Gretchen McNeely Piet Kruithof_Big Wheels Keep on Turnin_UX Y'all 2022

Transcript

1. Big Wheels Keep on Turnin’: A collection of user research methods to drive five-year product strategy Piet Kruithof Gretchen McNeely
2. When the penny drops In a stakeholder interview, you hear this -- “You know, my concern isn’t what we’re developing for next quarter but what we need to build in five years to stay relevant to our customers.”
3. Key benefits of UX research supporting long-term product strategy
4. Enhancing deliverable quality If UX research is continually applied only incrementally, it retains only incremental value. If UX research is not a part of “big moments” when companies pursue transformation and disruption, those transformative deliverables suffer as a result.
5. Driving perceived relevance of research Surfacing insights to bolster long-term strategy → research becomes a crucial part of the business picture. Becoming part of the business picture → a broader perspective for you as a researcher.
6. The big picture
7. Shift focus to value Ultimately, your team is responsible for delivering value to customers. But what is value?
8. Expand connections and impact across lines of leadership Who holds the keys to the kingdom when it comes to product strategy? (Hint: It should be more than one person.) What are their goals? How do they anticipate meeting those goals?
9. Focus on high-level deliverables Ask leadership about their specific goals for the quarter (or year).
10. Set expectations with your team Have candid conversations with your manager and design leadership about your focus on strategy.
11. Become familiar with your team’s product management tools Focus on the tools being used by leadership to identify, plan, and track product in order to align your work with the team and measure value.
12. Specific methods
13. A few of our favorites This is by no means comprehensive, but really a list of methods we felt were effective • Easy to use (but not simple) • Rigorous • Impactful
14. Warning! Do not oversimplify these methods to the point of meaninglessness.
15. “Make everything as simple as possible, but no simpler.” Albert Einstein
16. Secondary research What research has already been done? Secondary research is a research method that involves compiling, analyzing, and synthesizing existing data sourced from a variety of channels. Secondary research paints the landscape.
17. Stakeholder interviews A stakeholder interview involves a one-on-one conversation with internal or client stakeholders. It offers clarity (and reveals friction points) about projects, opportunities, and potential barriers. Stakeholder interviews drive alignment.
18. Hear me now; trust me later • Stakeholder interviews should remain anonymous • Dive into the stakeholder’s specific goals for quarter, year, or five-year plan • Ask what concerns them the most • Ask what they’d most like to know, explore, or understand • Ask what stands in the way to success • Ask about development process and how it support / does not support this success • Be prepared for some level of tension
19. Jobs To Be Done Which activities provide the greatest opportunities regarding importance of and satisfaction with existing products and services? Jobs-to-be-Done (also known as JTBD or Jobs Theory) is a method for delivering customer value and generating company growth that is rapidly being adopted for good reason: it is proven to work.
20. Key Considerations • JTBD is more complex than the conversations surrounding it • Consider hiring a specialist • There are many flavors; do your homework • Identify tactics to increase shelf life of attributes
21. Ethnography Early-stage, broad-scope research method that involves deeply understanding a culturally bounded group’s values, attitudes, and needs. For our purposes, this involves both observation and direct inquiry. Ethnography is a way to explore and identify market opportunities.
22. Trend scanning Trend scanning stems from many sources -- formal online publications, social listening, overhead coffeeshop conversations… It points us to what is happening now and how current behaviors and pressures lead us to what happens next.
23. MaxDiff Which of these attributes (values, not solutions) are most important to customers? Long-established mathematical theory: respondents evaluate all possible item pairs within a displayed set and choose the pair reflecting the maximum difference in preference or importance.
24. Hear me now; trust me later v.2 • Requires significant data analysis; consider using Qualtrics • Relatively large sample size (n=130 or more) • Ask content writers for help; poorly written attributes significantly impact study results o Mutually exclusive o Similar impact
25. Concept sensing Does the customer even feel they need your product? If so, what benefits resonate with them? Concept sensing (or concept response) allows customers to provide feedback on an envisioned concept.
26. How it works • Validates 1-2 concepts in moderated / unmoderated format • Helps teams vet concepts before committing significant design / dev resources • Provides lens into what about the concept resonates with customers • Drives customer knowledge within the research team • Informs GTM strategy, feature development, and messaging
27. Hear me now; trust me later v.3 • Ask content writers for help; poorly written stimuli can derail from concept’s perceived value • Collaborate deeply with product managers; buy-in is important! They’re ultimately responsible for product success • Anticipate several data clustering sessions with cross-functional teams: SMEs, stakeholders, product managers
28. Sample focus areas • Participant’s description of solution • Assessment of solution value • Assessment of intended users • Feedback on potential missing information • Feedback on potential features • Response to inquiry about competition
29. What now?
30. Reflection • Has anything changed about the way you view your research role? • Any new methods or approaches that seem appealing or intriguing? • What tracks for you; what doesn’t?
31. Questions?