Research
Our users needed to get all the student, teacher, and class information into the system before anyone to use the product. This is known as the "rostering" or "provisioning" step. The user has several options on how to do this. One option in particular was reportedly very painful. There was enough evidence to investigate. My task was to find out what it was like for our customers using the various options. I started with internal interviews, competitive analysis, customer interviews, and affinity maps to identify patterns, pain points, and opportunities.
Competitive Analysis
How in-depth I go into the competitive analysis is largely influenced by the current vision and goals. I tend to push the research beyond immediate competitors to help later conversations explore more innovative opportunities. In this project, there was a strong shared commonality in features the client and competition offered. A comparison chart gave a quick summary with detailed information below including links to white papers, instructional pages, and screenshots/video captures.
User Interviews
In my initial interviews, questions start out very exploratory; for example, “Tell me about your experience using…" Questions become more specific with each interview. I always include a team member with me for reasons of training, a different perspective, and building empathy in the team. I usually have an objective statement paired with each question so both interviewers can decide whether to move on or to dig more.
Affinity Maps
Lately, I’ve seen some major benefits in creating my affinity maps in a digital format. I used Trello for this. I'm more rapid in this format at taking notes and experimenting with different ways of labeling and categorizing the information. This keeps experimentation fun and low-risk.
Journey Maps
My approach is heavily influenced by the Neilson Norman Group customer journey mapping course. I choose a single persona and story to represent in a journey map with the intent to build empathy and reveal opportunities to improve the customer experience.
