Why Mobile Ethnography Apps are a powerful tool for Generative Research
A quick introduction to UX Generative Research
Generative research is a discovery research methodology that aims to surface unknown behaviours, unmet needs or problem spaces as part of experience design ideation. It is primarily used at the discovery stage as you seek to innovate based on an in-depth understanding of user and customer needs.
By intimately understanding the lives of your user personas, buyers or ideal customer profiles you can better understand their emotions and needs and as a result, innovate more effectively.
This exploratory research approach comes under different names, including discovery, foundational or exploratory research, but the key difference to other forms of qualitative research used for new product development is it relates to ideation rather than seeking to elicit feedback on an existing product or service.
Take software startups as an example. A popular approach common amongst most Software as a Service (SaaS) startups is called The Lean Startup approach. It leans heavily on the notion of “getting out of the building” and treating the early days as research experiments where you seek to evaluate whether your underlying assumptions about the commercial opportunity are valid or not.
Key elements of Generative Research include the need to keep an open mind with no preconceived ideas as to what you will discover, as well as ensuring that the problem definition is well constructed.
Who is Generative Research for?
Generative research (Discovery/exploratory research) has been a staple of UX research for gathering information prior to starting any design work and remains popular as a methodology for those working in UX/ CX and new product development helping to bring a more robust approach to innovation. This robust approach ensures that users / end users are brought in early to support development, rather than having them share views on existing products or solutions ‘as users’. Innovative methodologies such as mobile ethnography help ensure that this approach is more cost-effective than has historically been the case.
What is it UX Generative Research used for?
It is typically used to support innovation as it helps you understand the problem set as well as some solutions in advance of product development ensuring you are using external evidence to support decision making. However, the main value is that it provides a great deal of context for the researcher to identify the full scope of the problem. Later it can be used to help with finding a solution, but initially it's more of a 'setting the tables' type of research.
It usually takes place at the discovery stage of research projects helping you to clearly understand the problem you are looking to solve for. Essentially, you are bringing those you are building for into the process right at the beginning. In short, Generative or foundational research is done way ahead of any kind of development. This research will provide the foundation for the persona, then the journey, then the user stories, and only after that will there be any development.
When should you use generative research in UX?
1/ Support Innovation
A primary aim of the approach is to innovate more effectively by bringing those you are building for into the research process upfront.
2/ Validate Assumptions
The approach seeks to expose unmet, unprompted needs. Using methodologies like mobile ethnography you can observe real behaviors using as evidence to test assumptions you have.
3/ Ensure Problem Definition is Robust
Is the problem you are looking to design a solution for a real problem?
How large is the problem?
Would people pay to have the problem solved?
Using Generative Research in UX
Given that you are not selling, most people you engage with will be positively disposed to the approach. You are, after all, seeking their *expert* input at a crucial phase of a product or service’s evolution. Part of the challenge is to ensure those you speak to are close proxies of the buyers you hope to attract so like other forms of qualitative research, the respondent selection is key.
The approach is also a very straightforward one. You are essentially asking open-ended questions and having the respondents talk about their views.
Generative Research and Mobile Ethnography Apps
Like other forms of qualitative research, technology has transformed how we conduct such research. Ethnography is a key research method used by researchers seeking to undertake generative research alongside other methodologies including field studies, focus groups and in-depth interviews. With ethnographic research the study is of users in their own environments (more natural setting) and the method is primarily observational (often paired subsequently with IDI’s).
One-to-one, face-to-face interviews suffer from all the drawbacks that approaches like mobile ethnography overcome including:
1- Reduction in travel (time-saving and cost-saving)
2- Ability to continue research in a safe manner (even during COVID)
3- Ability to gain insights from multiple locations and geographies
4- Ability to run multiple interviews simultaneously (no longer needing to do 1:1)
Key Benefits of using Mobile Ethnography apps for Generative Research
1- Cost Effective
Mobile ethnography is perfect for multimarket research - and results in significant cost savings related to travel, accommodation and time.
2- Save Time
Mobile ethnography is scalable. Have tens of respondents providing data concurrently
3 - Impressive Outputs
The video outputs of real users discussing their needs will impress clients
4 - Removal of Bias
It is just the respondent, a task list and their SmartPhone
5- Easy to Use
The intuitive UI/ UX and comfort of SmartPhone use means respondents of all ages can use and if anyone gets stuck Indeemo’s support team are on hand to help.
6- Power of Observation
Watching respondents in their own context is extremely powerful - you get to observe behaviour rather than rely on their powers of recall.
7- Private 1:1 Nature
As a private secure methodology respondents are confident opening up. It also makes it the perfect tool for researching sensitive topics.
8- Multi Language
Leading applications like Indeemo’s mobile ethnography app help you research in most leading languages.
Summary
In short, the primary goal of generative research is to get closer to your users to help ensure that they are baked into the design process rather than being used as an afterthought. You are trying to ensure there is clarity as to the problem you are looking to solve. Mobile ethnography acts as an approach that helps facilitate this greater understanding by enabling researchers to access users, and buyers ‘in the field’ via their smartphones. One significant element to this methodology is it helps expose needs based on observed behaviour rather than relying on users to express their needs.
