The deck I used for my talk at UXIndia 2014, Bangalore. The backstory: Over the last few years that I have been doing user research, I have seen the practice of user research - more specifically, the methods, tools & techniques that we use - stay pretty much unchanged. But then look at the way we consume, create and communicate now. It has undergone tremendous shifts. We have become more mobile and more connected than ever before. Our attention spans and consumption patterns are completely bite-sized. Given that user research is about knowing people, its but obvious that as people evolve, the practice should evolve too. Through this talk, I wanted to explore how user research can evolve in order to best leverage these big 'shifts' and blend with people's everyday lives. A lot of context is lost without the accompanying 'talk' per se. But I hope the slides give a decent idea. I would love to hear from you about how you have done user research differently, what has worked and what hasn't. Do drop me a line on pg.neelam@gmail.com

1. Whatsapp Diaries
user research in a mobile,
connected, bite-sized world

2. driving value
through
customer experience

3. Customer = User ?

4. Value for Whom?

5. Love thy users…
But love thy
customers too!
The tight rope walk

6. User Customer
Sweet Spot

7. Discover
Communicate
Create
Assess
DRIVING
VALUE
The Value Wheel

8. Discover
Communicate
Create
Assess
DRIVING
VALUE
The Value Wheel
EVALUATIVE GENERATIVE

9. User research in a mobile,
connected, bite-sized world.
WHAT’S CHANGING?

10. Discover. Communicate. Create. Assess.

12. From ‘long and spaced’…
…to ‘short and ongoing’
SHIFT #1

13. Everyone
moves.
Everything
moves.
towards a mobile world
SHIFT #2

14. Use the mobile to know people and their worlds:
actively (as a tool to capture)

16. Blend it into their normal scheme of things
-short and crisp
-simple yet effective
-unobtrusive

17. Narrative Clip

18. Use the mobile to know people and their worlds:
passively (as a resource/channel of data
collection)

19. Shrinking ‘6
degrees of
separation’
towards a connected, networked, world
SHIFT #3

20. from ‘man with a mission’
to ‘groups with a purpose’
SHIFT #4

21. social butterfly effect
expanding, colliding circles of influence

22. Consider multiple perspectives - groups,
connections, interests and influencers
Where one experience tapers off…another one
begins!
Groups shape identities. Groups shape values.

23. Access communities of practice

24. Discover. Communicate. Create. Assess.

25. Reports.
When was the last
time you read one?

26. Instagram | Medium | Pinterest | Facebook | YouTube
From words to visuals:
thinking with our eyes
SHIFT #5

28. make it visual.
keep it short.
keep it interesting.

33. communicate it back
to the people.
Feedback
Influence

34. Discover. Communicate. Create. Assess.

35. From ‘co-located specialists’
to
‘connected & collaborative
multi-disciplinary teams’
SHIFT #6

36. From waterfalls
to iterations
SHIFT #7

37. When the chaos of
creation strikes,
hold on to the value!
REAL TIGHT!

40. create
value
together…

41. …make it fun

42. Discover. Communicate. Create. Assess.

44. remote
validation
and testing
Google Hangout | Usertesting.com | Loop11

45. SHIFT #8
from computers…
…to mobiles

46. The challenge
How do you see what they are seeing and doing?

47. moving from usability
to experience.
How do you test an
experience?
SHIFT #9

48. Crowd sourced validation and assessment

49. Do it the lean way.
‘Pretotype’ it. Hack it.

50. Be flexible.
Mix-media research approach.
Iterative research approach.
http://mypatientstory.tumblr.com/

52. Be creative. Be exciting.

53. Any bite-sized questions?
Thanks!
Neelam Shetye | pg.neelam@gmail.com