User-centered design (UCD) is an iterative design process in which designers focus on the users and their needs in each phase of the design process. In UCD, design teams involve users throughout the design process via a variety of research and design techniques, to create highly usable and accessible products for them. East Agile uses the following core design practices as part of our product offering:

• User Interviews
• Ethnographic Studies
• Persona Definition
• Prototype Creation

I am going to shed some light on the importance of User Interviews as part of your product development process. 

What are User Interviews?

User interviews are typically performed with the potential users of a design, as part of an ideation phase or during early concept development. User interviews follow a structured methodology whereby the interviewer prepares a number of topics to cover, makes a record of what is said in the interview, and systematically analyzes the conversation after the interview.

User interviews are one of the most commonly used methods in user research. They can cover almost all user-related topics and be used, for example, to gather information on users’ feelings, motivations, and daily routines, or how they use various products. The interviews often follow the same methodology as qualitative interviews in other fields, but with the specific purpose of informing a design project. Because user interviews typically have to fit into a design or development process, practical concerns such as limited time or resources often play a role when deciding how to carry out such interviews. For instance, user interviews can be conducted over a video or voice call if time is restricted. On the other hand, in projects with sufficient time and resources, an interview may be conducted in the user’s home, and designers might even be flown overseas if the users reside in another country.

While many interview methods used in design projects are borrowed from other fields such as ethnography and psychology, some have been created specifically for use in design contexts. An example is contextual interviews that take place in the participants’ everyday environment. Contextual interviews have the advantage of providing more insights relating to the environment in which a design will be used. As such, a contextual interview might uncover flaws within a product’s design (e.g., the product is too heavy to be carried around the house by the user) that a normal user interview might not.

Learn More about User-Centered Design

You can read more about User-Centered Design at www.eastagile.com/blog. We have created a list of techniques that you can use in a UX design process. Many of them will help you put the user center stage in your project. Questions? Comments? Concerns? Contact us for more information. We’ll quickly get back to you with the information you need.