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User Research Techniques by Vikram Rao, RSA
- 1. User Research Techniques Vikram Rao STC India UX Session - Bangalore 25 th June 2011
- 2. Agenda Context around User Research User Research Techniques Evaluate some User Research Techniques Pros and Cons of the Techniques Choosing a User Research Technique
- 3. Context around User Research
- 4. Fact of the matter… What are the problem we discover almost every time we analyze a project going awry? Badly Define Requirements We don’t know much about our users and their needs Poor Communications Stakeholder politics etc.
- 5. “ Knowing and caring about users and their lives is absolutely at the core of user-centered design.” What/Why? How?
- 6. Summarizing User Research Knowing the User well enough >> User Research
- 8. User Research Techniques Data Mining / Analysis Data mining is the process of extracting hidden patterns from data. As more data is gathered, with the amount of data doubling every three years, data mining is becoming an increasingly important tool to transform this data into information.
- 9. User Research Techniques Pros of using Data Mining / Analysis Leveraging existing sources (internal or external) of information Cons of using Data Mining / Analysis Very time consuming The raw data needs to be scanned, sorted and analyzed – for which we need skilled UX Researchers or Analysts to perform the exercise
- 10. User Research Techniques User Trip A User Trip is a technique where you take a ‘trip’ through the whole process of using a particular product or system, making yourself a critical observant user.
- 11. User Research Techniques Pros of using User Trip It would help us gain a good understanding of the requirements and provide suggestions towards additional features in the proposed application. Detailed review of the UI would help us to understand the pain points with the existing scenario/ application. We can preempt a lot of issues with the UI Cons of using User Trip The environment or situation in which the actual user is likely to perform the task cannot be simulated. If the exact user profile is not considered during simulation by the person who is conducting the user trip, it might not be effective.
- 12. User Research Techniques Observation Exercise An observation Exercise is a technique where you ‘observe’ actual users or representative users through the whole process of using a particular product or system.
- 13. User Research Techniques Pros of using Observation Exercise Collection of detailed, descriptive narrative data about the user’s profile, product usage, etc. Can be referred to throughout the year; useful for instructional planning. Cons of using Observation Exercise Needs to be conducted in classroom or work environment which may its own limitations / distractions Scheduling the sessions (time required, when to observe) is a challenge Great deal of expertise and objectivity required.
- 14. User Research Techniques User Interviews User Interviews help us in better understanding the user’s ‘goals’ and ‘needs’ by actually talking to them. The information would help us make better decisions in further improving the user experience and capabilities of the product or system.
- 15. User Research Techniques Pros of using User Interviews Interviews are a great way to find in-depth information about your users. They're fairly easy to organize. Typically need very little facilities / tools and can also be done remotely . Cons of using User Interviews Laborious process if done with many users Getting the right users that match the persona could be a challenge.
- 16. User Research Techniques Contextual Inquiry Contextual inquiry involves collecting detailed information about customer work practice by ‘observing’ and ‘interviewing’ the user while they actually work. The researcher should stay in the background and let the user lead the situation as much as possible.
- 17. User Research Techniques Pros of using Contextual Inquiry A chance to see what really happens and also clarify in context Provides data about environmental factors Critical source of information for Persona and scenario development. Cons of using Contextual Inquiry Analysis relies on the capabilities of the observer Possibility of no follow-up or probing means it's possible to make wrong inferences Only provides data on the observed work tasks and environment.
- 18. User Research Techniques Split A/B Testing Split A/B testing is a technique of finding out which changes or options help your users' performance . It provides a controlled method of measuring the effectiveness (or not) of alterations to your site, product or system.
- 19. User Research Techniques Pros of using Split A / B Testing Low risk approach Cheaper than other methods such as focus groups Provides proof Great way to do 'test run' new designs before full roll-out (to avoid negative surprises on the launch day) Can solve internal disputes Cons of using Split A / B Testing New designs might have to 'wear in' before you can measure their real performance (visitors' initial response might be negative because they're used to the old solution) You can only compare 2 versions with a single factor that differentiates both designs (for more factors / variations you need to deploy multivariate testing which is more difficult to analyze) It takes technical know-how to set up and analyze the results You're testing in a live environment so external factors might have an impact on the outcome If your site / system is really in bad shape, this technique does not help as you'll still need to do a proper overhaul.
- 20. User Research Techniques Diary Study Diary Study is a technique where participants collect data about events on site as they happen . Researcher would have to define templates to be handed out to systematically collect data.
- 21. User Research Techniques Pros of using Diary Study Need very little time to plan and organize Can be done parallely with other ongoing tasks and research activities Cons of using Diary Study Highly dependant on the users recording the right information Users need to be motivated to record activities and pass it along
- 22. User Research Techniques Focus Groups A focus group could be defined as a group of interacting individuals having some common interest or characteristics, brought together by a moderator, who uses the group and its interaction as a way to gain information about a specific or focused issue .
- 23. User Research Techniques Pros of using Focus Groups Collection of detailed, descriptive narrative data about the user’s profile, product usage experience, etc. Very cost effective in terms of gathering primary data and are very much time efficient Cons of using Focus Groups It is difficult to gather users together for this exercise Opinions might get biased based on comments from other participating members
- 24. User Research Techniques User Surveys / Questionnaires User Survey is an offline means of finding out how the software or web site is likely to be used by a specific set of users, some of usability pain points and other generic information.
- 25. User Research Techniques Pros of using User Surveys and Questionnaires Need very little time to plan and organize A cheap and effective way of capturing information. Cons of using User Surveys and Questionnaires It is a one sided. We typically get answers to the questions that we have – we not actually listening to the user. You can only have a limited set of questions as surveys and questionnaires cannot be very long.
- 26. Choosing a User Research Technique
- 27. Choosing a technique You need to consider the following when choosing a user research technique: Goals : Why you’re doing the research? Information Required : Qualitative vs Quantitative? Schedule : When to do the research? Budget : How much it’s going to cost?
- 28. Choosing a technique X X X X New Product or System X X User Surveys / Questionnaires X X X Focus Groups X Diary Study X X X Split A / B Testing X X X X X Contextual Inquiry X X X User Interviews X X X Observation Exercise X User Trip X Data Mining / Analysis Need Qualitative Data Access to Users High Budget Availability Have Time on Hand Obtain Specific Results User Research Technique
- 29. Questions… You can also reach me at: [email_address] | 9845694979