Design research is a tool used by us designers to investigate people, form, processes, environments, and their lifeworlds in ways that can make their work more potent and more delightful. It is also used as a tool to understand human behavior and the world around them.
How does Design Research differ from Market Research?
They are both important research methods no doubt. Design research differs from traditional market research in many ways. Perhaps the most important one is that Design research is Insights driven. One is always focused on applying insights in the context of the research. Secondly, the design research approach focuses on the social and organizational aspects of improving products, branding, and experiences unlike market research where the focus is on just the product positioning. Thirdly in design research you go with a blank slate to explore and find out what the users may want, whereas in Market research, in most of the cases you are aware of what the product would be, look like, and will be priced at.
I conduct customized Design research exercises that give you qualitative and quantitative inputs, leading to a better understanding of the situations. Some of the tools and methods that I am familiar with and use in my works are:
- Body Storming and Experience Prototyping
- Ethnographic Research
- User Sampling and User Surveys
- Contextual Inquiry
- Fly-on-the-wall observation
- Focus Group Discussions
- Cultural Probes
The above can be applied to a variety of fields including work in
- Product design
- Web sites & Cross platform design
- Go-to-market strategies for emerging markets
- Innovation programs
- Trend forecasting
- Design for Social Impact
- Product positioning for startups and MNCs