Page: 36-44: Goal-Directed Design Research
Goal-Directed Design Research combines social science and usability texts, which are full of methods and techniques for conducting qualitative research. There are qualitative research activities to be most useful in our Goal-Directed design practice which includes Kick off meeting
Literature review, Product/prototype and competitive audits , Stakeholder interviews ,Subject matter expert (SME) interviews ,User and customer interviews , and User observation ethnographic field studies.
Kickoff meeting
the project kickoff meeting isn’t just a research activity, it has important a component of research: This grants an opportunity for designers to ask initial key questions of some of the most important stakeholders gathered at the meeting like What is the product? Who will/does use it? Or What do your users need most? The questions may sound basic, but they give the design team insight into not only the product itself, next we have
Literature review
the design team should review any literature pertaining to the product or its domain. The Internal documents includes product marketing plans, brand strategy, market research studies, user surveys, technology specifications and white papers, competitive research, usability studies and metrics, customer support data such as call center statistics or transcripts, and user forum archives We have Industry reports like business and technical journal articles. There is Web searches for competing products, news items, independent user Forums and blog posts,
Product/prototype and competitive audits
Prior to or in parallel with stakeholder and SME interviews, it is helpful for the design team to examine any existing version or prototype of the product, as well as its chief com- petitors. Doing so gives the design team a sense of the state of the art and provides fuel for questions during these interviews.
Stakeholder interviews
For Stake holder interviews, there is research for any new product design and should start with an understanding of the business and technical context surrounding the product. Anyone responsible for the Product is a stakeholder.
Subject matter expert (smE) interviews
Are authorities on the domain within which the product will oper ate. Typically hired hired by stakeholders, and can provide valuable perspectives on a product and its users.
Customer interviews
There are. Customers of a product who decide to purchase it, and it is good for us to understand Their goals in purchasing the product , Domain-related issues and vocabulary as well as maintaining the product.
User interviews
Users of a product should be the focus of the design effort. There is some information to be informed about.If the product fits into their lives or work flow: when, why, and how the product is or will be used , how the user thinks about their jobs, goals , expectations of the product. Fustrations and problems with the recent product.
User observation
“Most people are incapable of accurately assessing their own behaviors,2 especially when these behaviors are removed from the context of people’s activities. Many usability professionals use technological aides such as audio or video recorders to capture what users say and do. “