UX Lean & Mean (Internet Summit 2015)

UX STRATEGIES: LEAN & MEAN

Sarah Weise UX Director

Booz Allen Hamilton

Hello Slideshare Viewers! These slides you’re about to flip through are from a 4 hour, hands-on workshop presented at Internet Summit 2015, and similar to workshops we’ve presented at the Digital Summit series 2014-2015. There are a number of stories and content not included here. We’ve tried to add a few notes along the way, but if you’d like to learn these techniques in more depth, we’d love to see you at our next workshop. Contact us for more details. Thanks for viewing, Sarah & Linna

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I want to tell you a story about the first UX project I ever worked on, back when I was a UX virgin. It was over a decade ago, and it lasted a full year…

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We analyzed customer segments, and idenBfied and recruited a ton of users in each of those segments. We made sure to select a staBsBcally significant number of parBcipants from each group so that we could report our findings with scienBfic precision – confidence intervals and margin of error. I was doing t-‐tests and z-‐tests to find out which recommendaBons should go in Phase I versus Phase 2. I even remember bringing my old college staBsBcs textbook to work with me!

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We conducted our research in a lab with a two-‐way mirror. We filmed the test parBcipants and went back and watched the tests mulBple Bmes, scruBnizing facial expressions and body language.

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By the end of the year, we had a big honkin’ report. There were over 100 findings. We actually had tables to group and categorize all of the findings. It was in a binder like this. With a cover page slaved over by a graphic designer. This was my first UX job, and at the Bme I was so proud of this report. It was massive. It showed off all the hard work we did.

The best part…

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Over 10 year later, their website is largely the same. Only 2-‐3 recommendaBons had been implemented out of 100+, and those were preRy much low hanging fruit.

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This process stole a year of my life. Countless billable hours, your taxpayer dollars, painstaking work, meeBngs and staBsBcal nonsense. Are you familiar with this heartbreak?

“The biggest lie in software is Phase II.”

Jeff Gothelf

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Over a decade later, the organizaBon re-‐engaged us. Some of the very same clients, actually. But this Bme, our process was lean. In under a month, we had a substanBally beRer product. With far less work and hassle. Clients parBcipated in the process, and became our advocates. It leW me thinking… Why can’t it always be like this?

PRIX FIXE MENU

Data Gathering :: choose one

Usability testing Create scenarios based on top tasks, craft post-test survey, and conduct 6 hours worth of one-on-one usability testing*

Web survey Create survey questions to solicit preference data and discover more about target audiences*

Existing data trends Evaluate existing data such as help desk tickets, web analytics, and/or survey data

Focus group Plan and lead 6 hours worth of focus group sessions*

Analysis :: choose one

Expert review SME evaluation of select screens from a website or application

Visual evaluation Analysis of branding strategy, colors, images, typography

Task analysis Evaluate paths to streamline information architecture

Persuasion, emotion, trust evaluation Evaluate how to more effectively move customers to take action

Stakeholder analysis Based on a web survey, focus group, or existing data if available

Pattern analysis Identify trends in existing data

Benchmark Compare my site to my competitors’ * Recruiting/scheduling not included

Presented in 2010 by Sarah Weise & Linna Ferguson, User Experience Professionals Association (UXPA)

Now this is not the first Bme I’ve asked myself this quesBon. In fact, I’ve spent my career trying to make UX as simple and effecBve as possible. 5 years ago, Linna and I even coined the term “Express Usability” at a UXPA conference in Munich, where we convinced a whole bunch of people to implement UX strategies in just 1 week with a fixed price menu approach, an idea that came to us aWer drinking heavily at a fixed price restaurant.

PRIX FIXE MENU

Data Gathering :: choose one

Usability testing Create scenarios based on top tasks, craft post-test survey, and conduct 6 hours worth of one-on-one usability testing*

Web survey Create survey questions to solicit preference data and discover more about target audiences*

Existing data trends Evaluate existing data such as help desk tickets, web analytics, and/or survey data

Focus group Plan and lead 6 hours worth of focus group sessions*

Analysis :: choose one

Expert review SME evaluation of select screens from a website or application

Visual evaluation Analysis of branding strategy, colors, images, typography

Task analysis Evaluate paths to streamline information architecture

Persuasion, emotion, trust evaluation Evaluate how to more effectively move customers to take action

