Nyssa Packard - How To Run User Research At Any Scale – From Startup To Big Tech (Turing Fest 2022)

We all know how important it is to keep the user at the centre of product development to achieve PMF and grow. But gathering and effectively leveraging user feedback to shape strategies and roadmaps can often pose a challenge – whether from a resource, skill or tooling perspective. As a result, we risk missed opportunities or unsuccessful product launches by failing to take the user perspective into account. Having run research at every stage of maturity from solopreneur to leading large teams at Facebook, booking.com and Skyscanner, Nyssa will share strategies for conducting user research in a relevant way for any size of business – from startup to big tech and everything in between.

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Transcript

1. How to run user research at any scale
 from startup to big tech Nyssa Packard | Senior Director, Insights | Skyscanner
2. User research focuses on understanding user behaviours, needs and motivations through observation techniques, task analysis and other feedback methodologies. Wikipedia, definition of ‘user research’
3. Why?
 
 User Research matters Nyssa Packard | Skyscanner
4. Nine of the top 20 reasons for startup failures – and five out of the top 10 – were related to customers – not meeting customers’ needs, not listening to them or even ignoring them. In fact, the number one reason why start-ups fail was “no market need.” In other words, there was no customer. Why Start-ups Fail, Forbes, May 2019
5. By neglecting to research customer needs before commencing engineering efforts, entrepreneurs end up wasting valuable time and capital on MVPs that are likely to miss their mark. These entrepreneurs are like sprinters who jump the gun: They’re too eager to get a product out there. Why Start-ups Fail, Harvard Business Review, May-June 2021,
6. 
 
 
 Grow your business. Save time.
 Save money.
 Better decisions.
7. “ “ We spent way too much time building it for ourselves and not getting feedback from prospects — it’s easy to get tunnel vision.
 
 
 - eCrowds founders
8. “ “ Startups fail when they’re not solving a market problem…We had great tech, data, reputation, expertise, advisors, etc… but what we didn’t have was a business model that solved a pain point in a scalable way.
 
 - Treehouse Logic founders
9. “ “ It’s easy to get tricked into thinking your thing is cool. You have to pay attention to your customers and adapt to their needs.
 
 
 - VoterTide founders
10. Entrepreneur Researcher Leader
11. User Research mission & JTBD 1. Land current product roadmap as successfully as possible with users 2. Identify the greatest opportunities to improve user experience and fuel growth for the future Deliver actionable insights that improve user experience and accelerate business growth
12. What?
 
 Questions user research can address Nyssa Packard | Skyscanner
13. Product Development Flow @ Skyscanner Discovery
14. generative research evaluative research experiment learn, monitor How can we achieve PMF? How can we simplify our IA? How can we improve user retention? Where are growth opportunities? Which new features should we prioritise? How can we reduce cart abandonment? How can we improve conversion? How can we improve success at launch? How much did this change move the needle? Where should we focus to optimise user experience? Discovery
15. experiment learn, monitor generative research evaluative research experiment learn, monitor generative research evaluative research experiment learn, monitor Risk / Effort + = - Discovery
16. Big Bets (strategic) Local Maxima (tactical) Evaluative research Experiment Learn & launch Monitor Generative research Experiment Learn & launch Monitor
17. How?
 
 Running research on your own as a startup Nyssa Packard | Skyscanner
18. Research 101 • Business objective / decisions • Research objective / questions • Method – how to get the right data
19. Research methods Behavioral Attitudinal Qualitative Quantitative Ethnography Diary Study Data Mining Eyetracking A/B Testing Card Sorting Surveys Interviews Focus Groups Conjoint Usability Testing
20. Behavioral Attitudinal Qualitative Quantitative Ethnography Diary Study Data Mining Eyetracking A/B Testing Surveys Interviews Focus Groups Conjoint Usability Testing Card Sorting + Dogfooding Immersions Guerrilla testing + Freesearch methods
21. My story
22. Building for PMF Winning idea Idea space
23. Advice Risk of guessing wrong Don’t know about wine Generic supermarket selection Expert selected Unique, small batch wines not found in retail Education through notes & tips Reorder with discount Impress guests Enhance meal Unwind Tasting notes Pairing notes, recipes Story to tell Small winery focused wine subscription Personal wine passport & reviews Be refined Pairing tips Trusted favorites Value Proposition Canvas
24. Building for PMF Winning idea Idea space
25. Concept Evaluation
26. Building for PMF Winning idea Viability Feasibility Desirability Idea space
27. Survey run on Facebook, Instagram Branding LIKING MEMORABILITY
29. Freesearch methods Behavioral Attitudinal Qualitative Quantitative Ethnography Diary Study Data Mining Eyetracking A/B Testing Surveys Interviews Focus Groups Conjoint Usability Testing + Dogfooding Immersions Guerrilla testing +
30. Who?
 
 Ready Researcher One Nyssa Packard | Skyscanner
31. Set up to succeed. • Experienced User Researcher • Set priorities & expectations • Prod dev process integration
32. UX Planet: In demand skills for UX Researchers Skills to look for
33. UX Planet: In demand skills for UX Researchers Qualifications to look for
34. Who else?
 
 Smells like team spirit Nyssa Packard | Skyscanner
35. Agency model MG R UR UR PM PD … PM PD … PM PD … PM PD … PM PD … PM PD …
36. Agency model
37. Democratised model MG R UR UR PM PD … PM PD … PM PD … PM PD … PM PD … PM PD …
38. Embedded model PM PD UR PM PD UR PM PD UR PM PD UR PM PD UR PM PD UR
39. Hybrid model MG R QN T OP S PM PD UR PM PD UR PM PD UR PM PD UR PM PD UR PM PD UR
40. Why user research matters
 What questions research can answer
 How you can do research fast & free
 Who to hire as your first user researcher
 How to structure the team as you scale Nyssa Packard | Skyscanner
41. Thanks! Join me at 1:10 in the Expo for the Q&A Roundtable Nyssa Packard | Senior Director, Insights | Skyscanner