Research
Research is essential for delivering successful interactive products. But to be really useful it needs to deliver something more reliable than customer opinions.
Flow's research techniques uncover what your target users do – not just what they say they do.
Getting results from user research
User-centred design projects use two main research techniques: ethnography and usability testing. Both approaches provide the detailed insight that teams need to help them plan and design successful interactive products.
Both approaches also offer a vital advantage over traditional forms of research like surveys or focus groups: they let you spot situations where people say one thing but actually do something quite different.
Ethnography
The idea of ethnography is to immerse yourself in the lives of target customers to understand their needs and motivations. It works best at the early stages of a project, to inform product strategy or product design.
Ethnography is best for:
- Helping you innovate new interactive products and services.
- Understanding what people need your new product to do, and what they don't need it to do.
- Finding out how people really use your current products, and how you could improve the experience.
The ethnographic techniques we use include shadowing, diary studies, context study, lab-based activity sessions and online tracking.
Usability testing
Usability testing works best as part of an iterative design cycle, embedded in the middle of the design process. You observe users as they use your product or prototype, then apply what you've learned to improving the user experience.
It's best for:
- Seeing where people get stuck using your interface, and getting ideas for how to improve it.
- Finding out if customers understand your product's proposition and whether they find it appealing and useful.
- Helping your team to understand the current user experience and focus on delivering a high quality product.
The techniques we use are face-to-face user testing sessions, with eye tracking when appropriate, and automated usability testing.
Results that support design and strategy
Collecting information is only half the process. We deliver actionable design and strategy recommendations based on our findings.
We can go on to deliver design concepts or product strategy roadmaps.
It's amazing what a little understanding can do
Effective user-centred research lets you understand the reality of what your customers want, create new products that speak to their values and foster more loyalty to your business than you ever dreamed possible.
