UX Research Imperative #3: Socialize Your Study Designs

After you’ve focused your study around 1-2 core research questions, and a specific UX/CX context, it’s time to socialize your study design.

What do I mean by ‘socialize?’ I mean to share your plan with these people, in no particular order:

• The product owner for the UX/CX
• The person who owns your research time and budget
• The people who are the ‘primary audience’ for the Insights report you’ll be presenting

How to socialize? I’ve found that the 1-slide summary works best. That’s because it is more 'executive summary' (telling the people above what they care about) rather than an 'analyst brain dump’ (sharing too much of the stuff you’re thinking about).

Include the following in your Study Snapshot:

• Research Questions (1-2 max)
• Method (methodology, moderated vs. unmoderated, etc.)
• Participants (number and high-level profiles)
• The UX/CX context
• Timeline
• Related product goals (your research must connect to Business KPIs!)
• Deliverables (key insights report, highlight videos, UX recommendations)

Here’s a sample for reference:

After you’ve drafted this snapshot, your next steps are to:

• Share it with the above people (either remotely or in person)
• Listen to their feedback
• Adjust your plan, as necessary

Be sure to have Clear Rationale for your study design details so that you can share it on your calls, if necessary. Stakeholders will want to know that ‘you’ve thought things out’ like a UX research pro.

Skip this step at your own risk! I made this mistake years ago and, as a result, got a lot of 'What research are you doing?' 'Why?' and 'What will I get out of it?' types of questions. Leaders and stakeholders don't accept Insight shareout meeting invites for projects they don't understand and buy into.

Happy Study Design Socializing!