Customer Research & Personas
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The document discusses the importance of customer personas in understanding user needs and guiding design decisions. It outlines research methods for developing personas, including generative and evaluative techniques, and emphasizes active listening during customer interactions to gain insights. Additionally, the document highlights the need for empathy and collaboration in persona creation and the effective use of data to enhance user experience.
Customer Research & Personas
- 1. 6.16.2014 Customer Research & Personas Brian Winters @bwinters
- 2. WHAT WE’LL COVER Personas Overview Research to Personas Listening Sessions
- 3. A FEW QUESTIONS How well do you know your customers? How do you use personas? What is the value of personas to your organization?
- 4. P E R S O N A S O V E R V I E W
- 5. PERSONA VALUE We talk to people to gain a better understanding of them, their context and what they need to accomplish their goals. The data we uncover feeds into our design decisions and uncovers new opportunities. § Common understanding of our users § Describes peoples’ goals and mental models § Aids us in design decisions § Prioritizes features § Scenario-based § Rich stories with emotion = Empathy § Consensus builders It’s not just about pain-points, it’s about insights
- 6. Forrester’s six criteria for personas SIX CRITERIA 1. Does the persona sound like a real person? 2. Is the persona’s narrative compelling? 3. Does the persona call out key attributes and high-level goals? 4. Is the persona focused on establishing design decisions? 5. Is the persona usable? 6. Does the persona have appropriate production values? Source: state of the art personas, jonathan browne – forrester research
- 7. A persona artifact is just one piece to understanding the customer CHALLENGES Persona documents are simply a snapshot Personas can be easily forgotten Empathy for the user is missing in the conversation We know the persona detail, but can we speak for them? Getting to the right data requires skill and practice
- 8. THE INGREDIENTS • Characteristics • Interests • Personality • User Type • Quotes • Skills • Knowledge • Scenarios • Relationships • Emotions • Goals • Pain Points • Frustrations • Influences • Technology PROFILE CONTEXT OPPORTUNITY
- 9. Image Name/Personal Info Demographics Scenario/Overview Goals/Needs Frustrations/Pain Points Persona template Common Activities/ScenariosAttributes Snapshot
- 12. Transform your business BIZ QUESTIONS What does it take to shift our culture to be more customer-centered? Do we have a good story to tell of our customers and their experience with us? How do people really use our products and why? What’s the best way to beat our competitors?
- 13. R E S E A RC H F O R P E R S O N A S
- 14. RESEARCH TO PERSONA Research Data: • Quotes • Pain Points/Needs • Observations • Insights • Tasks • Scenarios Data Analysis Finding Patterns: • Affinity Clustering • Relationships • Emotions • Behaviors • Needs Identification • Context Attributes Develop Insights & Persona • What does it mean? • Follow-up research • Storytelling • Common Understanding • Research, test, iterate Synthesis
- 15. Overview Generative research methods help us uncover people’s motivations, behaviors & attitudes, Through direct observation we discover context- of-use, and how people really do things. Value This type of research drives innovation and yields insights to leapfrogging the competition. Genera&ve Research Evalua&ve Research Preference Research Data and Insights: › See how people are doing their work in context. › Observe artifacts people use in their workflow. › Observe work-arounds that show hidden needs. › Discover details of relationships between people and departments where you can create value. › Understand the Why behind behaviors, motivations and beliefs Overview Evaluative research methods are used to validate current solutions, optimize the current experience, and improve business metrics. Value This type of research yields incremental improvements to evolve an existing solution. Data and Insights: › Find gaps in the flow of user tasks. › Uncover improvements in content and labeling. › See how your current solution stacks up against the competition. › Validate design decisions for navigation, content organization and interactions. › Usage statistics provide direction on potential areas for improvement. Overview With preference research methods help we ask people to express their perceptions, opinions, beliefs about a product or service. Value This type of research provides direction on where to go deeper with other research methods. Data and Insights: › Find out if people like a design, branding and the aesthetics. › Uncover what people like or dislike about the experience they have with your solution. › Capture quantitative feedback to uncover behavior trends and attitudes. › Understand how people perceive the value of your solution. RESEARCH TYPES
- 16. Genera&ve Research Evalua&ve Research Preference Research METHOD SELECTION Find new ways to increase engagement with your customers. Business Questions: › How can we delight our customers? › How do we disrupt the market? › How do people really use our products? Research Methods: › Contextual Inquiry › Non-directed Interview › Ethnography › Customer Diary Optimize the customer experience and your success metrics. Business Questions: › Can we increase our conversion rate? › Is our navigation helpful to our customers? › How do we stack up against competitors? Research Methods: › Usability or A/B Testing › Web Analytics › Card Sorting › Competitive Analysis Understand customers’ opinions and preferences to improve adoption. Business Questions: › What do people think of my brand? › What do they want from my company? › What do people like about our products? Research Methods: › Surveys › Focus Groups › Customer Feedback Channels › Card Sorting
- 17. Where do you get good Persona Data? PERSONA DATA Existing Research Existing Customer Data Customer Feedback Channels Usability Research In-Context Interviews
- 18. Good analysis is important to find the right data ANALYSIS Know what you are looking for Make sure data is complete Look for unexpected patterns Allow enough time to process data Work in small groups
- 19. Turning your insights into a persona SYNTHESIS No strict formula to persona design Make it a story or conversation Scenarios are important Should be easily shared Update frequently with new data
- 20. L I S T E N I N G S E S S I O N S
- 21. LISTENING SESSION Immersion in your customer’s experience • Focus on listening Deep, active listening helps us uncover latent needs and unexpected insights. • Facilitated Session Facilitate the analysis of what you are hearing from the customer to drive towards new ideas and uncover new ways to think about your solution. • Real-Time You’ll walk away from every the sessions with insights that you can immediately apply to your project work. • Active Participation Share with a broader group how to analyze usability research data, teaching your team how to think about the data and findings, for maximum impact on your designs.
- 22. TRADITIONAL Interview questions & tips
- 23. NEW APPROACH
- 24. Active participation The interview ACTIVE PARTICIPATION
- 28. Interview questions & tips STORYTELLING
- 29. REQUIREMENTS Listens between the lines Bridges the gap between biz and user Adept at teasing out the Why Empathic Listener Skilled researcher Co-participation by stakeholders Facilitation Real Empathy Structure & planning Keys to success Empathic listening Merges perspectives to gain empathy Illustrates motivations and goals Focuses on experiences and not product preferences Uncovers the Why Active participation More minds, more better Increases stakeholder buy-in Teaches people how to listen New way to collaborate
- 30. KEY INGREDIENTS How do You make it a success? Getting the most out of a Listening Session requires more than just a gathering of people with post-it notes. Approach, skill and preparation can make a difference. Solid Plan & Structure Strong In-room Facilitator Workspace & Support Committed Stakeholders Adjust, Adjust, Adjust Delay Solutions Talk
- 31. QUESTIONS?