Why talk to users? How to have effective conversations with users Ways to incorporate user intelligence in your process for better results Presentation to the Northern NJ Chapter of the IxDA, September 16, 2010.

1. GATHERING
INTELLIGENCE
CONVERSATIONS
WITH
USERS
Northern
NJ
Interac:on
Design
Associa:on
(IxDA)
September
16,
2010

2. Welcome
to
the
fall
series
Three
talks
about
prac:cal
user
experience
design
September
16th
Collec&ng
intelligence
–
Lane
Halley
October
14th
“Showcase”
product
case
study
–
Marc
Wendell
November
18th
Sharing
the
vision
–
Duane
Degler
09/16/2010
Gathering
Intelligence,
Conversa:ons
with
Users
2

3. Who’s
here
tonight?
 What
role(s)
do
you
fill?
 What
kind
of
products
do
you
work
on?
 What
kind
of
company
do
you
work
for?
09/16/2010
Gathering
Intelligence,
Conversa:ons
with
Users
3

4. About
Lane
Halley
 Interac:on
Designer
 Agile
/
UX
Coach
 20+
years
in
SW
development
 Cooper
Fellow
(Goal-­‐Directed
Design©,
Personas)
09/16/2010
Gathering
Intelligence,
Conversa:ons
with
Users
4

5. What
is
Interac:on
Design?
Interac:on
Design
(IxD)
defines
the
structure
and
behavior
of
interac:ve
products
and
services.
Interac:on
Designers
create
compelling
rela:onships
between
people
and
the
interac:ve
systems
they
use,
from
computers
to
mobile
devices
to
appliances...
hcp://www.ixda.org/
09/16/2010
Gathering
Intelligence,
Conversa:ons
with
Users
5

6. What
we’ll
talk
about
tonight
 Why
talk
to
users?
 Effec:ve
conversa:ons
 Ac:onable
intelligence
09/16/2010
Gathering
Intelligence,
Conversa:ons
with
Users
6

7. WHY
TALK
TO
USERS?
09/16/2010
Gathering
Intelligence,
Conversa:ons
with
Users
7

8. Where
do
features
come
from?
Customers
Product
Developers
Managers
Legacy
Capabili:es
Compe::ve
Market
Product
research
Designers
09/16/2010
Gathering
Intelligence,
Conversa:ons
with
Users
8

9. How
do
you
recognize
a
successful
product?
Viral
adop:on
Market
success
Solves
a
problem
Awards
Brand
loyalty
Creates
a
Industry
Buzz
new
market
Meets
a
need
09/16/2010
Gathering
Intelligence,
Conversa:ons
with
Users
9

10. How
does
it
all
fit
together?
A
successful
product
is
more
than
the
sum
of
its
features
09/16/2010
Gathering
Intelligence,
Conversa:ons
with
Users
10

11. Finding
balance
Product
Viability
Adapted
from
Larry
Keeley,
three
elements
of
a
successful
high-­‐tech
product
09/16/2010
Gathering
Intelligence,
Conversa:ons
with
Users
11

12. Planning
for
quality
How
do
you
reduce
technology
risk
(capability)?
Some
agile
methods:
 Test
driven
development
(TDD)
 Small,
frequent
releases
 Fail
quickly
09/16/2010
Gathering
Intelligence,
Conversa:ons
with
Users
12

13. Planning
for
quality
How
do
you
reduce
market
risk
(viability)?
 Compe::ve
research
 Market
sizing
 Pilot
programs
09/16/2010
Gathering
Intelligence,
Conversa:ons
with
Users
13

14. Planning
for
quality
How
do
you
reduce
experience
risk
(desirability)?
 Usability
tes:ng?
Helpful,
but
omen
too
late
 Engage
with
real
users
early
and
omen
09/16/2010
Gathering
Intelligence,
Conversa:ons
with
Users
14

15. Reduce
risk
by
user
valida:on
Product
evolu:on
Bad
Assump:on
09/16/2010
Gathering
Intelligence,
Conversa:ons
with
Users
15

16. Reduce
risk
by
user
valida:on
Product
evolu:on
Bad
Bad
Assump:on
Assump:on
Discovered
09/16/2010
Gathering
Intelligence,
Conversa:ons
with
Users
16

