CXL Institute Conversion Optimization Minidegree Review (9/12)

This is the ninth of a twelve-part (9/12) review of conversion optimization mini degree by CXL Institute. They offer multiple programs that help you get to an advanced level in digital marketing and offer industry-recognized certificates after program completion. In this review, I will revisit the “User research” course.

What Is User Research and Why It Is Important?

I always considered user research to be one of the most important things one can do before launching a new product or service. In this course, I’ve learned that user research has many definitions and it is hard to define it in one sentence. Also, it is really hard to perform user research the right way and get valid data that can be used to further improve products and services.

Here are some examples of what user research is:

• HIGH IMPACT JOB
• User research is a way to test ideas and is not 100% accurate.
• User research is about asking meaningful questions and thinking critically about the answers.
• User research recognizes we all have biases, beliefs, and assumptions. It takes none of them for granted.
• User research reduces risk and saves money by eliminating subpar options from decisions early on in product development.
• User research helps identify opportunities to delight customers.

Also, it is important to understand what user research is NOT:

• ALWAYS RIGHT
• Usability testing (It is much more than that)
• Strict on how you acquire data for further analysis
• Only relevant to UX/UI designers

The goal of user research is to understand what people are trying to do, why they are trying to do it, and what is stopping them from doing it. By performing in-depth user research we can identify gaps as well as business opportunities to deliver products or services with better user experiences and greater business value.

User Research vs Market Research

Market research is related to the sales of a product It helps you identify and define opportunities and problems as well as generate, refine, and evaluate marketing actions. On the other hand, user research is all about learning how a product or service fits users' wants, needs, and abilities.

Outcomes of User Research

Now when you are familiar with the user research here are a couple of examples of how it can help you or your organization grow in multiple ways:

• Increase user productivity
• Increase user satisfaction
• Increase retention
• More and better referrals
• Increased sales
• Decrease development costs through fewer cycles
• Fewer user errors
• Lower training and support costs
• Less time to meaningful user activation

What should you expect to get as deliverables “after” conducting user research (user research is a continuous process that should never stop)? It really depends on what the initial goals are. Basically, you should get answers to your questions that would help you take appropriate action.

Here are some of the most common deliverables (based on the research of Nielsen Norman Group, from most to least common deliverables):

• Static wireframe
• Interactive prototype
• Flowchart or activity diagram
• Site map
• Usability and analytics report
• A style guide or pattern library
• User-journey map or storyboard
• Competitive-analysis report
• Pixel-perfect visual mockup
• Concept model or system map
• Findings-tracking system
• Personas
• Paper prototype
• Content inventory
• Mood board or element collage
• Poster, infographics, or comic

How to perform user research

In order to execute meaningful user research and create an impact, you should first define goals.

After defining goals you need to ask the right questions. You can use “who, what, when, where, why, and how” to help you develop questions.

Is your research exploratory (a lot of unknowns)? Use OPEN-ENDED questions.

Do you have very clear assumptions or beliefs? Use CLOSED questions.

Your questions will define tools and methods you will need to use to gain insights. NEVER LEAD WITH THE METHOD.

Qualitative research gives you answers to WHY, while quantitative research gives you answers to HOW MANY.

There are different types of research methods and the power is in combining all of the methods.

Also, you should know that different methods apply at different times. You should do research at whatever stage you are at and do it at different stages. You will have the most impact on your business and users if you do research as early as possible (during the discovery stage / in between analysis and design stage in software development).

Finding the right people for your research

When performing research you should find people that match your goals. For example, if you want to improve your shopping cart size, you should find people (consumers) who would want to buy multiple products from your site.

You will get the best results if people have a clear, demonstrated interest in tasks related to your research goals.

Important considerations for recruiting.

• New users or existing users?
• Do you have a list of users that you can contact?
• Do you have enough information to segment them?
• Who are you allowed to contact?
• Buyers are not the same as users
• If you don’t have users to contact, recruit users of competitive products or “potential” users.
• Are you B2B or B2C business?

Avoid FALSE POSITIVES by using screener questions to filter your participants.

Bringing it all together — synthesize your research

Once you have done all the research you need to get insights from your data. Here are the steps you should take:

1. Organize your data
2. Categorize and label by using a synthesis framework
3. Combine different types of synthesis to generate robust insights

A synthesis framework is a structured or semi-structured way to look for patterns in your data. Patterns are the direct precursor to insights. Some of the synthesis frameworks are:

• Affinity diagramming
• 2x2
• Word clouds
• Coding

Try to combine both, qualitative and quantitative data.

My Thoughts

It is week nine and I have currently completed 48% or 16/33 courses. I have planned to complete more courses until now, but I also wanted to make sure that I understand everything. I will have to put in much more work during the next three weeks to complete this certification on time. Thank you for reading about my experience with CXL Institute.

In the next part (week), I will cover the following courses: “Fast and Rigorous User Personas”, “Heuristic Analysis frameworks for conversion optimization audits” and “Google Analytics audit”. That will conclude the “Conversion Research” section and during the next three weeks I will make a post review for each of the last three sections: “Testing”, “Optimization strategies” and “Conversion Optimization Program”.