What are some effective ways to conduct user research iteratively?

1 Define your research goals and questions

Before you start any user research, you need to have a clear idea of what you want to learn and why. This will help you choose the most appropriate methods, tools, and participants for your research. You can use frameworks like SMART (Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Relevant, and Time-bound) or OKR (Objectives and Key Results) to define your research goals and questions. You should also align your research goals with your project scope, timeline, and stakeholders' expectations.

4 Conduct and document your research

Once you have your research goals, methods, tools, and participants ready, you can conduct your research sessions. You should prepare a script or a guide for each session, and follow the best practices of user research, such as asking open-ended questions, probing for details, listening actively, and avoiding bias. You should also document your research data and findings as you go, using tools like Dovetail, Airtable, or Miro. You should capture both qualitative and quantitative data, and use notes, recordings, transcripts, or screenshots.

6 Communicate and act on your research

The final step of conducting user research iteratively is to communicate and act on your research. You should share your research insights and recommendations with your team, stakeholders, and clients, and explain how they inform your design decisions and actions. You should also use formats and channels that are appropriate for your audience, such as reports, presentations, dashboards, or videos. You can use tools like Notion, Google Slides, or Loom to communicate your research. You should also update your research goals and questions based on your research outcomes, and plan for the next iteration of user research.

7 Here’s what else to consider

This is a space to share examples, stories, or insights that don’t fit into any of the previous sections. What else would you like to add?