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name: user-research-techniques description: Master user interviews, usability testing, surveys, and research synthesis. Use when planning research, gathering user insights, or validating assumptions.

User Research Techniques

Overview

Comprehensive guide to qualitative and quantitative research methods for understanding users, validating ideas, and informing product decisions.

When to Use This Skill

Auto-loaded by agents:

• research-ops - For research methods, planning, and best practices

Use when you need:

• Planning research studies
• Choosing research methods
• Conducting interviews or tests
• Analyzing research data
• Validating product decisions

Research Methods Matrix

           Quantitative ← → Qualitative
           (What & How Many)  (Why & How)
              │
Behavioral ─┼─ Analytics        Usability Testing
(What they  │  Surveys          Field Studies
  do)       │  A/B Tests        Diary Studies
              │
Attitudinal ─┼─ Surveys          Interviews
(What they  │  NPS              Focus Groups
  say)      │  Questionnaires   Concept Tests

Qualitative Methods

1. User Interviews

Types:

• Discovery: Understand problems and needs
• Validation: Test solution fit
• Evaluative: Assess existing product

Best Practices:

• Open-ended questions
• Listen more than talk (80/20 rule)
• Ask "why" 5 times
• Avoid leading questions
• Record and take notes

Interview Structure (60 min):

Introduction (5 min)
- Build rapport
- Explain purpose
- Get consent

Warm-up (5 min)
- Background questions
- Context setting

Main Questions (40 min)
- Behavioral: "Walk me through..."
- Pain points: "Tell me about a time when..."
- Goals: "What are you trying to achieve?"

Wrap-up (10 min)
- Anything missed?
- Who else to talk to?
- Thank you

Sample Questions:

Discovery:
- "Walk me through the last time you [task]"
- "What's most frustrating about [process]?"
- "Tell me about a time when [problem] occurred"

Validation:
- [Show concept] "What's your initial reaction?"
- "How would you use this?"
- "What concerns do you have?"

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2. Usability Testing

Types:

• Moderated: Facilitator guides session
• Unmoderated: User completes alone
• Remote: Video call or tool-based
• In-person: Lab or coffee shop

Process:

1. Recruit: 5-8 participants (80% of issues)
2. Prepare: Tasks, scenarios, prototype
3. Test: Think-aloud protocol
4. Analyze: Issues, patterns, severity
5. Report: Findings and recommendations

Task Format:

Scenario: "You want to [goal]"
Task: "Using this prototype, [specific action]"

Example:
Scenario: "You want to find last month's sales report"
Task: "Find and download the December 2024 sales report"

Think-Aloud Protocol:

• "Please speak your thoughts out loud"
• "What are you looking for?"
• "What do you expect to happen?"
• Don't help unless stuck >2 minutes

Metrics:

• Task completion rate
• Time on task
• Errors
• Satisfaction (SEQ: Single Ease Question)

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3. Field Studies (Ethnography)

When: Understand context and environment

Methods:

• Contextual Inquiry: Observe in natural setting
• Shadowing: Follow user through day
• Diary Studies: Users log activities

Process:

1. Observe silently
2. Take field notes
3. Ask clarifying questions
4. Look for workarounds
5. Identify pain points

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4. Card Sorting

Purpose: Understand mental models, organize information

Types:

• Open: Users create categories
• Closed: Users sort into given categories
• Hybrid: Start closed, allow new categories

Tools: OptimalSort, UserZoom, Miro

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5. Focus Groups

Format: 6-10 participants, moderated discussion

When to Use: Explore opinions, generate ideas

When NOT to Use: Validation (groupthink risk)

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Quantitative Methods

1. Surveys

Types:

• NPS (Net Promoter Score): "Likelihood to recommend" (0-10)
• CSAT (Customer Satisfaction): "How satisfied?" (1-5)
• CES (Customer Effort Score): "How easy?" (1-7)
• Custom: Specific questions

Survey Design:

Good Question:
"How often do you use [feature]?"
□ Daily
□ Weekly
□ Monthly
□ Rarely
□ Never

Bad Question:
"Do you love our amazing new feature?"
(Leading, biased)

Best Practices:

• Keep short (< 10 questions)
• One question per topic
• Mix question types
• Avoid double-barreled questions
• Pilot test first

Sample Sizes:

• 100+ for directional insights
• 384+ for 95% confidence, ±5% margin
• Calculator: surveymonkey.com/mp/sample-size-calculator

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2. Analytics (Behavioral Data)

Metrics to Track:

• Engagement: DAU, WAU, MAU, session duration
• Conversion: Funnel drop-offs, completion rates
• Retention: Cohort retention curves
• Feature Adoption: % users using feature

Tools: Mixpanel, Amplitude, Heap, Google Analytics

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3. A/B Testing

Process:

