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User Research

What is user research?

User research is the systematic study of users’ needs, behaviour, and context so you can make product and design decisions based on evidence, not assumptions. It includes both qualitative methods (why people do things) and quantitative methods (what they do and how often).

Use it when: you’re defining a problem, exploring a solution, or evaluating something you’ve built. If you’re guessing what users need, it’s time for research.

Copy/paste checklist (planning a study)

  • [ ] Objective: What do we need to learn? (one or two questions max)
  • [ ] Method: Interview / usability test / survey / behavioural data (pick the one that answers the question)
  • [ ] Who: Who do we need to talk to or observe? (criteria, not just “users”)
  • [ ] Artefacts: What will we produce? (insight summary, clips, recommendations)
  • [ ] Decision: What decision will this inform?

Why user research matters

  • Reduces the risk of building the wrong thing or solving the wrong problem.
  • Surfaces needs and friction that data alone can’t explain.
  • Builds shared empathy and alignment around the user.
  • Makes it easier to prioritise and say no with a clear rationale.

What good user research includes

Checklist

  • [ ] A clear objective (what you’re trying to learn or decide).
  • [ ] The right method for the question (discovery vs validation; qual vs quant).
  • [ ] Representative participants (or a conscious choice about who you’re not including).
  • [ ] Documented findings and actionable next steps, not just raw notes.
  • [ ] Ethics and consent (participants know how data is used; you’re not deceiving them).

Common formats

  • Qualitative: interviews, usability tests, contextual inquiry. Use when you need to understand why or how. Small samples, rich detail.
  • Quantitative: surveys, analytics, A/B tests. Use when you need how many or how much. Larger samples, statistical inference.
  • Discovery vs evaluative: discovery = understand the problem and context; evaluative = test a solution or design. Do discovery before you build; do evaluative once you have something to test.

Examples

Example (the realistic one)

Objective: Understand why sign-up drops off at step 2. Method: 5–7 usability sessions where participants go through the sign-up flow while thinking aloud. Artefact: Short report with themes (e.g. “confusion about required fields”, “distrust of data requested”) and 3–5 recommendations. Decision: Whether to simplify step 2 or add reassurance (e.g. copy, trust badges).

Common pitfalls

  • Research for its own sake: no clear decision or question. → Do this instead: tie every study to a product or design decision.
  • Only talking to happy users: you miss the people who struggled or left. → Do this instead: include people who churned, didn’t convert, or had a bad experience.
  • Leading questions: “Don’t you find this useful?” → Do this instead: ask open questions (“How did you find that?” “What were you trying to do?”).
  • Skipping synthesis: raw notes in a folder. → Do this instead: summarise themes, quotes, and recommendations and share with the team.
  • User research vs usability testing: usability testing is one method within user research; it focuses on whether people can use a product or prototype. User research is the broader practice.
  • User research vs market research: user research focuses on behaviour, needs, and experience with your product or domain; market research often focuses on market size, segments, and competitors. They complement each other.
  • User research vs analytics: analytics tell you what happened; user research helps you understand why. Use both.
  • Usability testing – evaluative method to see if people can use your product.
  • Problem statement – often informed by discovery research.
  • Persona – research-based characters; research is how you build them.
  • Jobs to be done – switch interviews and job mapping are research methods.
  • Empathy map – workshop output that can feed from or into research.
  • A/B testing – quantitative method to test hypotheses; research can generate those hypotheses.
  • Continuous discovery – ongoing research habit, not one-off projects.
  • Design thinking – research sits in the empathise and test phases.

Next step

Pick one decision you’re about to make and write one or two research questions that would inform it. If you’re new to methods, read Usability testing for a concrete starting point.

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