17. Reduce
risk
by
user
valida:on
Product
evolu:on
Bad
Bad
Assump:on
Assump:on
Discovered
Wasted
:me
and
effort
09/16/2010
Gathering
Intelligence,
Conversa:ons
with
Users
17

18. Reduce
risk
by
user
valida:on
Product
evolu:on
Bad
Bad
Assump:on
Assump:on
Discovered
09/16/2010
Gathering
Intelligence,
Conversa:ons
with
Users
18

19. Reduce
risk
by
user
valida:on
Product
evolu:on
Bad
Bad
Assump:on
Assump:on
Discovered
Less
wasted
:me
and
effort
09/16/2010
Gathering
Intelligence,
Conversa:ons
with
Users
19

20. What
assump:ons
are
we
making?
 Who
is
the
user?
Who
is
the
customer?
 Where
does
our
product
fit
in
their
work
or
life?
 What
problems
does
our
product
solve?
 When
and
how
is
our
product
used?
 What
features
are
important?
 How
should
our
product
look
and
behave?
09/16/2010
Gathering
Intelligence,
Conversa:ons
with
Users
20

21. Even
if
you
don’t
plan
for
it
Your
product
delivers
a
user
experience,
whether
you
design
it
or
not.
09/16/2010
Gathering
Intelligence,
Conversa:ons
with
Users
21

22. Implicit
design
“Even
when
you
don't
see
explicit
design,
there
is
an
awful
lot
of
implicit
design…Google
does
a
good
job
when
they
are
building
products
a
developer
uses
every
day.”
−Ian
McFarland,
Pivotal
Tech
Talk
hcp://pivotallabs.com/talks/106-­‐enough-­‐design
09/16/2010
Gathering
Intelligence,
Conversa:ons
with
Users
22

23. Great
Google
products
Search
AdWords
+
AdSense
Google
Maps
GMail
Google
Spreadsheets
Google
Gears,
AppEngine,
and
other
Dev
Tools
GoogleVideo
Android
Google
Analy:cs
Chrome
hcp://pivotallabs.com/talks/106-­‐enough-­‐design
09/16/2010
Gathering
Intelligence,
Conversa:ons
with
Users
23

24. Great
Google
acquisi:ons
Search
AdWords
+
AdSense
Google
Maps
GMail
Google
Spreadsheets
Google
Gears,
AppEngine,
and
other
Dev
Tools
GoogleVideo
YouTube
Android
(hired
teams)
Google
Analy&cs
Chrome
hcp://pivotallabs.com/talks/106-­‐enough-­‐design
09/16/2010
Gathering
Intelligence,
Conversa:ons
with
Users
24

25. Talk
to
users
early
and
omen
Discovering
what
to
build
How
do
we
discover
what
to
build?
By
working
closely
(and
con:nually,
if
possible)
with
the
customer.
By
getng
feedback
as
omen
as
possible
from
real
users,
and
by
constantly
applying
that
feedback
to
the
product
under
development.
−Steve
Bockman
hcp://agilefocus.com
09/16/2010
Gathering
Intelligence,
Conversa:ons
with
Users
25

26. What’s
a
user?
“There
are
only
two
industries
that
refer
to
their
customers
as
‘users’:
computer
design
and
drug
dealing.”
–
Edward
Tume
hcp://www.edwardtume.com/tume/advocate_1099
09/16/2010
Gathering
Intelligence,
Conversa:ons
with
Users
26

27. What’s
a
user?
User
=
“person
who
uses
the
product”
 Consumer
products,
customer
=
user
 Enterprise
products,
customer
≠
user
09/16/2010
Gathering
Intelligence,
Conversa:ons
with
Users
27

28. Why
don’t
we
talk
to
users?
 We’re
users
 We
know
a
lot
of
users
 We’re
smarter
than
our
users
 We’ve
got
a
lot
of
other
important
things
to
do
 Users
don’t
want
to
be
bothered
 We
don’t
know
how
to
talk
to
users
09/16/2010
Gathering
Intelligence,
Conversa:ons
with
Users
28

29. Some:mes
you
have
to
speak
truth
to
power
Why
you
shouldn’t
listen
to
the
CEO
…Perhaps
he
has
lost
touch
with
the
reality
of
who
the
users
really
are.
The
way
the
business
is
organized
may
be
clear
to
him,
but
perhaps
not
to
his
users.
Maybe
his
ego
is
getng
in
the
way
of
making
a
ra:onal
decision.
−
Oliver
Gitsham
hcp://www.uxbooth.com/blog/finding-­‐the-­‐balance-­‐users-­‐needs-­‐vs-­‐clients-­‐wants/
09/16/2010
Gathering
Intelligence,
Conversa:ons
with
Users
29