Stakeholder analysis Based on a web survey, focus group, or existing data if available

Pattern analysis Identify trends in existing data

Benchmark Compare my site to my competitors’ * Recruiting/scheduling not included


PRIX FIXE MENU

Deliverable :: choose one

Recommendations report Details top recommendations based on our analysis in a finding-rationale-recommendation format

Screen-by-screen findings report Points out areas on each page that can be improved

Design concepts Pair with the visual evaluation: two alternate design concepts

Information architecture recommendations Navigational outline or flow chart detailing enhancements to organization and page flow

Wireframe(s) Visually displays layout recommendations; interactive prototyping may be an option if time permits

Trend report Pair with the pattern analysis or benchmark; couple with stakeholder analysis if data is available and time permits


CREATE

A culture of creativity, empathy & openness to new

ideas

OBSERVE

User behavior early and often

DISCOVER

Where business goals and user

needs meet

DESIGN

For human connection

Today we’ll learn techniques to…

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Let’s meet.

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No matter the day, season or culture, experience boils down to one thing.

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HUMAN CONNECTON

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The Numbers Game

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We think on autopilot. Multitasking makes us less creative.

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Where does our time go?

Simultaneous Projects

Time Available Per Project

Loss of Time to Context Switching

1 100% 0% 2 40% 20% 3 20% 40% 4 10% 60% 5 5% 75%

This is waste!

Source: Quality Software Management by Gerald Weinberg @weisesarah

Who is an artist in here?

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When you ask this in a kindergarten classroom, almost every hand shoots up. Today, we had 2-‐3 hands go up out of 150.

AGE 5 You use 80% of your

creative potential. .

AGE 12

Your creative

output drops to 2% ADULT

Your creative output stays around 2%

Unless you do something about it!

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Look at a 3-‐5 year old classroom. These spaces are filled with fun and colorful things to do, see and touch.

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But then we end up here. How could we be creaBve in a space like this? How do we communicate or connect?

Long drawn out meetings. Decisions by committee. What for?

YOU can change this culture. Encourage a creative, less distracted mindset

from the start with a focused icebreaker.

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20-Circle Challenge

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Was that harder or easier than you thought?

How did this challenge make you feel? Nervous? Excited? Anxious? Focused?

What was your approach?

20-Circle Challenge Discuss with a partner

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Was that harder or easier than you thought?

How did this challenge make you feel? Nervous? Excited? Anxious? Focused?

What was your approach?

20-Circle Challenge Discuss with a partner

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Everyone can be creative. Use a UFB to cultivate creativity.

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UFB = Uninterrupted Focus Block This is a way to protect your Bme, focus on a single thing, and empower yourself to be creaBve.

Creativity is a muscle. Exercise it. Commit to 5 minutes a day for 30 days.

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Not only that, start your UX sessions off with a creaBvity booster like one of these acBviBes, and your parBcipants will get in the zone. They’ll be more focused, aRenBve and creaBve in your sessions.

Doodle a picture Draw an animal Make something out of play dough Write a journal entry Find an interesting object from nature, and write 20 words to describe it Discover a new word, and use it in a sentence Do a crossword puzzle or word hunt Write a haiku Try a new food Pin an inspiring picture on Pinterest Build a tower with blocks or legos (I’m partial to MagnaTiles…) Find an interesting texture and do a paper rubbing

30 Days of Creativity Ideas for the challenge. Each day…

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Companies like 3M and Google give staff 15-20% of time to work on projects of their choosing Gmail

Google Ads

Post-it notes Masking

Tape @weisesarah

What creative habit will you start today? What will you try for 30 days straight? How will you bring this back to work?

Creativity Write down on your note-taking page…

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1. Mad Libs

2. Wall Voting

3. Wall Targets

4. Personas

5. Empathy Maps

6. Journey Maps

7. User Stories

8. Ideation & Refining

9. Usability Testing

10. Projective Interviews

#1 PLAY MAD LIBS

•  There’s no dial-in number Maximize human connection. 4 – 20 people.

•  No phones, tablets, laptops We have a short time with you. We need pure attention and focus!

•  Goal is to generate a lot of ideas quickly There are deadlines and timers for each activity.

•  Call ELMO Tell people up front that it’s not rude to call “ELMO”. Goal is to talk quickly and stay on topic. No history discussions here!

