Research

Before defining the design, we determine if there is any initial research that needs to be done. This is not always necessary, but if there are existing solutions or data that can be pulled from, I look to these sources for inspiration and direction. I prefer not to reinvent the wheel, rather improve upon it.

After this, I like to identify the problem areas for users and the business within the software. This is a process of interviewing users, stakeholders, key team members and analyzing analytics. Using the data gathered I like to use tools like personas and mind maps to share valuable insights from this initial research.

Methods Previously Used = Competitive Analysis, Persona Building, Card Sorting, Tree Testing, Expert Interviews, Literature Reviews, Sales/Support Interviews, Analytics Analysis, Mind Mapping

Competitive Analysis

To gain insight into existing solutions for our users and identify where we could be unique in our approach we conducted a thorough competitive analysis for SAMI software. We found quite a bit of good feedback from customers of these other products and were able to learn that they would value a solution that was more streamlined, easy to use and comprehensive than other products

User Interviews

Gathering data from existing customers and identifying their core issues, wants and needs was critical to gaining empathy for our users at Clearview Live. In this Trello board shown, we were able to compile all the data gathered from interviews into categories and summate the trends in feedback from users.

Personas

From surveys, ethnographic research and user interviews we defined a persona for our users at Abide. This tool helped us empathize with our users at Abide and influenced later design decisions. Additionally, it helped us communicate design decisions to stakeholders and other team members.