30. Business
benefits
of
knowing
your
users
 Resolve
arguments
 Uncover
new
opportuni:es
 Scale
up
new
ventures
09/16/2010
Gathering
Intelligence,
Conversa:ons
with
Users
30

31. Resolve
arguments
about
“what’s
important”
“...it
really
depends
on
how
you
design
and
present
it,
context,
audiences,
and
I
would
say
maybe
a
good
way
might
be
to
pull
some
users,
even
in
your
own
organiza:on
to
do
a
quick
and
dirty
user
tes:ng
with
your
prototype.
Decision
making
on
data
is
becer
than
opinion.”
−
KejunXu,
post
on
IxDA.org
discussion
board
hcp://www.ixda.org/node/27379
09/16/2010
Gathering
Intelligence,
Conversa:ons
with
Users
31

32. Uncover
new
product
opportuni:es
“...rather
than
understanding
demographics
we
need
to
understand
psychographics.
We
need
to
stop
asking
people’s
opinion…
and
look
at
people’s
behaviour.
...Understanding
not
the
incremental
changes
that
people
want
now,
but
trying
to
find
new
classes
of
product
through
observa&onal
research.”
−
Andy
Budd,
blog
post
hcp://www.research-­‐live.com/features/the-­‐innova:on-­‐delusion/4003512.ar:cle
09/16/2010
Gathering
Intelligence,
Conversa:ons
with
Users
32

33. Avoid
mistakes
scaling
up
new
ventures
 Realize
that
customers
are
not
the
same
as
users
 Recognize
that
first
users
are
not
the
same
as
scaling
users
 An:cipate
that
first
products
are
not
the
same
as
scaling
products
−
Charles
Baden-­‐Fuller,
Ian
MacMillan,
Harvard
Business
Review
hcp://blogs.hbr.org/cs/2010/08/3_mistakes_made_in_scaling_up.html
09/16/2010
Gathering
Intelligence,
Conversa:ons
with
Users
33

34. EFFECTIVE
CONVERSATIONS
09/16/2010
Gathering
Intelligence,
Conversa:ons
with
Users
34

35. Where
do
you
find
users
to
talk
to?
 Licensed/registered
users
 In-­‐line
Web
recrui:ng
 Conferences
and
industry
events
 Special
interest
groups/user
groups
 Market
research
firms
 Craigslist
 Friends
and
Family
09/16/2010
Gathering
Intelligence,
Conversa:ons
with
Users
35

36. TOOLS
FOR:
Understanding
your
users
 Invite
them
to
chat
–
In-­‐line
Web
recrui:ng
 Meet
them
–
Site
visits,
interviews
 Play
games
with
them
–
Innova:on
Games
 Invite
them
to
visit
–
Rapid
prototyping
and
feedback
09/16/2010
Gathering
Intelligence,
Conversa:ons
with
Users
36

37. In-­‐line
Web
recrui:ng
 Ethnio
(www.ethnio.net)
Recruit
people
from
your
website
for
research
 “Talk
to
us”
bucon
Start
live
chat
session
 Remote
viewing
(Morae
from
TechSmith)
Screen
sharing
and
recording
09/16/2010
Gathering
Intelligence,
Conversa:ons
with
Users
37

38. Tips
for
effec:ve
interviews
 Iden:fy
who
do
you
want
to
talk
to
and
what
you
want
to
learn
 Plan
your
interview
themes
as
a
team
 Collect
ar:facts,
debrief
and
share
 Use
your
visits
for
mul:ple
purposes
09/16/2010
Gathering
Intelligence,
Conversa:ons
with
Users
38

39. Tips
for
effec:ve
interviews
Use
open-­‐ended
ques:ons
to
encourage
conversa:on
Open:
“What
did
you
have
for
breakfast
today?”
Closed:
“Did
you
eat
breakfast
today?”
Don’t
be
afraid
to
ask
“why”
a
lot.
09/16/2010
Gathering
Intelligence,
Conversa:ons
with
Users
39