•  We are not in the idea or ego squashing business We succeed through a breadth of perspectives and concepts. Not just execs. Facilitator required to diffuse tensions.

Schedule a Hands-On Visioning Session

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•  There’s no dial-in number Maximize human connection. 4 – 20 people.

•  No phones, tablets, laptops We have a short time with you. We need pure attention and focus!

•  Goal is to generate a lot of ideas quickly There are deadlines and timers for each activity.

•  Call ELMO Tell people up front that it’s not rude to call “ELMO”. Goal is to talk quickly and stay on topic. No history discussions here!

•  We are not in the idea or ego squashing business We succeed through a breadth of perspectives and concepts. Not just execs. Facilitator required to diffuse tensions.

#1 PLAY MAD LIBS

Schedule a Hands-On Visioning Session

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FOR: target customer WHO NEEDS: service/feature UNLIKE: competitor/alternative WE ARE A: business type WE PROVIDE: emotional benefit WE STAND OUT BY: key differentiator

#1 PLAY MAD LIBS

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#1 PLAY MAD LIBS


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#1 PLAY MAD LIBS


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The Story of Mayberry Public Library

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Mayberry is the center of a small town 9,000 strong. While the library is a historical landmark shaped by memories and beloved by the town, not many people actually go there anymore. People do research online, and read books on their iPad or Kindle. The county is looking at their budget, and funding for the library may be in jeopardy. This library must find a way to make itself more relevant to the Mayberry community…

Kids

FOR ____________ <target customer>

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THESE CUSTOMERS NEED ______________ <service/feature>

E-books

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Amazon Local Bookstore

UNLIKE ______________ <alternative/competitor>

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Gathering Place

WE ARE A ______________ <business type>

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Belonging Nostalgia

WE PROVIDE ______________ <emotional benefit>

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Free to join In your backyard

WE STAND OUT BY ______________ <key differentiator>

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Group brainstorming methods: Use a different one for each stem

•  Scribble as many ideas as you can in

2 mins (individuals or pairs/groups)

•  Ever person/pair/group must fill 5 post-its

•  Build it and ideas will come. Put 50 stickies on the wall, and have people shout out ideas

•  Everyone stands, shouts out 1 idea then sits, selects someone else to go

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Quickly visualize the most agreed-on concepts.

#2 WALL VOTING

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Dual-colored dots save you time. Only talk about the ones with red and green.

#2 WALL VOTING

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Move popular stickies to top. Read vision statement across.

#2 WALL VOTING

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And when you write it out…

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Use if there’s still a lot of discussion. Wall targets help visualize and narrow key priorities. Align with key differentiators. Write a key differentiator in the middle of the target, and invite people to move the post-its onto the target based on how well they align with the key differentiator. Talkative crowd? Have the team prioritize in silence.

#3 WALL TARGETS

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Why would a UX guru advise me to start by talking to internal staff, not users?

In my opinion, the key difference between Lean UX and tradiBonal UX is the idea that UX professionals are NOT just advocates for the user. In Lean UX, we work to understand and define the business and product vision, and find where that intersects with customer needs. Let’s say we find out that users need bicycles, but the goal of the business is to sell unicycles. If we don’t take that into account, we’re going to be fighBng every step of the way, and our recommendaBons will never be implemented. Understanding vision and goals gives us context, and we can use this info to gather user data that maRers.

1. Mad Libs

2. Wall Voting

3. Wall Targets

4. Personas

5. Empathy Maps

6. Journey Maps

7. User Stories




Hashtags are big. Let’s make sure there

are at least 4-5 on our homepage.

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When I was 10 my father had a heart attack in front of me. From then I vowed to be prepared if that situation ever happened again. - Bill Winters

#4 PERSONAS

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Hi! My name is…

Description

Goals & Needs

Tech Usage (laptop, tablet, phone, wearables, favorite apps…)

Picture (yes, draw it!)

Age / Gender: Occupation: Key Emotional Driver:

Show us yours!

Post to Twitter, and we’ll pull it up here for the room to see. #ISUM15 #UX

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#4 PERSONAS Check out John Personas make a post-it come to life.

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Instant empathy! It’s much easier for humans to relate to other humans.

