Nice article, but it does not really address the primary problem with the current state of design research.
You can not effectively 'gear up' and do user research in the web world (or any other evolving moving market). It moves to damn fast. And on one of the only issues that I will side with the agile folks, big design up front is too slow when research is involved. I understand that research is best when purposed and targeted to answer specific problems. But business, across the board, does a terrible job of knowing it's users. No accounting department worth its crust waits until the end of the reporting period to gather records. User research should be an ongoing and exhaustive effort on the part of any company introducing products into the marketplace. 1 That it seems expensive is not an excuse. User research is not a cost. When done right it is an investment geared towards reducing risk and increasing value - both are near and dear to most any MBA's sense of self preservation. 2 That others don't do it does not fly either. User research leads directly to opportunities for marketplace differentiation... which leads to larger margins. Again, increased profit can be a pretty good motivator for MBA's. 3 Most market leaders fall (when they fall) at the hands of disruptive model upstarts. User research can expose features that users do not have an interest in. Mark On Tue, Jun 24, 2008 at 2:12 PM, Robert Hoekman Jr <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote: >> Lastly, and I guess I will put Robert on the spot here, if you don't >> believe the current state of identifying, researching and applying >> user data is up to snuff, then why not try to improve methods? > > What makes you think I would do all this complaining without offering an > alternative? > http://www.peachpit.com/guides/content.aspx?g=webdesign&seqNum=352 > Pick it apart all you want, but this approach has worked remarkably well for > me, my employers, and my clients, in project after project, for several > years now. > -r- ________________________________________________________________ Welcome to the Interaction Design Association (IxDA)! To post to this list ....... [EMAIL PROTECTED] Unsubscribe ................ http://www.ixda.org/unsubscribe List Guidelines ............ http://www.ixda.org/guidelines List Help .................. http://www.ixda.org/help
