Photo by Dariusz Sankowski on unsplash

In the era of digital experience, human lives have become equally easier and miserable than ever before. Who would you give credit to?

Is it Design? Engineering? High stakeholders?

Well none of them is responsible for the product’s miserable experience. We all are doing our best to give life to the product but unknowingly overlook UX research. For many decades, organizations have invested in market research which develops an understanding of user behavior patterns, market trends, and competitor analysis. But when it comes to developing a deeper understanding of the end users, UX research is a valuable investment.

It looks value of UX research is yet to be recognized which often worries me. Studies like contextual inquiries, generative research, cultural probes, and many invaluable social research studies are side-parked despite having immense potential to enhance user experience.

Today, products are often developed on assumptions/ hypotheses extracted from marketing research to kick-start the project, but it happens so aggressively that the definition phase is completely chopped off from the UX process. Technically “assumptions/ hypotheses” need to be validated by UX researchers in the definition phase in order to define the problem but unfortunately, very few organizations realized the importance of UX research studies that will genuinely and strategically provide a deeper level of understanding about the end users.

Another technology is growing rapidly which is called data analysis. It is a great tool used by the consumer insights team, and data analysts to understand the behavior pattern of end users but it cannot reveal the WHY behind the behavior pattern. Here, conducting user research studies could contextualize the user’s environment, pain points, needs, and expectations.

Emotions such as joy, frustration, confusion, expectations, needs, and wants on the product could be revealed much more contextually and efficiently through UX research rather than by just relying on marketing research and data analysis, AI, ML, ChatGPT, etc.

You might be thinking if there is any solid evidence of UX research capabilities that contribute to the product’s success.

Well, I know such a product that is successful for thousands of years.

Don’t be surprised, it is a Banana.

Photo by Gabriel Mihalcea on Unsplash

I am sure we all have eaten bananas sometimes in our life. You also might have seen that bananas are not only meant for one persona: Humans but for multiple personas such as Birds, Monkeys, Elephants, Chimpanzees, Bats, Raccoons, and many more. An interesting fact about bananas and other natural products are inbuild the capability of user-centric UX, AI, ML, ChatGPT, and any other upcoming future technologies which are yet to be conceived. Isn’t it amazing?

Photo by Daniel Restrepo Londoño, Audronė Locaitytė, Louis Hansel on Unsplash

Well, being a UX researcher, a few thoughts come to my mind.

1. How come the banana is liked by a diverse range of personas?
2. Who is the UX researcher who manages to understand a diverse range of personas?
3. How thorough UX research would have been done on multiple personas to develop a deeper understanding of end users’ needs.
4. Despite the varying physical constraints faced by a diverse range of personas, the user experience of eating a banana is balanced and unbiased.
5. How come bananas keep updating its feature with the evolution of living and nonliving natural bodies?

Well, I think, nature must have conducted some kind of its own studies in order to develop a deeper understanding of end users. In my previous article, “Value of inner intellectual thinking in the UX research” article I shared nature’s ways to connect with all living and nonliving natural bodies. Please feel free to read it.

In the context of digital product experience

How come human-made products are failing so often even after a series of feature updates whereas nature’s product(Banana) exists for more than thousands of years and keeps on updating successfully?

Well, bananas did not become successful overnight but nature has put its efforts to understand each persona’s pain points, needs, and expectations. Nature strategically planned bananas keeping the concept of evolution in the center.

Observations:

There are more than 100s varieties of bananas that keep evolving(AB testing). When we consume bananas, (it is just like usability testing/ feedback session/ ), nature will keep getting insights through its silent communication channels from all living and non-living natural bodies since we all are connected together seamlessly(Data synthesis)

If we closely observe bananas, then we could see how deeply personas’ needs have been considered. Its user experience connects its form and function seamlessly. From bananas packing design(form)to uncovering its layers (function) to ease of eating(user experience).

If nature wouldn’t do user-centric research on human behavior and attitude, then we would have missed the tastiest banana recipes like pancakes, a smoothie bowl, banana ice cream, banana bread, muffins many more.

If one understood the value of UX research in product development then one could make the product experience memorable just like a banana that brings joy, and sweetness to all of us regardless of who eats it.