how humans think - ux and content marketing - cait vlastakis smith - centerline digital
DESCRIPTION
UX & Content Marketing: Navigating How Humans Think Humans are strange, complex, fickle creatures. That said, it's our job as designers, content creators and marketers to deeply understand our audience as humans, not just "users" or "buyers." Why? So we stop making content people don't need, want or care about, and start delivering greater value. The biggest challenge we face is putting aside our own personal preferences and biases. The best way tackle this challenge is by diving head first into audience research to understand who we're talking to. In essence: We have to think less like marketers and more like our audience. This presentation given at DMFB explores action-based methods to begin untangling how people think. Throughout the presentation, we explored: 1) How the brain is structured to process information 2) Key questions to ask ourselves during content and design planning to help us think more like our audience 3) User experience (UX) research methods to apply throughout content marketing efforts, such as interviews and contextual inquiries 4) How to synthesize varying depths of customer insights into strategic outputs to guide content creation, and 5) A step-by-step "audience first" content planning guide that serves as a jumpstart tool for building content marketing programs around humans Uncovering what motivates people, surfacing unknown needs and gathering insights will ultimately help us figure out how we can serve them better. Unpacking the answers to “Why” fuels user experience research. And when applied to content marketing, it paints a clearer picture of our audience and helps us create meaningful content and user-centered experiences that win attention, respect and loyalty. For more information, please visit http://www.centerline.net or find me on Twitter at @caitvsmith.TRANSCRIPT
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UX & CONTENT MARKETING:Navigating how humans think
How to think less like a marketer to reach your audience
@caitvsmith
@caitvsmith
@digital4biz #DMFB14Digital Marketing for Business Conference
Cait Vlastakis SmithStrategy Director, Centerline Digital@caitvsmith @centerline
Hello.
@caitvsmith
Meet Edgar.
@caitvsmith”“
As the pace of business quickens and the number of brands multiplies, it’s customers, not companies, who decide which brands live and which ones die.
-Marty Neumeier, Zag
The State of Things
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Reality check: We all have baggage.
I don’t mean this type of baggage.
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The business problem.
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Our baggage.
Budget
Personal preferences
Time
✓ Feature preferences✓ Design preferences✓ Competitor envy✓ Cool hunting
OrganizationalRestraints
✓ Hierarchal roadblocks✓ Politics✓ IT restraints
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Our view of the problem becomes distorted. Blocked.
Budget
Personal preferences
OrganizationalRestraints
Time
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This is what the challenge becomes through the lens of our constraints (i.e. baggage).
Hole
Blind spot
Gap
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So what?
We must remove the barriers that narrow our view of the problem and tarnish it with our subjectivity.
By entrenching ourselves in the world of our audience and looking at the world through their eyes
How?
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We have to think less like marketers and more like our audience.
The Challenge Ahead
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To help our brands:
The Challenge Ahead
Treat customers like humans
Act like a human
Think like a human
(Not a robot.)
(Not a sales machine.)
(Not dollar signs.)
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A few things about humans...
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Our brain is a filtration system.
THING 1
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The human sensory system sends the brain 11 million bits of information per second.
Source: Leonard Mlodinow, Subliminal
THING 1: Our brain is a filtration system
The actual amount our conscious mind can handle is approximately 16 - 50 bits per second
This data filter is a survival instinct.
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The mind sifts through an inventory of data to retain only what matters to you.
THIS MEANS:
THING 1: Our brain is a filtration system
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A brand becomes memorable once it becomes meaningful.
TAKEAWAY:
First we have explore what our audience finds
meaningful.
THING 1: Our brain is a filtration system
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Our brain cravesease.
THING 2
@caitvsmithSource: Daniel Kahneman, Thinking, Fast and Slow
COGNITIVE EASE COGNITIVE STRAIN
Complicated languageFamiliar language
Cumbersome instructions
Muddled font choiceLegible font choice
Clear instructions
“This is relevant to me.”
“Is this relevant to me?”
Familiarity Unfamiliarity
vs.
THING 2: Our brain craves ease
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Cognitive strain prompts skepticism, mistrust and questions about credibility.
THIS MEANS:
THING 2: Our brain craves ease
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Design simplicity and ease across every brand experience to cultivate trust and credibility.
TAKEAWAY:
First we have to figure out what our
audience defines as “simple.”
THING 2: Our brain craves ease
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Our brain is plastic.THING 3
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Our brain is constantly changing in response to our experience and behavior, reprograming itself on the fly.
Sources: Nicholas Carr, The Shallows; James Olds, Institute for Advanced Study
THING 3: Our brain is plastic.
