IOU: Interviews, Observation and Usability Testing

I consider myself growing in an education climate where I am mostly told what I am expected to do. Things are laid out pretty well for me and all I have to do is probably conclude them. I might be wrong but I thought that most of the research processes I went through in high school are mostly taught hastily without a proper explanation on the goal of researching. I found myself researching for the sake of completing a particular folio. And for me, at that point of time, researching also meant plagiarizing.

The goal of researching your audience is to let you step into the shoes of the real user/consumer of your product or application. It gives you tremendous insights in how people interact with let say, their electronic gadgets, the way they use a certain software and etc. It basically improves your instincts for what will work and what won’t. Research creates experience and with experience, comes informed decisions.

The following are three research methods I often use. I call them IOU.

• Interviews - A great way to find out user feedback

• Observation with relevant inquiry - Observing how people do/use things
  

• Usability testing - This is where you iron out possible bad experiences.
  

These methods are widely used by researchers to gather relevant data. Try them all and see how they can be of good use to you.