Information Architecture : How to Collect Information about People

What do you want to learn?

Think about what you want to learn and why you want to learn it. You can learn broad patterns of behavior to help you identify opportunities for new products and getting detailed understanding of how people do a particular activity.

Modified 5 Whys Game

Start with something you know about users and ask: Why do they need/want that? until your answer is 'I don't know'. This becomes the research question. The answer to that question can help us express our information in a helpful way for people to make that decision.

How much research is enough?

This depends on:

- How much do you already know about your audience?
- What are the consequences of getting it wrong? (Quick fix or Major change?)
- How much money is involved?
- How quickly do you get feedback?

Reference

A Practical Guide to Information Architecture by Donna Spencer