Why your Product isn’t working (Hint: You’re not doing Field Research)
~1000 words. 4 minute read.
Let’s face it: most product managers love talking about user-centricity, but the reality? Far too many of us are making decisions from behind a desk, guessing what users want, or maybe more importantly, what they don’t want.
“Get out there and actually meet your users!”
Yep, that means real-life field research. Not just surveys, not interviews over Zoom, no endless studying of user behavior reports (useful, because, you know, data-driven decision-making, but incomplete), but boots-on-the-ground observation.
I must admit: I am not doing nearly enough field research, and I am pretty good at finding great reasons excuses for it: Too many meetings. Team stuff. A backlog that’s already full for the next few sprints…
Recognize yourself in this? Let’s zoom in and review three dimensions of ethnographic research:
Benefits
How-to
What could wrong (?)
Why do it?
Wreck your assumptions
Direct observation helps product managers gain a nuanced understanding of user needs, pain points, and behaviors - no more guessing. Field research isn’t about adding a few bullet points to your requirements doc; it’s about discovering the genuine, unspoken needs of your users.
Be in your user’s environment, not just on their screens.
You think your product is easy to use? Spend an hour watching someone struggle with it in their natural habitat—prepare to be humbled.
Become the discovery guru
Most product managers I know want to build the best possible product. In general, they are curious people who never truly leave the discovery stage (the ‘Continuous Discovery’ mindset). Great products are built on insights that only come from spending time with users. So, step away from the Jira board and go observe. Discovery leads to solutions that are so spot-on, they’ll feel obvious—after you find them. If you haven’t ‘discovered’ with users, don’t start delivering.
Your users don’t think like you do
Ever thought, “This feature is totally intuitive”? Well, guess what: it probably isn’t. Field research reveals the gap between how you think users will interact with your product and how they actually do. Watching users in action—not in focus groups, but in real life—exposes what they’ll never tell you in words. See the problems early. Skip the rework later.
Before you go
Field Research may help with this.
Minimize disruption
You might not always be a welcome sight for sore eyes. Plan your visit by reaching out to your users directly to find a good time (and place) for your visit, or work through field leadership. Busy times lend themselves to continuous observation, slower days may allow for some interviewing, demoing, and conversation.
Consider the environment and adhere to dress codes - that can mean dressing up or dressing down. Blend in a little. Consider bringing a little thank you gift (carry a few Starbucks gift cards in your glovebox).
Resist the temptation to defend your product
Time to put those awesome listening skills you’re so proud of to work! You may hear some things that directly criticize a product decision you made. Great! That’s why you came. Not only does that kind of feedback allow you to rethink the solution, you might even consider changing a few product paradigms or design guidelines. But don’t constantly justify why something is working this way or that way. You won’t be invited back.
See your product from different angles
Try to observe all user personas and as many use cases as possible. Maybe the front-line user isn’t the only one you should observe - what about tech support? Analyzing issues reported to your various support functions can uncover frequent pain points. And reducing support call volume is on someone’s OKR board, if not on yours.
What could go wrong?
To get the most out of your field research, put a little thought into it ahead of time.
Observer bias
You may unconsciously project your own interpretations onto what you observe, which may skew your findings. Bring a teammate, or debrief afterwards with others who did field visits to triangulate.
The Hawthorne effect
The users you’re trying to observe may alter their behavior because they know they’re being watched. That, too, may impact your data. Do what you can to make them feel comfortable with your presence.
Resources and scalability
Some of my reasons excuses to not go may be valid from time to time. Field studies require significant time and resources. This investment can be a barrier. And while in-depth insights are valuable, they may come from a limited number of observations that cannot be widely generalized.
If Marty Cagan could pop into your next stand-up, he’d probably ask: When’s the last time you spent an hour with a real user? (At this point, your best hope is that your boss isn’t in the room).
If it takes you more than a second to answer, it’s time to get out there.