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The tools we use to write, read and otherwise manipulate information work on our minds even as our minds work on them.
-Nicholas Carr, The Shallows
THING 3: Our brain is plastic.
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THIS MEANS:
Technology influences behavior and shapes how we process information.
THING 3: Our brain is plastic.
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Adapt your content to fit seamlessly with constantly evolving habits and behavior.
TAKEAWAY:
First we have to understand these habits.
THING 3: Our brain is plastic.
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Our brain is a filtration system.1 Make content
meaningful.
Our brain craves ease.2 Make content
simple.
Our brain is plastic.3 Make content
adaptable.
IN A NUTSHELL: About HumansHow this applies toCONTENT PLANNING & CREATION
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Understanding our audience
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Build intrinsic empathy so we meet and surpass audience needs across every brand touchpoint
OUR GOAL
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IN A NUTSHELL: About Humans
What should our content say?
What pain pointshould our content address?
IN A NUTSHELL: About HumansReframe this key question duringCONTENT PLANNING:
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PAINPOINT
=OPPORTUNITY TO
HELP
@caitvsmith”“Look for a job people are
already trying to get done, then help them do it.
-Marty Neumeier, Zag
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Contextual Research
Interviews
Inquiries/Field Research
Rapid Audience Planning
Further digging
IN A NUTSHELL: About HumansIN A NUTSHELL: About HumansSurfacing Pain Points
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๏ What are your main audience segments?
๏ What keeps them up at night?
๏ Who influences them?
๏ What competes for their time and attention?
๏ Which brands have the most influence over them?
๏ What motivates them?
๏ What frustrates them?
๏ Where do they live and work?
๏ What do they value?
๏ Which of your products/services do they use most?
Step 1: Document what you know.Correction:
What you *think* you know.
Further Reading: Buley, The User Experience Team of One: A research & design survival guide
Rapid Audience Planning
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Rapid Audience Planning
Buley, The User Experience Team of One: A research & design survival guide
Step 3: Group key assumptions for deeper exploration.
Step 2: Separate certainties from assumptions.
Certainties Assumptions
Goals
Challenges
Motivators
This is the stuff for testing and research.
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Rapid Audience Planning
Embedding wrong assumptions into your content alienates people
Source: Erika Hall, Just Enough Research
REMEMBER:
Replace assumptions with insights
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Source: Erika Hall, Just Enough Research
Research Methods:A Holistic View
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CONTEXTUAL RESEARCH
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Active listening
Contextual interviews are relaxed, exploratory conversations
Interview Breakdown
Introduction and establishing context Cultivating discussion
with open-endedquestions
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Create an interview guide to document questions you’d like to ask. This is a valuable preparation tool, not a script.
Use it as a conversation starter or gut check to ensure you stay on topic.
Interview Prep
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Sample Interview QuestionsTell me about your role as _______
Walk me through a typical day.
How do you feel about _______
When and how often are you online?
What information do you look for?
What features do you want?
What information do you wish you had at your fingertips? Why?
The more stories or scenarios interviewees give you, the more you learn.
What results do you want?
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3 Engage in conversation from a place of genuine curiosity.
Listen between the lines. Uncover pressures, motivations and anxieties.
THINGS TO REMEMBER
Contextual Interviews
1
2
3
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Active listening
Field Visit Breakdown
Introduction and establishing context
Asking questions
Observing
Field research helps you get to know your audience within the context of their environment.
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Clearly define your purpose/goals for the visit.
Document questions you’d like answered.
List key behaviors/interactions you’re looking for.
Complete the statement, “I want to walk away with a greater
Field Visit Preparation
Be prepared to scratch all your plans and assumptions as you observe pain points and opportunities you didn’t even know existed.
understanding of {fill in the blank.}”
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3 Go with the flow.
Refrain from making assumptions while you learn.
Look at greater context.
THINGS TO REMEMBER
Field Research
1
2
3
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This is not a sales call.Hunt for truth.
Ask, “Why?”
Contextual Research
If you remember just one thing:
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FURTHER DIGGING
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Surveysdeliver quick, comparative insights into preferences and desires. Pair with qualitative data.
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๏ The comments section of relevant publications
๏ Customer service transcripts
๏ LinkedIn groups
๏ Social listening
๏ Census Bureau
๏ Pew Research Center
๏ Conferences
๏ Job boards
Other Insight Gold Mines
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How can I help this person get promoted at work?
How can I make this person’s day easier?
What does this person talk about during performance reviews?
