User Research design: Summing up user interview experience in practical work

Article Description: recently done a number of project user interviews, summed up a little experience, here first on some of the key points of the interview process as a beginning, follow-up to supplement other skills, and so on, we can also add together, at the same time welcome everyone to Pat Bricks.

Recently done a number of project user interviews, summed up a little experience, here first on some of the key points of the interview process as a beginning, follow-up to supplement other skills, and so on, we can also add together, at the same time welcome everyone to Pat Bricks.

1. Clear use of research purposes
The purpose of the research is to make the user study the first need to clear the problem. Whether the demand for products can be solved by using research, if it can be solved, which method to use, is quantitative or qualitative, qualitative is a symposium or user interviews, etc., which should be determined according to the purpose of the study. In the process of clarifying the purpose, communication with the demand is the most important link, and must make sure that your understanding is consistent with the purpose of the demand person.

2. Familiarity and understanding of the product
If the selected user is active or even a deep user, the user's familiarity and understanding of the product may be much higher than the researchers themselves. Therefore, the early experience of the product is very necessary. For example, a previous project, the iphone friend Client for in-depth user interviews and usability testing, the most basic is to first of all the iphone friend client interface to carefully experience all the features, do not omit any details, so as not to know what the user said is the case. Even the inactive users and even novice users, users are likely in the interview process to ask the product function related issues, so no matter what the interview target users, should be in advance to the product to do enough homework.

3. Design Interview Outline
After clarifying the purpose of the interview and understanding the product, according to the purpose of the interview to interview the outline, the outline needs for each interview needs, to be detailed, meticulous, at the same time to consider the user's understanding of the interview topic, according to the product use order, from easy to difficult, and to consider the interview time, because the interview time is not too long, So the interview outline should not be too lengthy.

4. Invited users
Good user quality is the guarantee of successful interview. The user's background needs to be diversified, generally 6-8 people, the best is different gender, age, industry, so representative will be better. Generally looking for users we take two ways, one is to send a questionnaire invitation, and the second is through the intermediary solicitation. In the case of time permitting, their own questionnaire to invite users, is more reassuring, but from the questionnaire design to the release of the collection and then to invite, is a relatively time-consuming process, and the intermediary solicitation of users more efficient, save time and effort, but sometimes will inevitably encounter poor quality of users or target users.

There is also a situation, the product development process for the consideration of confidentiality, the adoption of the company's internal user experience, which is also a more agile method, you can quickly get product design problems and user recommendations. For example, recently done the "Space heat Analysis" design with research, because the product will be online, for product confidentiality and the urgency of the consideration, we have taken the company OA on the Post recruitment method, write clear recruitment conditions, quick solicitation to other departments of the company's 6 colleagues for agile with research, The problem of product design was found in 3 working days, and the improvement points needed in the current period were discussed, and the design content to be done in the following installments was planned. Of course, the company's internal user interviews will also have some drawbacks, that is, the user's representativeness will have limitations, so in the product on-line, combined with the further use of external users research, will get better results.

5. When the user interviewed
In the lab for one hours or so, you need to export all the prepared questions to the user, for users, may also be a "test", so a relaxed opening atmosphere, can make it easier for users to truly express themselves such as can be some and interviews are not related to the language (how to come over, the road car is not much, What do you like to do on the Internet at ordinary times and so on), narrow and user distance. For the interviewer, no more than usual daily communication, words can not be too much, one is because time is limited, the second is too much may give the interviewer some hints or psychological cues, but will affect the true expression of the user, so, the interviewer to do is to let users say more, listen to more than express, but to pay attention to not let users say, Timely pull back some users will say the topic, quickly back to the point, the focus needs to understand the problem to dig into the user's ideas, and must control the process of the time, not focus on the problem after knowing clearly can continue the next question.

6. After user interviews
After the interview, we need to finish the interview minutes and output to the demand side. If the product development and design process, write interview report output to the demand side may be relatively slow, so a timely communication with the research conference, feedback discussion of the user's ideas, is a good choice. Of course, if the product is on the line, in the case of not very urgent, the report is more formal and necessary

This issue of the first summary of the above several process key points, in fact, the user interview is a great knowledge, which involves a lot of skills and content, in the follow-up work, we will summarize some other aspects of experience.