1. Hypothesis
2. Design variants
3. Determine sample size
4. Run test (1-2 weeks)
5. Analyze (significance)
6. Ship or iterate

(See experiment-designer skill for details)

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Research Synthesis

Affinity Mapping

Process:

1. Write observations on sticky notes
2. Group similar notes
3. Label themes
4. Identify patterns
5. Extract insights

Tool: Miro, FigJam, physical wall

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Thematic Analysis

Steps:

1. Familiarize: Read all data
2. Code: Tag recurring concepts
3. Theme: Group codes into themes
4. Review: Refine themes
5. Define: Name and describe themes
6. Report: Write findings

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Jobs-to-be-Done Framework

Job Statement: "When [situation], I want to [motivation], so I can [outcome]"

Example: "When I'm preparing for a client meeting, I want to quickly find relevant past conversations, so I can provide informed recommendations"

Interview Questions:

• "What job were you trying to get done?"
• "What were you using before?"
• "What triggered you to switch?"
• "What obstacles did you face?"

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Research Planning

Define Research Questions

Good Research Questions:

• "How do users currently [task]?"
• "What prevents users from [goal]?"
• "Which features drive retention?"

Bad Research Questions:

• "Will users like this?" (too vague)
• "Should we build X?" (not research question)

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Choose Method

Decision Tree:

What vs Why?
├─ What/How Many? → Quantitative
│  ├─ Behavior → Analytics
│  └─ Attitudes → Survey
└─ Why/How? → Qualitative
   ├─ Discover → Interviews
   ├─ Validate → Usability Test
   └─ Context → Field Study

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Recruit Participants

Screener Questions:

1. How often do you [relevant behavior]?
   ○ Daily (CONTINUE)
   ○ Weekly (CONTINUE)
   ○ Monthly (SCREEN OUT)
   ○ Never (SCREEN OUT)

2. Do you work at [Competitor/Partner]?
   ○ Yes (SCREEN OUT)
   ○ No (CONTINUE)

Incentives:

• $50-100 for 1-hour consumer interview
• $150-300 for B2B professional
• Gift cards, credits, or cash

Sources:

• User Interviews, Respondent.io
• Your user base (email list)
• Social media, communities

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Best Practices

1. Avoid Bias

Confirmation Bias: Seek disconfirming evidence Leading Questions: Ask neutral questions Selection Bias: Recruit diverse participants Observer Effect: Users behave differently when watched

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2. Sample Sizes

Qualitative:

• 5-8 users per segment (diminishing returns)
• 15-20 total for diverse product

Quantitative:

• 100+ for trends
• 384+ for statistical significance
• Use power calculations

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3. Triangulate

Combine Methods:

• Interviews (why) + Analytics (what)
• Usability tests + Surveys
• Quantitative → Qualitative → Quantitative

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4. Continuous Discovery (Teresa Torres)

Weekly Touchpoints:

• Talk to 2-3 customers per week
• Mix research types
• Share with team
• Document insights
• Map to opportunities

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Common Mistakes

Avoid

• Asking what users want (they don't know)
• Leading questions ("Do you love this?")
• Only talking to power users
• Research without action
• Skipping synthesis

Do

• Observe behavior, not just opinions
• Ask open-ended questions
• Recruit diverse participants
• Act on findings
• Share insights widely

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Tools

Research Platforms:

• UserTesting, Maze (unmoderated testing)
• User Interviews, Respondent.io (recruitment)
• Lookback, Zoom (moderated testing)

Analysis:

• Dovetail, Airtable (synthesis)
• Miro, FigJam (affinity mapping)
• Typeform, SurveyMonkey (surveys)

Analytics:

• Mixpanel, Amplitude (product analytics)
• Hotjar, FullStory (session replay)
• Google Analytics (web analytics)

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Templates

Research Plan

# Research Plan: [Topic]

## Goals
- [Research question 1]
- [Research question 2]

## Method
- Type: [Interviews / Testing / Survey]
- Timeline: [Dates]
- Participants: [N, criteria]

## Questions/Tasks
1. [Question/Task 1]
2. [Question/Task 2]

## Analysis
- [How we'll synthesize]
- [Key metrics]

## Deliverables
- [Report, insights, recommendations]

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Resources

Books:

• "The Mom Test" - Rob Fitzpatrick
• "Just Enough Research" - Erika Hall
• "Continuous Discovery Habits" - Teresa Torres
• "Don't Make Me Think" - Steve Krug

Online:

• Nielsen Norman Group articles
• IDEO Design Kit
• Google Ventures Research Sprint

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Quick Guide

Need to understand why? → Interviews
Testing usability? → Usability Tests
Measure satisfaction? → Survey (NPS/CSAT)
Understand behavior? → Analytics
Validate solution? → Prototype Test
Deep context? → Field Study

Always: Define questions, recruit right users, synthesize, act on insights