We think of our customers as guests, at a party where we are the hosts. It's our job to make their experience a little better every day. - Jeff Bezos

Too often, user research is conducted without a solid plan.

A UX research plan is a very concise reference document, which describes the important dates, objectives and key contributors of the research project you want to conduct.

Let’s explain what a UX research plan, and 8 tips to get started

Why you should always start with a UX Research plan? 📝

A user research plan allows you to "lay out" an idea of what you have in mind to conduct your research.

UX researchers often have to present their studies to stakeholders - product managers, developers, marketing managers.

A detailed plan will therefore legitimize the action, provide detailed support to the various stakeholders in the project, make access to important information easy and clear and above all understood by all.

It will allow the teams to answer essential questions about their clients.

The 8 key steps to get started! 🔬

The 8 key steps (in order) to set up your User Research Plan! ⛔

• Note the context, objectives, and goals - this is to briefly lay out the reason for the research and the actions to be taken.
• List all participants and users you could reach out too- including their roles, and personal goals.
• Also list all participants (testers) and describe the audience segment you want to target.
• Determine all metrics to be tracked - from this will come specific questions.
• List questions to ask in the research.
• Quickly summarize the costs and means to conduct the research.
• Detail the roadmap, and especially note the deadlines clearly.
• Determine the tools and methods to be used for: research, analysis, data sharing.

All this while respecting the watchwords that are : clarity and transparency !

Research plans:

• Help team members focus on results, avoiding unnecessary details.
• Allow to follow the progress and the good realization of the project

💡What to remember.

A UX research plan is a document that describes a user experience (UX) research project from start to finish.

It typically includes a timeline, research objectives, methods, resources, and risks associated with the project.

It is the foundation of any user research project - this material is ESSENTIAL.