Gathering user insights out on-site 🔍🏗
Contextual inquiry is more than just a normal user interview. In the pursuit of trying to wrap your head around what users are hoping to accomplish and digging into the problems they face, asking users well thought questions in the place where they would use the product provides a much richer and holistic set of research data.
Context matters. The key value driven out by contextual inquiry is the context it provides. The products we design should take into account the time, place, and setting in which they are being used. As Thornton puts it, the combination of ethnographic work and user interviewing in this research method allows gaps to be filled in observations that would otherwise be overlooked.
Imagine having to design an app for a restaurant ordering system, sitting down in an actual restaurant and conducting an interview with users there would expose key user behaviour such as where they would expect to find the menu, how often they would pick up one, what they’re looking for and how to optimise the process for an online version. Users would also be able to more easily point out elements in the restaurant itself which would inform better insights for the designers creating the app.
While user interviews have been a fundamental research method for us at Visibuild, the act of reaching out to users and meeting them in the place where they are working not only allows us to observe the surroundings and the constraints that come with it but also helps our users recall important pieces of information of the tasks they carry out day-to-day.
The stories and learnings from contextual inquiry sessions at Visibuild
First-times in the first week
It was my first week at Visibuild. With my hard hat, fluorescent hi vis, and chunky construction boots strapped on, I was ready to head off to site for an in-person walkthrough of how buildings are built. My team and I were hoisted up to the 60th floor to take a tour around the site and to ask all the questions we had to wrap our brains around the wonderful and mysterious world of construction. It was an opportunity to delve into what our users get up to in their day-to-day, the frustrations they face, and the considerations we, as builders of the product need to think critically about. Down in the basements, I took a glance at my phone and realised how the internet connection was weak. It made sense how Visibuild has an offline mode to support this occurrence and not hinder our users’ workflow.
Breaking new ground with unsolved problems
Currently, the way this client was approaching defects was by marking them down with coloured dots and then having the respective subcontractors come in to fix the issues. Once it was completed, the stickers would be thrown to the floor and cleaned up later on. This observation led to a realisation that there is a massive opportunity to break into. Problems such as the lack of accountability and awareness of the defect process were problems that our product can easily help combat. If we had not gone out on site, our visions and the future of the product will only be limited to what we know and we would have completely missed out on the chance to break into a massive opportunity.
(Most) users actually really enjoy being a part of the design process
It wasn’t long until I was given the opportunity to interview our users out on site to get further context into the problem I was working on. Given that I had little to no understanding of why the problem was a nuisance to their workflows or whether it was even a problem at all, it was the perfect situation to visit our beloved customers who had already been using Visibuild for some time.
Despite their jam packed 7am-10pm schedules, almost all the users interviewed lit up when they were able to test out the prototypes for our new and very much still a work-in-progress design. Applications like Figma, let alone the whole concept of rapid prototyping are completely new to them but they are almost always happy to share their thoughts when testing the designs.
Tailoring the problem to the specific scenarios they face not only sets the context behind the problem, but also gives them the space to share more about how it specifically impacts them.
“Is this what you guys do? This stuff is f*****g cool!!“
A user quote that’s in the Visibuild’s hall of memorable quotes
A few tip-bits to take away
Get the most out of each site visit
Let your users speak and listen to them attentively. As eager as you may be to show the designs you’ve been working on, this is an opportunity for you to listen to their struggles, the lows, the highs that they’re experiencing with your product. Often time, you’ll go back with so much more than you expected to get out of the session. There have been plenty of times where I intend to test one thing but then go back with a list of other feedback. While this may not be the intended route of the conversation, just listening to them talk about their ideas and problems drive out so many more important insights.
Build relationships with your users
User feedback is one of the most treasured resource a designer can have. They are essentially doing the company a huge favour and the least we can do is thank them and update them on the progress of where the project is heading. Even if they give you questionable design suggestions, smile, thank them, and always ask them why!
Bring a buddy along!
Take this opportunity to bring along someone outside of the design team! Exposing parts of the design process to other members of the team will help you, as a designer, to think critically about other perspectives. They are also incredibly helpful in writing notes, bouncing ideas off, pre-interview prep, and filling in the gaps.
