Too often, we make things that are we think are beautiful and user-friendly, but they fall flat when they are released into the world. How do we ensure we don’t waste time creating products and features that no one wants to use? As a UX designer, I’ve worked with various cross-functional product teams and tried many different ways over the years to help teams build less features while creating more business value. In this talk which I gave at a ProductTank San Francisco event, I shared a few of my favorite qualitative methods to use during early product discovery.

1. Using Discovery Methods to Create
Products that PeopleActually Want
Jenny Shirey | November 12, 2019 | ProductTank SF

2. Have you ever made a product
or feature that no one wanted?

6. Let’s play a guessing game…

7. Hypothesis: small business owners will want to connect their Facebook
business profile to their business account

8. Hypothesis: small business owners will want to connect their Facebook
business profile to their business account
Didn’t build it

9. Hypothesis: Technical users like unobtrusive docs (design A)
more than a click-through intro to the system (design B)
Design A: unobtrusive docs Design B: click-through intro

10. Hypothesis: Technical users like unobtrusive docs (design A)
more than a click-through intro to the system (design B)
Design A: unobtrusive docs Design B: click-through intro
Winner!

11. Hypothesis: A smaller text box will increase number of finished reviews
Control (100%) 75% height 50% height

12. Hypothesis: A smaller text box will increase number of finished reviews
Control (100%) 75% height 50% height
No difference! Didn’t build it

13. We are not our users!

14. “It is from getting to know
people, and digging
with each of them into their
underlying needs, that we
get the insights necessary
to inspire great products.”
–Marty Cagan

15. How can Product Discovery help us
understand what users want?

16. Answering four key questions

17. Will they use it? Value

18. Will they use it?
Can they use it?
Value
Usability

19. Will they use it?
Can they use it?
Can we build it?
Value
Usability
Feasibility

20. Will they use it?
Can they use it?
Can we build it?
Can we support it?
Value
Usability
Feasibility
Viability for the business

21. Product Discovery process

22. 1. Frame
Product Discovery process

23. 1. Frame 2. Understand
Product Discovery process

24. 1. Frame 2. Understand 3. Envision
Product Discovery process

25. 1. Frame 2. Understand 3. Envision 4. Focus
Product Discovery process

26. Trash it!
1. Frame 2. Understand 3. Envision 4. Focus
Product Discovery process

27. Trash it!
Build
or
1. Frame 2. Understand 3. Envision 4. Focus
Product Discovery process

28. 3 methods my teams have
found most useful
Frame
Understand
Envision
Focus

29. Method 1: Opportunity Canvas
1. Frame 2. Understand 3. Envision 4. Focus

30. https://www.jpattonassociates.com/opportunity-canvas/

31. Problems + solutions
Target users
Workarounds (“solutions today”)
User value
User + business metrics
Adoption strategy
Rough budget

32. • Find out what you know / don’t know
• Get the team on same page before you start
Why?

33. How?
• Time box: less than 1 hour
• Use your best guesses
• “Problem” might be opportunity

34. Watch out for…
• Going into in-depth conversations
• Targeting “everyone”—the more specific the user, the better!
• Doing this instead of talking with users

35. Method 2:
Interview summary sheets
1. Frame 2. Understand 3. Envision 4. Focus

37. About Things they do
QuotesEmotions & beliefs

38. Why?
• Quickly synthesize learnings from user interviews
• Get out of your head / computer - make visible to all

39. How?
• Write sticky notes during interview
• Place, THEN discuss
• Do as a group, right away while fresh

40. Watch out for…
• Multi-tasking and not writing sticky notes
• Too much talking
• Not leaving time after the interview for it
• Remote participants (include them with online tools)

41. Method 3: Crazy Eights
1. Frame 2. Understand 3. Envision 4. Focus

42. https://www.thesprintbook.com/

43. “Our first idea is never our best…
except sometimes.”
–Jeff Patton

45. Why?
• Come up with as many ideas as possible!
• Build off other team members’ ideas

46. How?
• Start with a pain point or opportunity for a specific user
• Create 8 sketches (1 8.5x11” sheet of paper) in 5 minutes
• Quantity over quality: work as quickly as possible!
• Briefly explain your sketches afterward
• “Visualize the vote”: have team members silently star the ideas they like best

48. Watch out for…
• Too much time / detail on one sketch
• Team members critiquing during the presentation

49. Some methods I’ve used…
Opportunity canvas
Learn/ask sheets
1. Frame
Interview summary
sheets
Journey maps
Synthesis sheets
2. Understand
Crazy Eights
Concept testing
Bodystorming
3. Envision
Cost/value mapping
Synthesis statement
Pirate metrics
Fake door test
4. Focus

50. … there are many more!
The most important thing is to find out what
your users want and need.

51. Thank you!
www.jennyshirey.com | @seejennydesign