where your users are most likely at home, most likely also working under some new restrictions or some new conditions. Think about if there's some longitudinal research that you could do at this point in time, where it's not just your user interacting with a screen or a set of screens, but really think about their life and their context.
And if they're researching medical options or researching, who knows, it could be buying a new car at some point. If there's these longer journeys that you have been thinking about how to research with your users. Think about running some diary studies, think about running some of this longer term research that really helps you get that better understanding of your user's context and their needs, so that you can design those solutions and those screens with those real needs in mind. And that you're not just skipping straight to designing those screens.
I'd say this time is kind of an opportunity, think about if there are small sets of users you can start to do some sort of broader research with in this time. I think you'll come out on the other end with some really valuable insights.
Jim Morris:
Thanks for watching. You can find more product discovery resources at productdiscoverygroup.com.
Jim Morris, Product Discovery Group
Jim coaches Product teams to collaborate with each other and seek customer input early and often during the design and ideation phase.
