Your users don't always know what they want ☝️

unipaws@newsletter.paragraph.com (UNIPAWS) — Sun, 31 Mar 2024 18:51:59 GMT

Despite the fact that they are beneficial, these traditional methods have limits. Here's why:

1. Not mind readers: Picture yourself conversing with people in the 90s if you asked them if they would want "immediate access to global information in their pocket" (smartphone). They could say "no" not exactly knowing the opportunities.

2. The "Shiny object" trap. The appeal of the latest technology trends can be so strong, but it is important to solve the user problem. Remember when 3D TVs were all the rage? While original, they were generally not good enough for most people to pay a lot of money or spend much time and effort on them.

Hence, the question arises how we can close the gap between what users state and they actually need.

Here are some tips:

💎 User session recordings. Imagine that you release a new fitness app with a fancy workout builder. User interviews praise the feature highly, but downloads of workout plans are still low. The recording might reveal the users getting stuck in the builder’s complexity, being irritated by unclear directions, or even being overloaded with customization options. This brings out a usability problem that the interview might have missed.

💎 Heatmaps. Visualize user behavior by detecting areas that get the most (and the least) exposure.

💎 Behavior-based questions. Inquire about particular actions that you've witnessed. Instead of generic questions, ask users who abandoned checkout: "We noticed you didn't finish your order, can you please tell us about your experience?"

💎 The five WHYs. Try asking "why" five times in a row until you reach the heart of a customer's problem. Consider the example of users from a food delivery app who claim that the "reorder" option is sluggish. Asking "why" five times could reveal: "Why is it so slow? As the loading of my previous orders takes too much time. Why? Because there are too many orders at the same time. Why? Because the app doesn't have any filtering options for past orders."

💎 Prototype sketching. Ask users to draw what their perfect solution would look like (just don't worry about it being perfect!). Let's say you are designing a new music streaming app. Users' initial sketches may show a user flow that would be more biased towards curated playlists than individual song selection, or reveal a preference for a more visual browsing experience based on album art or artist photos.

Ready to build a product that users will ❤? Get in touch today:

🔗 Telegram: https://t.me/sannheten
🔗 WhatsApp: https://lnkd.in/dM9py5t8
🔗 Dribbble: https://lnkd.in/diwgRu2q
🔗 LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/unipaws-space/