Ethnographic research is crucial for businesses to connect with consumers' needs by promoting insightful observation, analysis, and interpretation. It enables companies to transition from mere observation to understanding user behavior in context, which helps in designing better products and services that truly meet consumers' expectations. However, successful ethnography requires a balanced approach, allocating time to both users and businesses to uncover unique insights and align their goals.

1. Ethnography’s
importance to
business

2. Connecting with
consumers’ needs
Ethnographic research
needs good observation,
analysis and interpretation.
Paula Zuccotti, associate director and
head of research at Seymourpowell
The key to unlocking ethnographic research relies on this objects and activities in order to make sense of the wider context
intersection, beyond just good observation and analysis. How of their everyday lives. It is about pure observation with minimal
many times have you heard companies wax lyrical about the intervention and honest performance rather than task analysis. This
wonders of ethnographic research but appear frustrated about is why ethnography has been more successful in informing and
the end results? “We spent time with consumers, it was inspiring the design process than traditional marketing techniques.
amazing! But we’re still not sure what we’ve learnt…”
Ethnographic research has become a necessity in the field of
This is what I normally hear from organisations when discussing product, packaging, interaction, brand and service design for
their experiences with the methodology. Ethnography has several reasons. Firstly, it supports the need for approaching
become one of those words like ‘innovation’; companies must problems and briefs in a more holistic and sophisticated way
have it on their roster but the majority still wonder HOW they are - as designers we find ourselves working in more complex
supposed to use it. environments, where no product lives in isolation and a greater
ecosystem needs to be taken into consideration. Secondly,
Ethnography’s ethos is spending time with consumers in their ethnography also enables global organisations to reach out to
real environments, observing their interaction with quotidian consumers at a personal and local level.
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3. While user empathy and observation have always been inherent Look for subversion
to the design discipline - we can find examples of it in products
more than a hundred years old - the commercial, formalised Look for things that are done differently and think of them in
use of ethnography within our industry dates back fifteen years. terms of shortcuts, work-arounds, and alternative solutions.
What started as a niche process within the blue chip companies Then think about your clients’ brief and how that subversion may
of Palo Alto, San Francisco has now become mainstream. work within their current portfolio. Ten years ago, we discovered
that one user was playing CD’s on her DVD player: what we
The good thing about this is that we’re now able to quote brilliant then referred to as ‘the death of the hi-fi’. That simple example
case studies; the bad thing is that everybody thinks they can do of ‘subversion’ unlocked the user’s take on device convergence
it, running the risk of losing best practices and blurring the main in contrast to the manufacturer’s.
ethos of the process. As a result we need to re-think what we
actually do and push our discipline a step higher, including not
only quality observation and excellent analysis, but also good
interpretations.
1. GOOD OBSERVATION
It is about pure observation
with minimal intervention
The first step towards successful ethnography is to re-engage
with best practices and to remember this is not about having
‘been there, bought the t-shirt’ but about good observation.
Knowing what and how to observe by learning to look and think
in a different way:
and honest performance
Actions before words rather than task analysis.
This is the fundamental differentiator to other research
techniques: observation rather than enquiry, learning HOW
people actually do something rather than their verbalised
memories of how they think they do it. 2. GOOD ANALYSIS
Learn from the users’ talents and ways, not from what they The second step is thorough analysis. This involves good
do right or wrong understanding, empathy, curiosity, and the ability to rigorously
transform your learning into compelling insights. To unlock
The first mistake is to presume ‘we’ are cleverer than ‘them’. significant insights you need to take a given situation and
The second mistake is to presume they are wrong. We should experiment with variables, forecasting different scenarios until
actually be asking ourselves what are they doing and more you find the one that works best. This exercise is a great
importantly why are they doing it? starting point:
As part of a research project with a major consumer electronics Remove the product, concentrate on the needs.
client, we were asked why users weren’t engaging with
the business applications on their devices (e.g. calendars, We recently did this with an FMCG food company where
reminders). Instead of reporting on the failures of the we mapped the five w’s (what, where, when, who, why) and
applications, we tipped the problem on its head and drew more importantly the how’s of their current product in different
inspiration from the dialogue and interactions between the users usage scenarios (e.g. baking a cake). We then removed all
and their personal assistants. the current products that served the purpose and started from
scratch, designing alternative solutions. As a result, we not
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4. only managed to design better products, but also mapped out Take a step back
the client’s portfolio expansion having identified the need for
developing new product formats. Challenge the business vision, their products and their brands.
Being in the field gives you the opportunity to see whether the
company’s products and brands behave and act in the real
world in the way they’re intended to. Remember, who you want
to be and who you actually are can be two different things.
So begin by challenging the brief within the context of the users.
You can learn a lot from ethnographic research about the way
...finding the insights that users treat and regard your product.
are most relevant to a Illustrating this point, we were asked by a large FMCG client
to uncover insights to help upgrade their current ‘beauty’
company’s vision requires packaging range. In this case we discovered users were usually
storing the product in the cupboard with household cleaning
products. Unwittingly it had become a commodity, but worse
thorough investigation, and than that – not even considered a beauty product.
a deep understanding of The key is to take your client’s brief, brand DNA or brand key into
the user’s environment to see if they match. If there is a disconnect,
the clients business. you can work together to help them be who they want to be.
Emergent behaviour meets the road map
It can be difficult to spot emergent behaviour but once you’ve
done it, you will be well placed and already working in the future.
3. GOOD INTERPRETATION Now forecast a way to meet that behaviour. Once you have
plotted possible scenarios, work together with the business to
This third step enables ethnographic research to transform explore their capabilities. If the answer is “we can’t do it today”,
businesses and can be found where unmet consumer needs house the propositions within their roadmap and work together
cross with unmet business needs. This goes beyond good to meet both the users’ needs and the business needs –
observation and analytical skills: we need interpreters that can helping internal development to achieve business goals.
take both streams of information and propose unique platforms
that live at the intersection of emergent user behavior and the Paula Zuccotti is associate director and head of research at
company’s goals and objectives. Anyone can report what they global design and innovation company Seymourpowell. Working
see, however finding the insights that are most relevant to a at the company for the last ten years, Paula is responsible for
company’s vision requires thorough investigation, and a deep the creation and development of Seymourpowell’s ethnographic
understanding of the clients business. Important to this is the research offer, and for the success of many innovative product
ability to input and help redefine that company’s vision. launches working in collaboration with the wider team at
Seymourpowell.
Empathy goes both ways
To find out more please contact: design@seymourpowell.com
The biggest missed opportunity is to assume that empathy
is only about users’ needs. This is where the majority of
ethnographers and design researchers fail. We need to spend
25% of our time in the field, 25% with businesses and 50%
working at the intersection of consumer and business needs.
Confidential. © Seymour Powell Limited, 2010. All rights reserved.