December 28, 2016
Newsletter

Let’s Talk About:

Research on Every Project

Research has an image problem. A word-association game for the word research might yield results like “methodical” and “academic” – not exactly words that resonate with digital product owners and CMOs.

However, research is really about asking the right questions at the right time. Research is interviewing a handful of customers to help prioritize feature development. Research is running a set-it-and-forget-it remote usability test to improve a product onboarding flow. Research is A/B testing a couple of layouts to find where money is being left on the table.

Expert designers don’t predict how users will behave; they know how to find out. Take a look at some tips we’ve learned from doing fast, lightweight research on every project:

9 Lightweight Research Tips

Community Thoughts on Research on Every Project...

  1. 1. User research, quick and dirty (Google Ventures Video) by Michael Margolis via Google Ventures Watch Google Ventures’ video workshop for a comprehensive overview on conducting your own usability studies and user interviews.
  2. 2. Just Enough Research by Erika Hall via A Book Apart Erika Hall’s book is the gold standard for articulating the value of lean, qualitative research and how to do just enough of it.
  3. 3. The Pros and Cons of Guerrilla Research for Your UX Project by Interaction Design Foundation via Interaction Design Foundation Doing research fast doesn’t necessarily mean heading down to the nearest coffee shop. Guerilla research can work well, but it’s not always appropriate.
  4. 4. Is Observing One User Worse Than Observing None? by Jeff Sauro via Measuring U Is research still worth it if you only have time for a sample size of one? An interesting statistical perspective.

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We believe the best work happens when talented people trust each other enough to be real and take risks. We’re looking to grow our team and are especially interested in finding the right people for the following roles:

Have an unsolvable problem or audacious idea? We’d love to hear about it.

We work with clients around the globe to solve their biggest challenges with a vision to create an elegantly connected, digitally enhanced, well-communicated world.

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