Ethnography
Ethnographic studies observe users in the actual environment where they use a product.
The approach helps you design new products, by understanding what job your users really need the product to do. And it helps you improve existing products by understanding how well those products are working in real life situations.
Why this approach?
- It gives you a deep understanding of your customers' messy reality: what they really do, not what they say they do.
- It drives innovation because it lets you see first hand the jobs your customers need a product to do.
- It identifies unspoken requirements and problems - even ones that users aren't immediately aware of themselves.
How it works
We work with you to select the right combination of techniques:
- Shadowing: Spend time with target customers to gain a detailed understanding of their behaviours and motivations in a particular area.
- Diary studies: Gain insight over a period of time by asking people to keep a diary or a photo diary. For example: How often during a week do people typically use the web browser on their smart phones, and what situations drive that usage?
- Activity sessions: Ask users to explore their habits and decisions using games, sketching, interviewing and web surfing in the lab. The activities help users to recreate their actual experiences even though they are out of their everyday environment. It's a quick, cost-effective approach.
Results
Looking for patterns in the research data is quite a challenge. We use an immersive approach,populating project rooms with notes, photos and diagrams. Making all the information visible like this allows people to make connections they might otherwise miss and lets teams collaborate more effectively.
We provide practical, actionable outputs including:
- User personas, roles, goals and tasks
- Process diagrams, including points of pain and opportunity
- Anecdotes and "Ah-ha!" moments
- Requirements checklists and gap analysis
- Ideas for new products or features
- Product strategy roadmaps
Typical formats include debrief presentations, reports, workshops, posters and quick reference guides.
