Looking at the intricacies of user experience design
You are not the user. I first heard this line when I started in the field of user experience research some years ago. (Okay, it was 15 years ago but who’s counting.)
At the time I was working in the video game industry, and I was playing video games (a lot of video games). I believed I understood what constituted a good or bad game based on my own preferences.
I was wrong. I learned that while I may play video games, shop online, or use my own software, I was not the end user. And neither are you.
The reality is that your intimate involvement in the development process makes you overly biased. You’re too close to the project as you stare at it every day, constantly learning, tweaking, and improving it. This is different from your end users. They are engaging with your product for small amounts of time each day (if you’re lucky) or returning to it every week, month or every six months.
When you’re looking to make something, start with WHO are you making for, and remember it’s not you.
Ask yourself these questions:
1. How are they planning to use the product that I am making?
2. How often are they going to be using it?
3. What are they going to access it upon (desktop, phone, tablet)?
Start building a realistic picture of that person or persons, because there might be more than one type of user that engages with your product. There could be two or three and each type of user will have their own unique job they are looking to get done.
With each step along the journey talk to (and I mean actually talk to) the people that are going to be interfacing with the product that you are developing.
Ask them these basic questions:
1. What are your thoughts about what you are seeing?
2. Do you know what you need to do or what is being asked for you to do?
3. If you could change one thing about this product what would that be?
Never ask if they like it or not. People will give you answers that they think you are looking for, not what they really think. Instead, keep things vague and open ended. This way people can think and answer in whatever way they would like to and in a way that aligns to how they feel.
If you make something that truly makes people’s lives easier or simplifies something that they do, then they’ll use it. They will not use something that they feel is complicated or frustrating.
Never ask them if it is something that they would use, because people will almost always say yes. Theoretically they might, but the real question is will they truly use it. To find that out, you need to talk to them, listen and prioritize those things that mean the most to them.
Simply put, the idea behind “you are not your user” is all about understanding other people. We need to realize that not everyone thinks and feels the same way we do. People have different opinions and experiences. By understanding this and putting yourself in others’ shoes, you can make products and services that everyone can easily use and find helpful. This approach ensures that what you’re offering is easy to use and caters to what people need, leading to success in the long run.