40. Tips
for
effec:ve
interviews
Iden:fy
the
need
behind
a
feature
request
“If
you
HAD
feature
x,
what
would
that
allow
you
to
do?”
09/16/2010
Gathering
Intelligence,
Conversa:ons
with
Users
40

41. Innova:on
Games
Speedboat
Speedboat
Spider
web
Product
Box
Remember
the
future
09/16/2010
Gathering
Intelligence,
Conversa:ons
with
Users
41

42. “Five
Users
Every
Friday”
Situa:on
 Major
consumer
electronics
retailer
wanted
flexible
fast
implementa:on
of
Web
features
 Agile
development,
UX
perceived
as
a
bocleneck
Approach
 Rapid
prototyping
and
user
feedback
 Full
team
par:cipa:on
required
Results
 Greater
confidence,
less
:me
wasted
 Improved
team
understanding
of
user
needs
Tom
Ilmensee,
Alyson
Muff
hcp://www.computer.org/portal/web/csdl/doi/10.1109/AGILE.2009.45
09/16/2010
Gathering
Intelligence,
Conversa:ons
with
Users
42

43. Weekly
research
tasks
Friday
Run
protocol
High
level
summary
Monday
Analyze
data
Create
findings
summary
Create
wireframes
Tuesday
Discuss
recommenda:ons
with
team
Iden:fy
immediate
and
long
term
research
needs
with
team
Create
high-­‐level
test
plans
Wednesday
Prepare
protocol
Thursday
Prepare
ar:facts
/
prototype
Tom
Ilmensee,
Alyson
Muff
hcp://www.computer.org/portal/web/csdl/doi/10.1109/AGILE.2009.45
09/16/2010
Gathering
Intelligence,
Conversa:ons
with
Users
43

44. TOOLS
FOR:
Synthesis
 Ar:facts
from
fieldwork
 Affinity
models
 Personas
 Workflows
and
conceptual
models
09/16/2010
Gathering
Intelligence,
Conversa:ons
with
Users
44

45. Share
pictures
and
ar:facts
with
the
team
09/16/2010
Gathering
Intelligence,
Conversa:ons
with
Users
45

46. Use
affinity
models
for
group
synthesis
Photo:
Lane
Halley
09/16/2010
Gathering
Intelligence,
Conversa:ons
with
Users
46

47. Good
user
research
=
stronger
personas
Well-­‐researched
personas
help
your
team
make
becer
decisions.
A
good
persona
descrip:on
defines:
 Goals
 Attudes
 Work
or
ac:vity
flow
 Environment
 Skill
level
 Frustra:ons
09/16/2010
Gathering
Intelligence,
Conversa:ons
with
Users
47

48. Specific
is
more
important
than
accurate
Flickr:
dtsato/582640684
09/16/2010
Gathering
Intelligence,
Conversa:ons
with
Users
48

49. Workflow
models
inform
good
sketches
Flickr:
jazzmasterson/275800917
09/16/2010
Gathering
Intelligence,
Conversa:ons
with
Users
49

50. ACTIONABLE
INTELLIGENCE
09/16/2010
Gathering
Intelligence,
Conversa:ons
with
Users
50

51. TOOLS
FOR:
Envisioning
the
solu:on
 Stories/scenarios
 Collabora:ve
sketching/Design
Studio
 Prototypes
These
techniques
can
be
used
within
your
team
to
build
consensus,
and
with
customers
and
users
to
explore
and
validate
concepts.
09/16/2010
Gathering
Intelligence,
Conversa:ons
with
Users
51

52. Using
scenarios
Scenarios
help
your
team
explore
and
develop
a
shared
understanding
of
the
desired
user
experience.
1 Set
the
stage
− Who
is
the
subject
of
the
story?
− What
does
this
person
want
to
do
and
why?
2 Tell
the
story:
− Imagine
the
ideal
user
experience
− Describe
informa:on
and
ac:ons,
not
controls
3 Evolve
to
become
more
detailed
and
specific
09/16/2010
Gathering
Intelligence,
Conversa:ons
with
Users
52

