This document discusses different types of user research techniques and provides guidance on conducting contextual design interviews. It outlines three main types of user research techniques: generative, evolutionary, and quantitative. Contextual design interviews are recommended for generating designs and finding latent needs. The document provides details on how to plan and conduct contextual design interviews, including defining the focus, selecting subjects, observing their work, gathering artifacts, and debriefing the interview with the team. It emphasizes watching users rather than asking questions and capturing a narrative of their workflow. The debrief involves consolidating facts, sequences, and work models using an affinity diagram technique to group findings across multiple interviews.

1. Getting the most out of
getting out of the building
Better Customer Interviewing
Todd Warren
1-15-2013

2. 3 kinds of user research
Generative
Techniques:
Evolutionary
• Contextual Design/Open Ended
Techniques:
Quantitative
Interviews
• Segmentation Studies • Paper Prototypes
• Competitor study • Scenario “spike” Techniques:
• “Net”-nography • Observed usability testing • A/B Tests
Best: • Cohort Analysis
• To generate designs Best: • Behavioral Metrics
• Find Latent needs • Heat Mapping
• To validate solution
• Define segments/personas • Test Terminology and Flow Best:
• Test wording and emphasis of value • Test discrete design difference
prop • Optimize Flow
Based on Janice Fraser Lean UX model, see: http://www.slideshare.net/clevergirl/ux-lean-startups-for-entrepreneurs-kellogg-edition

3. Contextual Design Interviews
• Watch users doing stuff versus answering questions.
• Ground in the “Focus of Work” not the abstract of needs
• Go to where they work
• Underlying premise: users are bad at describing where they work around the
system; but do it intuitively anyway
• “Master/Apprentice” model—learn what it is they do, see what it is they do.
• One person, less intimidating; allows teams to make progress faster

4. Basic approach of a CI Interview
• Define focus of the interview
• Determine the subject (person)
• Visit during a time that is in the context of related work
• Watch them do the work; ask questions about what they are doing.
• Gather “Artifacts”
• Sketch their physical environment

5. Contextual Design Interview
• During the interview:
• Take notes
• Observes and ask questions
• Record if possible
• Take pictures if possible
• Preamble:
• “we are watching people use facebook, and we’d like to watch you work with
facebook for 45min-hour as part of a class to develop a product concept”

6. Interview Demo

7. Debriefing the Interview
• Interviewers express the narrative of what they have seen.
• Recorders catch “factoids”
• Recorders attempt to extract “flow” and “sequence”
• Think about cultural context

8. Interview de-brief
• Involve at least 1-2 others from the
team
• Do as soon as possible after the
interview
• Have an individual who focuses on
recording facts/sequences/work
models who didn’t attend the
interview
• Record facts even if they seem
irrelevant
• Watch for rat-holes, detailed
design discussion

9. Eventually, consolidate into cross user
models

10. Work Models: Affinity Diagram
• “Factoids” useful bits of information
from the interview
• “Design Ideas” potential features or
areas of investigation for further study
• Consolidate “bottoms up” based on
how things fit together
• Each interview can generate 50-ish
factoids/DI’s
• Use post-it notes (great for 3m!)
• Can use electronic method:
Microsoft’s “StickySorter”, linoit.com
• “Cut and paste” from interview works
well

11. Affinity Example

12. Affinity Model –Enthusiast apps
• Likely to use app before/after activity (not during)
• Outdoor enthusiasts are looking for feature rich phones
• People want to be able to conveniently and easily share media
• Want to share with the right community -> Unobtrusive seamless sharing
• Enthusiasts want to know where they’ve been/started and where friends
are
• Want to be safe and know surroundings
• Need accurate real time and future weather info
• Need multiple modes of connectivity to avoid coverage-dependent
situations

13. Assignment: 6 debriefed interviews
• Use the interview debrief template in google docs
• One sheet per team
• One tab per interview subject

14. Next Week
• New Presentation template
• Canvas
• Solution Resume
• Contextual Interviews
• 6 per team minimum
• Record via spreadsheet and an entry in Launchpadcentral
• Canvas Update Launchpadcentral
• Landing Page
• Connect with Faculty Advisor and AB Mentor