User Research

How does Edgar Allan describe user research?

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User research is an often glossed-over but super important part of creating a new web experience. You know the old saying about what “assuming” does?  Well, no place is that more true than when you’re expecting you know what a particular web user group wants and needs, only to find out – upon user testing, or the failure of your new site to produce the results you need it to – that whoops….you don’t know how your audiences behave quite as well as you’d imagined. 

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User research is rigorous, insightful, and here to help. At Edgar Allan, it’s a vital part of our user experience, content design, and design process, and getting it done involves a number of tactics designed to help us understand the needs, wishes, and struggles of your target audiences so we can create a digital experience that gives them – and your business - what it needs. It’s a foundational thing and helps us shape our design and content strategies so that they truly resonate with their intended audiences. And tactically, it includes the use of a variety of research methods from interviews surveys to sly desk research and usability testing to gather valuable information that helps us make informed decisions about the structure, flow, story, and content of your website…rather than guesses.  

How does Edgar Allan go about user research for clients?

At Edgar Allan, we've got a step-by-step approach to user research that helps us gather great insights to inform our clients' design and content strategies.

• We start by defining research goals as this will help us focus our efforts and make sure we’re gathering the right information to address the specific problem they may be facing.
  
  
• We then move on to choosing the right tool, the most appropriate research method for the job –interviews, surveys, usability testing, and more.
  
  
• We carry out our research activities and then carefully analyze and synthesize the collected data to identify patterns, themes and valuable insights that we can translate into actionable recommendations.
  
  

By following this comprehensive approach, we ensure that our clients receive valuable insights that can guide their decision-making, improve their products or services, and create meaningful experiences for their users.

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What makes Edgar Allan's user research unique from other agencies?

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What makes Edgar Allan's user research stand out from other agencies is our knack for understanding users in a way that goes beyond the surface, taking into account both the functional aspects but also the emotional factors that drive their behavior. We also make sure to tailor our approach to fit the unique needs and goals of each client and focus on providing actionable insights that empower them to make informed decisions and take concrete steps, in terms of design and content, to meet their user needs and achieve their business goals.

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Do all brands need user research or is it only for certain brands?

User research is valuable for all brands, as it plays a crucial role in keeping them away from self-referential design. User research helps understand user motivations, identify pain points, and find opportunities for improvement so brands can avoid the trap of designing based solely on their own assumptions, wants, or fast trends. It ensures that design and content strategies are tailored to their target audience's needs, which results in a better experience and bigger market gains.

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What are some reasons that user research fails?

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User research can sometimes fall short due to a few different reasons. The first one is that a brand simply doesn’t devote the time or energy to do it. (That’s the number one reason, honestly – just jumping to “making the thing” doesn’t always work out.) Other reasons user research might fail: Objectives are unclear. The wrong methodology is chosen. A brand’s business is undefined or its goals lack definition. Or the diligence isn’t done to define and ask the right questions. For all those reasons, having specific goals and research questions in hand to lead the process is key to getting meaningful and reliable insights. 

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The biggest takeaway here: Collecting data is just the beginning. The real, vital work is analyzing and interpreting it correctly. If the time isn’t taken to parse through and quantify what we’ve learned, we all might end up making ill-informed decisions.

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The benefits of having user research

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1. Understand Users Better: User research provides valuable insights into the needs, behaviors, and preferences of the target audience. Understanding users on a deeper level, helps us tailor our products, services, and experiences to meet their expectations, increasing users' satisfaction and loyalty.

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2. Improve User Experience: User research gives us the chance to really hit the mark with a brand’s users. It helps us understand how they interact with products or services, allowing them to identify areas for improvement. By addressing pain points, streamlining processes, and optimizing usability, we can create a seamless and enjoyable user experience. 

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3. Make Smart Choices: User research provides valuable insights that guide strategic decision-making. This minimizes guesswork and reduces the risk of investing resources in initiatives that don't resonate with the target audience while it also points us in the right direction to create the right thing for them.

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If your brand is ready to get to know its audience better through user research that goes far beyond the surface level, contact us.

You may also be interested in Edgar Allan’s other services like: brand design, brand naming, brand messaging, QA and UAT, journey mapping and content design.

Read the Edgar Allan blog for more information on our services, experiences and opinions as an award-winning Webflow agency.

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