53. Sample
scenario:
about
Peter
PETER
is
a
serious
bike
commuter
• Owns
several
bikes
(mountain
bike,
recumbent),
doesn’t
own
a
car
• Biking
is
his
main
form
of
transporta:on
• Bikes
are
his
hobby,
he
loves
to
look
at
and
learn
about
bikes
• Carries
lots
of
stuff
when
he
rides
(computer,
books,
groceries)
• Rides
in
all
weather,
needs
to
get
to
work
clean
and
not
too
sweaty
flickr:
ques:on_everything/2267542126
Scenario:
www.slideshare.net/LaneHalley/design-­‐studio-­‐workshop-­‐scenarios
09/16/2010
Gathering
Intelligence,
Conversa:ons
with
Users
53

54. Sample
scenario:
Peter’s
scenario
• Peter
is
a
regular
customer
at
Mike’s
Bikes.
He
learns
that
there’s
a
new
urban
cargo
bike
available
and
he’s
curious
to
check
it
out.
• When
Peter
gets
to
the
site,
it
recognizes
him
and
shows
him
what’s
new
since
his
last
visit.
He
can
see
there’s
a
street
bike
he
started
to
configure
on
his
last
visit,
but
he
doesn’t
want
to
work
on
that
now.
• He
easily
finds
the
new
cargo
bike
he
came
to
see.
• He
learns
about
the
cargo
bike
by
reviewing
some
technical
informa:on
about
gear
ra:os
and
then
watches
a
video
of
the
bike
in
ac:on.
09/16/2010
Gathering
Intelligence,
Conversa:ons
with
Users
54

55. Sample
scenario:
Peter’s
scenario
• He
is
interested
in
the
cargo
bike,
but
wants
to
talk
to
someone
who
owns
one.
He
reaches
out
to
the
Mike’s
Bikes
community
to
ask
a
ques:on
and
quickly
gets
an
answer.
• He
configures
the
cargo
bike
with
some
op:onal
equipment
he
might
want.
He
can
see
an
adjusted
total
price
as
he
works.
• Happy
with
what
he
sees,
he
makes
an
appointment
to
come
into
the
shop
on
Saturday
to
see
both
bikes
he
is
considering.
09/16/2010
Gathering
Intelligence,
Conversa:ons
with
Users
55

56. Collabora:ve
sketching
Photo:
Lane
Halley
09/16/2010
Gathering
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Conversa:ons
with
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56

57. Paper
prototype
Photo:
Lane
Halley
09/16/2010
Gathering
Intelligence,
Conversa:ons
with
Users
57

58. Tools
and
techniques
for
user
engagement
Tools
and
techniques
Notes
Online
chat
Real-­‐:me
observa:on
Site
visit,
interview
Pacerns
of
use
Behaviors
and
mo:va:ons
Pain
points
and
opportuni:es
Innova:on
games
Mental
models
Shared
team
understanding
Paper
prototype
Validate
and
evolve
concept
Reac:on
to
naviga:on/structural
elements
High-­‐fidelity
prototype
Reac:on
to
visual
look
and
feel
Test
branding,
messaging
09/16/2010
Gathering
Intelligence,
Conversa:ons
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58

59. How
will
you
apply
these
techniques?
The
right
process
for
your
team
depends
on:
 Complexity
of
your
product
domain
 New
product?
Later
release?
 Team
composi:on
 Size
 Loca:on
 Skills
09/16/2010
Gathering
Intelligence,
Conversa:ons
with
Users
59

60. Recommended
reading
Inspired:
How
To
Create
Products
Customers
Love
Marty
Cagan
Designing
for
the
Digital
Age:
How
to
Create
Human-­‐Centered
Products
and
Services
Kim
Goodwin
09/16/2010
Gathering
Intelligence,
Conversa:ons
with
Users
60

61. Recommended
reading
Prototyping,
A
Prac&&oner’s
Guide
Todd
Zaki
Warfel
The
Back
of
the
Napkin
Dan
Roam
09/16/2010
Gathering
Intelligence,
Conversa:ons
with
Users
61

62. Recommended
reading
Innova&on
Games:
Crea&ng
Breakthrough
Products
Through
Collabora&ve
Play
Luke
Hohmann
09/16/2010
Gathering
Intelligence,
Conversa:ons
with
Users
62

63. Thanks!
I’d
love
to
hear
your
stories…
Lane
Halley
lbh.inc@gmail.com
twicer:
thinknow
hcp://lanehalley.livejournal.com/
www.slideshare.net/lanehalley
09/16/2010
Gathering
Intelligence,
Conversa:ons
with
Users
63