Part 2: User research, surveys, interviews and personas

Module 3 · Sun 26 Jul

User research = seeing the world from the user's side, not your assumptions. Each method answers a different question: interviews tell you why, analytics tell you what, usability tests tell you if they can use it, A/B tests tell you if it improves the outcome.

• Surveys give breadth - but only with the right audience, short length, a neutral option, and ideally 100+ responses.
• Passive observation shows natural behaviour; active observation shows where people get stuck on a task.
• Interviews: build trust first, ask about real past behaviour, not "would you use X?". Rule of thumb: about 10 interviews for qualitative insight.

Segmentation (who to target: demographic, geographic, behavioural, need-based) comes before a persona (one humanised person who represents that segment). In B2B, research end users, buyers and IT/security - they want different things.

Class exercises: a Zepto-style subscription idea (works for recurring needs only if pause/skip is built in), and Uber pickup confusion at malls and airports - narrow the scope, talk to ~10 riders and drivers, ask open questions. Discovery narrows uncertainty; it doesn't prove your favourite solution.