What is the culture like within their organization or at home?
What does their vision of “success” look like?
What type of people do they admire (career and personal)?
What is the most stressful part of their day?
When they go home at night, what do they complain about?
What keeps them up at night?
Questions to Ask Yourself
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SYNTHESIZINGINSIGHTS
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Affinity Diagram: Organizing information, documenting patterns, distilling insights
Further Reading: Hall, Just Enough Research
Observations
Design Considerations
Insights
Start organizing your notes into groups based on behavior or topic area
Pull out key insights based on your observations
Write action/recommendations going forward
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Affinity Diagram: Example from food & beverage plant field visit
Further Reading: Hall, Just Enough Research
Observations
Design Considerations
Insights Safety and efficiency are users’ two key metrics of success.
Efficiency metrics (% to goal) are prominently
displayed on nearly all screens throughout the
plant.
Everything (from gauge readings, time, temperature,
processes) is meticulously measured, tracked and
documented. All measurements tie back to individuals.
The plant works toward these goals: Maximize uptime/
output, avoid excursions, minimize surcharges.There’s a lack of centralized knowledge and multiple
interfaces they interact with each day.
Most are Windows-based.
Troubleshooting and knowledge sharing are key pain points across roles.
“I scribble in the margins of manuals whenever I can.”
-34 yr. employee
The most often referenced documents were technical
drawings and diagrams
There is no method to capture expertise from more
experienced employees... important troubleshooting
knowledge learned on the job.
Customers are in the habit of needing to reference
disparate systems for information: parts, services info,
POs, QC materials.
Make access to measurements dashboard prominent both in portal and in sales communication
Document sharing/uploading functionality needs to be prioritized
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Affinity Diagram Template
Further Reading: Hall, Just Enough Research
Observations
Design Considerations
Insights
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Audience Profiles: Archetypes representing groups of behavior/needs/mental models
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Audience Profiles: Archetypes representing groups of behavior/needs/mental models
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SERVE THEM THROUGH
Show them:
1
BARRIERS & STRESSORS CONTENT OPPORTUNITIES
Content:
Show them:
2
Show them:
3
Show them:
4
“”
WHAT THEY VALUE
Content:
Content:
Content:
Content:
Content:
Audience Profile Template
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Experience Maps: Understanding users across touchpoints
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Journey Map Template
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“AUDIENCE FIRST” CONTENT PLANNING
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These serve as strategic touchstones during design & content planning.
AUDIENCE MESSAGE CONTENT TYPE DISTRIBUTION MEASUREMENT
Identify & understand who you’re trying to reach.
Craft messages to demonstrate your unique understanding of audience pain points.
Identify where your audience lives and works online. Place content across channels that are natural to your audience, not intrusive.
Establish measurement touchpoints so you continue learning about your audience and iterate going forward.
START HERE
“Audience First” Content Planning
Identify the most appropriate vehicle for your message based on audience propensities.
Segment pulled from Centerline Content Planning Guide, accessible here:http://www.slideshare.net/Centerline_Digital/content-planning-guidecenterlinedigital100713
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“Audience First” Content Planning Guide
Segment pulled from Centerline Content Planning Guide, accessible here:http://www.slideshare.net/Centerline_Digital/content-planning-guidecenterlinedigital100713
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FINAL THOUGHTS...
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You’re never finished understanding your audience.
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Stay curious.Stay connected.Stay human.
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..and have fun.
DIG INMarty Neumeier, Zag: The #1 Strategy of High Performance Brands
Nicholas Carr, The Shallows
Daniel Kahneman, Thinking Fast and Slow
Leonard Mlodinow, Subliminal
Erika Hall, Just Enough Research
Leah Buley, The User Experience Team of One
Tim Loo, UXSTRAT Workshop: Redesigning business culture & thinking around the customerhttp://www.slideshare.net/mrtimothyloo/uxstrat-2013-redesigning-business-culture-and-thinking-around-the-customer-tim-loo-26341720
Adaptive Path Guide To Experience Mappinghttp://www.adaptivepath.com/ideas/our-guide-to-experience-mapping/
Helsinki Design Lab, Enthography Field Guide http://www.helsinkidesignlab.org/pages/ethnography-fieldguide
Service Design Toolkit http://www.servicedesigntoolkit.org/
Content Planning Jumpstart Guidehttp://www.slideshare.net/Centerline_Digital/content-planning-guidecenterlinedigital100713
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THANK YOU!twitter.com/caitvsmith
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medium.com/@caitvsmith
linkedin.com/in/caitlinvsmith/
centerline.net
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