Analyzing and Responding to Initial User Feedback from Focus Groups

Understand the What and the Why

When the time comes to improve your product using the information you’ve gathered during the focus-group process, you need to understand the why, not just the what of your learnings. For example, it is not enough just to know that someone was confused by a particular workflow or got hung up on a particular screen. You need to know the underlying causes of their difficulty. This is where the questions I mentioned earlier—such as “What did you expect that to do?”—are so important. The answers you get to those questions should guide your solutions to problems.

Without the answers to these questions, you would know only that a problem exists, not why it exists. If you lack this understanding, one potential downfall could be that you make design changes that simply swap one problem for another as you blindly poke at the issue. By asking better informed, more tailored questions, you can take a systematic and iterative approach to solving problems meaningfully.

Don’t Overreact to Every Bit of Feedback

When evaluating the results from your focus groups, remember the adage “the plural of anecdote is not data.” As a product owner, you should respond to focus-group feedback holistically. It is unwise—and often impossible—to address every individual concern, question, or request that participants have proposed during the focus-group process. Plus, you need to remain grounded by your original vision and intent for the product. Do not forget why you’re building this product in the midst of everything else you’ve learned from users. By keeping your focus and vision and discerning the why of user problems, you’ll be ready to begin the process of improving your product.

Solve the Problems

When addressing the problems you need to solve, remember that, while you are the product owner, your participants were potential users. It is their job to present problems and explain them to the best of their ability. During that process, they might suggest changes or solutions. You should not ignore participants’ suggestions, but never blindly accept them as the final solution. Instead, focus on defining the problems clearly and explore all potential solutions. Dream bigger than the immediate solution that came out of the focus group. While it is entirely possible that their initial solution might end up being the best approach, never limit yourself by immediately accepting it.

Another possible approach to solving the problems the focus group identified is using problem-free areas of your product as design guides. See whether you can apply existing solutions or design patterns to the newly identified problems. This approach also offers the added benefit of further unifying your solution’s behaviors, language, and design.

Conclusion

Conducting focus groups can be extremely informative and meaningfully shape what your product becomes. However, if done incorrectly, focus groups can be confusing, frustrating, and potentially damage your final product design. By following the approach and the tips I’ve presented in this article, you’ll be able to facilitate your next focus group more effectively and better evaluate its results.