#4 PERSONAS

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1 page is more than enough Bullets are great. Quickly state what resonates (and what doesn’t) for a customer. Role play Stubborn exec or client? Have them role play. Ask them to take on a persona and then ask a bunch of questions. Only have 10 mins? Give a team a half-started persona and have them fill in the rest.

#4 PERSONAS

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Can be visual Check out what’s on Amy’s

work station!

#4 PERSONAS

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3. Wall Targets

4. Personas

5. Empathy Maps

6. Journey Maps

7. User Stories




#5 EMPATHY MAPS

Design Thinking Action Lab 2013

#5 EMPATHY MAPS

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#6 JOURNEY MAPS

30+ screens to apply for a job!

Using this, we streamlined

the process on USAJobs.gov to 9 screens.

#6 JOURNEY MAPS

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#7 USER STORIES

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#7 USER STORIES I am a I want to…. So that I can… Check out books Have more money to spend on other stuff Find books online Get a book without driving to the library

Retiree

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Round 1: Write a complete sentence. Then write another.

Save money Connect with other book-lovers Meet other self-published writers Have more time to read Get my kids interested in reading Keep my kids busy on the weekends Lose myself in a good romance novel Re-kindle my love of reading Spend more time with my family Teach my son to read

#7 USER STORIES I am a I want to…. So that I can…

Parent

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Round 2: Fill out the “So that I can…” side only. Get to the boRom of what does this person want to do. Then swap papers and fill out the “I want to…” secBon for somebody else’s “So that I can” lines. This requires you to think of the end goal first. Knowing this, you’ll wind up with far more creaBve features/services.

How might you apply this at work? Do you have a specific project in mind?

What, if anything, might stop you from trying this?

#7 USER STORIES Discuss with a partner…

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5. Empathy Maps

6. Journey Maps

7. User Stories




#8 Ideation generates lots of ideas and gets people out of “ruts”

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Take 8 minutes to design 8 different ways to display the library homepage for that persona.

#8 Ideation can be encouraged with prompts

Try this! Generate 5-10 solutions using the following prompts… The most obvious solutions: ___________________________________________

By adding, removing or modifying these: _________________________________

If you were a 5 year old: ______________________________________________

If you were a rebellious teenager: ______________________________________

If you had unlimited budget: ___________________________________________

If you couldn’t spend a dime: __________________________________________

With superhuman powers (invisibility, teleportation, etc): ___________________

If you were <Persona Name>: __________________________________________ @weisesarah

#8 Ideation can build off a persona

Brianne (New Hire) Dalton (Supervisor)

Portia (Mid Level Worker Bee) Aiden (Learning Leader)

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#8 Ideation can build off a persona

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#8 Ideation refinement pulls best elements from each idea

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Get with a small group that contains one representaBve from each of the personas. Share your ideaBon papers and combine the best elements of each to create one homepage.

When could you use this technique at work? When is the soonest you could try it out?

#8 Ideation Write down on your note-taking page…

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#9 USABILITY TESTING lets you observe behavior

In-person Remote Moderated Remote Unmoderated

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#9 USABILITY TESTING

Scenarios (pre-written, same for all)

“Imagine you’ve been injured, and you want to know if physical therapy is covered under your insurance. Where would you go to find

this information?”

Free-form (open ended, custom to each person)

“What do you typically do on this site?

You mentioned you use this site to see what appointments your insurance will cover. Walk

me through that.”

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#9 USABILITY TESTING moderated, scenario testing structure

Opening script

First impressions / feelings

Satisfaction rating for each (1-5)

Intro questions: warmup / baseline / recall

Scenarios: pre-written / same for all

Post-test questions: agreement with statements, what’s missing, magic wand

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We need a volunteer!

#9 USABILITY TESTING

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Thank you for volunteering to participate in this study. To begin, I need to read an orientation script to you. I’m reading it directly so that all participants receive identical instructions. <Company name> is working to improve its website, and today they are collecting feedback directly from users like you. The input gathered here today will help identify what works well, and what needs improvement. In this session, I'll present you with scenarios that ask you to locate information on the site. Speak aloud as you navigate, telling me what's going through your mind as you decide where to go or what to click, as if you were on a game show. This study is in no way a test of you, your skills, or your knowledge. It's a test of the system. If you feel frustrated at any point, please let me know because this will help identify areas of the website that need improvement. Since I'm here as a neutral observer, though, I won't be able to give you hints about where to go or what to click. The data from this study will be presented in aggregate form only, and your name will not be tied to your responses. I’ll also mention that I’ve been hired just to conduct these studies and did not build or design this site in any way, so you won’t be hurting my feelings by critiquing the site. Questions at this point?

