UX Research: Practical Techniques for Designing Better Products

As more and more research is conducted, your team can track their level of understanding across this matrix to keep themselves honest and remove their biases.

It’s important to take into account all signals observed in the context of the conversation.

Make clear that the honorarium is in recognition of the participant’s time today, and that if they feel uncomfortable or are unable to continue a task, the honorarium is theirs regardless.

You want to encourage a feeling of trust and conversation and, more importantly, ensure that the participant doesn’t feel like a specimen on display in a lab. The more personal an interaction, the better.

It might take some relationship managing with supervisors or other gatekeepers, but it will pay off in the end.

In order to connect with the users we need, we have used a variety of methods, but our go-to for the weekly testing is the web intercept.

The better you screen, the better your data will be.

People aren’t typically able to see beyond their immediate wish list, and the difference between incremental improvement (giving users what they want) and innovation (giving users what they need) lies in skilled requirements elicitation.

All too often a designer knows only one method and tries to fit that approach into every project. Rather than fit the square peg in the round hole, familiarize yourself with as many methods as possible, and only then focus on a few to become truly proficient in.

Every tool has its place, and quantitative research methods are no different. Quantitative methods are best used when a large number of participants or customers may be accessed for the most statistically significant outcomes.