My colleagues in Ensembl asked me to give a talk on user research. There were a couple of questions they wanted to answer but I also made the point that it is worth taking the time to dig beneath the surface to get to the root of problems. In doing so, whole teams can gain insight and empathy for all those users out there.

1. User research: the gentle art of not asking users what they want
User research
The gentle art of not asking users what they want
Francis Rowland
User experience designer
EMBL-EBI
Monday, 4 March 2013

2. User research: the gentle art of not asking users what they want
So... who is this guy exactly?
User experience designer at EMBL-EBI
Background in web design
Distant background in environmental science
Organiser for EBI Interfaces and Cambridge Usability Group
I try to help people identify and describe [design] problems,
connect with users, and deliver useful, usable services
Day-to-day, I do a lot of sketching and prototyping
Monday, 4 March 2013

3. User research: the gentle art of not asking users what they want
Monday, 4 March 2013

4. User research: the gentle art of not asking users what they want
“If I had asked people
what they wanted,
they would have said
faster horses.”
- attributed to Henry Ford
(who may have never said this*)
* http://blogs.hbr.org/cs/2011/08/henry_ford_never_said_the_fast.html
Monday, 4 March 2013

5. User research: the gentle art of not asking users what they want
Monday, 4 March 2013

6. User research: the gentle art of not asking users what they want
“The trouble with market
research is that people
don’t think how they feel,
they don’t say what they
think and they don’t do
what they say.”
David Ogilvy
(might have said this...*)
http://www.foolproof.co.uk/three-old-chestnuts-cracked/
Monday, 4 March 2013

7. User research: the gentle art of not asking users what they want
So why bother with user research?
curiosity -> insights -> empathy
Talking to users will help you learn more about
activities
goals
pain points
opportunities
“Validate that the problem you are solving actually
exists ... [and remember] the user is giving you data,
not an expert opinion” - Elaine Wherry
Monday, 4 March 2013

8. User research: the gentle art of not asking users what they want
Not this kind of empathy...
Deanna Troi, Star Trek “empath”
Monday, 4 March 2013

9. User research: the gentle art of not asking users what they want
So why bother with user research?
curiosity -> insights -> empathy
Talking to users will help you learn more about
activities
goals
pain points
opportunities
“Validate that the problem you are solving actually
exists ... [and remember] the user is giving you data,
not an expert opinion” - Elaine Wherry
Monday, 4 March 2013

10. User research: the gentle art of not asking users what they want
Why are you doing the research?
Set out goals before you arrange user research
What do knowledge gaps are you trying to fill?
Who are you going to report the research to?
How will you act on this? What’s next?
Test hypotheses
Monday, 4 March 2013

11. User research: the gentle art of not asking users what they want
Be prepared to dig...
“WHY?”
Monday, 4 March 2013

12. User research: the gentle art of not asking users what they want
Long term user research
Mine your data!
log analysis
helpdesk tickets
Diary studies
Fly-on-the-wall
Fly-on-the-wall: http://ebiinterfaces.wordpress.com/2011/06/19/science-stories-and-better-design/
Monday, 4 March 2013

13. User research: the gentle art of not asking users what they want
Short term user research
Interviews
Surveys
Focus groups
Participatory design
Usability testing
Monday, 4 March 2013

14. User research: the gentle art of not asking users what they want
How do you know when you’ve done enough?
Look back to your research goals
Did you answer your questions?
Monday, 4 March 2013

15. User research: the gentle art of not asking users what they want
How do you know when you’ve done enough?
Look back to your research goals
Did you answer your questions?
A note on usability testing
“Using small numbers of participants [in usability testing] is
acceptable because we’re hunting for usability issues. When
you try to extend the purpose of your test it’s not possible to
rely on such a small number of participants.” - Dave Hamill
Monday, 4 March 2013

16. User research: the gentle art of not asking users what they want
Only users?
What are your “competitors” doing?
Information from related projects?
Idea generation might just start at home...
Monday, 4 March 2013

17. User research: the gentle art of not asking users what they want
Reporting back: “in-reach”
Synthesising meaning from research results
Storytelling
Pictures; video
Pull quotes & annotations
Personas & scenarios
Activity diagrams
Monday, 4 March 2013

18. User research: the gentle art of not asking users what they want
Thank you
Any questions?
Email: frowland@ebi.ac.uk
Twitter: @francisrowland
If you’re interested in learning more, come and talk to me, have
a look at upcoming Cambridge Usability Group events [1] and
the BCS East Anglia event [2] on March 7, 2013
[1] http://lanyrd.com/profile/camusability/
[2] http://bcs-paul-jervis-talk.eventbrite.co.uk/
Monday, 4 March 2013