#9 USABILITY TESTING opening script

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•  How often do you use the XYZ website?

•  How do you feel about the current site?

•  When you've come to the site in the past, are you typically looking for something in particular, or just browsing?

•  How do you typically come to the site? For instance, do you navigate directly to the URL, do you click a link you've previously bookmarked, or do you find a page from this site after you've Googled something?

•  Based on your past experiences, how helpful has the XYZ site been to you? 1 = Not at all helpful, 5 = Very helpful

#9 USABILITY TESTING intro questions - examples

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•  When you look at this page, what are your first impressions? How does it make you feel?

•  Based on your first impression, is this a site for someone like you?

•  Without clicking on anything, just scroll up and down the homepage and tell me what information would be most useful to you?

•  In your own words, how would you describe the purpose of this site?

•  Is there too much information on the homepage?

•  What do you think of the layout / colors / images / labeling / etc.

•  What can you do from here?

#9 USABILITY TESTING first impression questions - examples

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•  Avoid saying the actual label of what you want someone to click

•  Stay neutral. Try not to agree during a testing session. “Mmm-hmm” and “Go on” is better than “Yes” or “Sure” or “Right”

•  Provide context with words like “Imagine” or “Pretend” Here’s an example where it’s vital: Imagine you are a soldier having your medical condition evaluated. You would like to know how your disability rating is determined, and whether or not you can stay in the Army. Please find this information. How it would read without the “Imagine” You are having your medial condition evaluated…

“Huh? What? Are you saying I have a problem? That’s messed up, man.”

#9 USABILITY TESTING scenario tips

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Task compleBon Perceived ease Time to complete

Post-‐test quesBons

(Level of agreement with statements about visual and funcBonal aspects)

Comparison metrics

#9 USABILITY TESTING metrics, if you need numbers

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Bare minimum “tools” You can use free screen share software like join.me, Google Hangout or WebEx and the phone. You don’t need pricey tools. Keep it small, then iterate! You’ll see trends with just 3-5 users. Make a few key changes, then test again with 3-5 users. Forget unmoderated testing Sounds tempting, but you’ll learn more qualitative data in less time from just a couple moderated sessions. You don’t need scenarios If you don’t have time or aren’t sure what to ask, have users walk you through what they generally do on the site. Don’t wait. Test wireframes or even sketches!

#9 USABILITY TESTING quick & dirty

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Get out from behind your desk. People talk about how hard recruiting is. But honestly, people are everywhere. Strike up a conversation.

#9 USABILITY TESTING quick & dirty

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THE #1 SECRET TO GETTING AMAZING

RESULTS FROM USABILITY TESTING,

EVERY TIME…

Deepen with image-based projective interviews

Want to see if your hypothesis is right? Image-based projective

interviews identify deep feelings behind behavior.

Talk about images

Ask participants to bring 10-15 images to the interview that reflect how they feel about your product /

problem you are trying to solve.

#10 PROJECTIVE INTERVIEWS

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FEAR Of the unknown

For my life (helplessness) For my health and body For my family and kids

For my home. For nature, environment, planet

PROTECTION

For loved ones, especially kids

ANGER At the government

#10 PROJECTIVE INTERVIEWS

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I will try these 3 things at work:

3.

2.

1.

103

•  Mad Libs •  Wall Voting •  Target Prioritization •  Personas •  Empathy Mapping •  Journey Mapping •  Write-and-Pass User Stories •  Ideation & Refinement •  Usability Testing •  Projective Interviews

Tweet your top takeaway to #ISUM15 @weisesarah

You now know new techniques to connect quicker and build better products, smarter and faster. Scientific precision in UX is overrated. Be human. Make a connection. After that, it’s a little push here, a little pull there.

BUILD. AWESOME. THINGS.

Slides & Handbook slideshare.net/weisesarah

Sarah Weise [email protected] linkedin.com/in/sarahweise @weisesarah

Technology

UX Lean & Mean (Internet Summit 2015)