I had the pleasure of attending the amazing #pcampmelb 2019 un-conference ran by @Product Anonymous Group. My talk on importance of user / customer research via qualitative methods (e.g. interviews) was selected by attendees. Conducting such research (even if very small, quick and sharp) can go a long way in ensuring you make the right product decisions and de-risk building a product based on internal assumptions and anecdotes. My talk was to help product people and practitioners fight the good fight and arm themselves with rationale when they encountered resistance.

1. Qualitative Research -
Some is better than none!
Product Camp 2019
Amir Ansari
@amir_ansari @transpire

2. 2 @amir_ansari @transpire
We acknowledge the Traditional
Owners of the Kulin nation in which
we meet today. I’d like to pay my
respects to their Elders past,
present and emerging.
ACKNOWLEDGEMENT OF COUNTRY

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We create digital products
and experiences that matter

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...is primarily exploratory research. It is used to gain an understanding
of underlying reasons, opinions, and motivations. It provides insights into
the problem or helps to develop ideas or hypotheses for potential
quantitative research.
https://www.snapsurveys.com
Qualitative methods examine the why and how of decision making, not
just what, where, when, or "who"...
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Qualitative_research
... Qualitative Research...

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Do you feel you conduct enough qualitative
research with your end users during your
product development?

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“We know what our users
want. We don’t need to
speak to them!”
Head of Insights - tier 2 bank
“16 users is not
statistically
significant”
Head of technology
(and part owner!) of a software
company

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User research is
not appreciated
PART 1

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We've been building
S/W for over 10 years.
Just because you’ve been
around for 10 years, doesn’t
necessarily mean your
product is fit for use. We all
have blind spots and
biases.

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We speak to our
customers.
Your customers are not
your users. Your CFO /
procurement team are not
your users.

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If we were building
the wrong products,
our customers
wouldn’t be buying.
Good salespeople can sell
anything. Also, it may be
that you don’t have
competition… yet.

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We know our users
and what they want.
We don't need to ask
them.
You couldn’t possibly know
who your users are unless
you’ve met with them.
Marketing and their
marketing segmentation
are not your users. Ask
them to tell you a real life
story of one of their users.
Name them and give
detailed context. Show
evidence.

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No point asking users
what they want. They
often don’t know it
themselves!
You don’t ask your users
what they want - you
observe and identify what
they need.

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You’re the UX expert
- you should know
what our users
need.
You as a designer are not
your users. And even if you
happen to be - you’re just
one voice.

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A small sample size
is not deemed valid
PART 2
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We can’t make expensive
decisions based on a
handful of user feedback!
You don’t have to make
business decisions - but
you’ll now have some
evidence that not all your
assumptions are correct.
Also, the business decisions
might be to embark on
more research to
understand the relevance
of your findings.

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What % of users said
this?!
Never present your
qualitative research
quantitatively (i.e. using %).
You run the risk of
diminishing the impact of
your great insights.

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16 users is not
statistically significant.
You should not sell 16 users
as statistically significant/
However, you should be
confident that the 16 users
you’ve spoken to reflect the
population that represent
your client’s users.

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Are your findings
quantifiable?
This is where you start to
sell the idea of a mixed
method research
approach - combining
qualitative and
quantitative research.

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[Client] We want to engage our
employees, customers and all
stakeholders to form brand
advocacy through training and
education, to aid in the increase of
sales.

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[Client] We want to engage our
employees, customers and all
stakeholders to form brand
advocacy through training and
education, to aid in the increase of
sales.

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Staff are NOT allowed to carry
mobiles when working!
There is at most only one
computer
(in the manager’s office)

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So...
Some research is better than none!

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Tips
● You are not the end user
● Your client is not the end user
● People who buy your product may not necessarily be your user
● If your stakeholders say they know their users, ask for evidence
● Don’t ask users what they want, observe to see what they need
● Qualitative research isn’t… quantitative!
● Quant + Qual = right approach
● It’s your duty as a UXer to convince and sell research to your
stakeholders

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Useful resources
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bit.ly/t-distributionbit.ly/quantifying-qualitative

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“Done well, it will save you
time and money by reducing
unknowns and creating a
solid foundation to build the
right thing, in the most
effective way.”
Erika Hall - Just enough
research
THANK YOU
@amir_ansari
@transpire

31. Thank you
Level 2, 99 King Street,
Melbourne VIC 3000
transpire.com.au
+61 3 9821 0111
Thank you