You need it. You know you do. Audience research is a vital part of any project, but it’s often the first thing to be cut. “We know our audiences well enough,” they say. “We know what they want.” But is that true?
No! Of course not! If we knew what audiences wanted, we’d have an excess of donations, volunteers, newsletter subscribers, and report readers, and we wouldn’t be having conversations about how to get audiences to act or increase awareness.
During this session, you’ll learn about:
- My favorite lean audience research methods and why they’re awesome
- How to convince your boss that audience research is necessary
- How to conduct audience research when you have zero resources
By the end, you’ll have what you need to do some quick and dirty audience research and convince others that it’s necessary!
Presented at the Nonprofit of Influence Conference (hosted by the Colorado Nonprofit Association).
14. Observation
What
Observe online behavior, common
questions, conversations, keywords.
How
● Reddit, Twitter, Instagram
● Online Communities or Forums
Resource
Social Media Research
18. Good questions elicit a story
“When you’re at
a dinner party,
how do you
explain your
job?”
“Tell me about
the worst
experience you
had with …”
“If you could
change one
thing, what
would it be?”
21. Research Method
24 interviews
stakeholders and content contributors
Investment
30-40 hours
Outcome
Learned extent and scope of problem
Learned dynamics of organization.
There’s good content there!
22. Usability Testing
What
Inform and optimize designs in order
to reduce risk and improve usability
How
● In Person / Screenshare / Phone
● UserTesting.com / Validately
Resource
Don’t Make Me Think
#WOCinTech
23. “Elaborate usability tests are a
waste of resources. The best results
come from testing no more than 5
users and running as many small
tests as you can afford.”
Nielsen Norman Group
24. Recruit & Remind
Test 5
people.
Book 7-8
people.
Send a
reminder
email a day
before.
25. Project
App to compare health care
costs and quality
Audience
Healthcare consumers and
shoppers
Hypothesis
They don’t understand it
Washington All Payer
Claims Database
26. Research Method
Usability Testing (comparator)
Investment
20 hours + 6 pack of beer
Outcome
Identified key gaps in usability.
We need to spend more time on language.
Washington All Payer
Claims Database
27. What People Do
What People Say
Why & How
to Fix
How Many,
How Much
Email Surveys
Interviews
Usability
Testing
Source: Nielsen Norman Group
29. 1. When was the last time you
did audience research?
2. Are you working from
assumptions or facts?
3. If you conduct research, what
will that do for your org?
35. Goals Hypothesis Method Script People Research Summarize Present
1 Set Research Goals
What does success look like?
What’s driving this action?
Our goal is to better understand if our app is usable for our key audiences.
Example
36. Goals Hypothesis Method Script People Research Summarize Present
2 Form Hypothesis
What hunches do you have?
We believe that people don’t even see the Donate button, therefore
never select it.
Example
37. Goals Hypothesis Method Script People Research Summarize Present
3 Pick a Method
Do you need qualitative or quantitative
info? Want to explore or optimize?
Observation, Survey, Interview, Usability Testing, etc
Example
38. Goals Hypothesis Method Script People Research Summarize Present
4 Write a Script (not for observation)
Always be prepared & keep it short.
Introduction & Welcome
Purpose of research
How results will be used
Questions
Conclusion & Thank you
Example
39. Goals Hypothesis Method Script People Research Summarize Present
4.5
You can practice with anyone!
1. Work out kinks
2. Test equipment
Purpose
Practice (not for observation)
40. Goals Hypothesis Method Script People Research Summarize Present
5 Find People
It’s called audience research ;)
Where do you find them?
Email
Lists
Social
Media
Like LinkedIn
Meetups Conferences
Friends &
Relatives
Coffee
Shops
42. Goals Hypothesis Method Script People Research Summarize Present
7
Make themes and summaries
more consumable.
Affinity Diagram
Example
Summarize Findings
43.
44. Goals Hypothesis Method Script People Research Summarize Present
8
Document results so you
can refer to them later.
Goals & Hypothesis
Method & Approach
Participants
Example
Present Findings
Themes
Findings & Quotes
Next Steps