competitive analysis: strategic ux spy games - lyle kantrovich

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#UXPA2015 Lyle Kantrovich @Lkantrov June 24, 2015 COMPETITIVE ANALYSIS: Strategic UX Spy Games

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Page 1: Competitive Analysis: Strategic UX Spy Games - Lyle Kantrovich

#UXPA2015

Lyle Kantrovich

@Lkantrov

June 24, 2015

COMPETITIVE ANALYSIS:

Strategic UX Spy Games

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#UXPA2015

The UX of Wrenches

Consider the UX of a wrench.

What would usability testing find?

Heuristic evaluation?

Contextual Inquiry?

Focus groups?

Surveys?

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The UX of Wrenches

Consider re-designing a wrench.

What would you change?

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The Wrench Competition

Consider analyzing the competition of your wrench.

• Combination wrenches

• Torque wrenches

• Impact wrenches

• Strap wrenches

• Pliers

• Vise grips

• Nut drivers

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The UX of Wrenches

Consider re-designing a wrench. What would you change?

• Materials

• Size

• Range of use

• Adjustability

• Precision

• Comfort

• Ergonomics

• Speed

• Strength

• Durability

• Cleanability

• Rust resistance

• Visual appeal

• Leverage

Competitive Analysis quickly deepens our

understanding of a problem space and the

range of design options.

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NO OTHER UX METHOD

DELIVERS MORE VARIED

DESIGN IDEAS FASTER

UX Competitive Analysis expands our thinking.

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Scenario: Health Insurance

“Find a Doctor” = Top task / feature for web users

Usability Test Results Design by Committee Complicated UI

Request: “Make it better.”

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835 Health Insurers in the U.S.

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Why start from scratch?

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Comparison of design details: search filters

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Task / Screen Flow Comparison

Site A: The Massive Search Form Approach

Site B: Fast Results with Filters

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UX Competitive Analysis Approach – Find a Doctor

• Review other design approaches in “the wild”

• Look for patterns

– Flows

– Form patterns

– Result patterns

• Feature comparisons (e.g., “accepting new patients”)

• Discuss patterns within team & decide on options to explore

• Mock up prototypes of alternatives

• Decide on options to usability test

• Test & refine

• Launch new design

Final design was unique from,

but inspired by “best of breed”

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UX COMPETITIVE ANALYSIS

TURNS COMPETITORS’

DESIGNS INTO PROTOTYPES

FOR YOUR CONSIDERATION

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#UXPA2015

UX Innovation comes from ideas

• Competitors = easy source of ideas

– Shift team’s effort from generating ideas to evaluating ideas

– CA can super-charge your ideas – leapfrog & hybrid

– Find good fixes to easier problems faster…focus on harder problems

that need novel solutions

• Understand user expectations

– Mental models

– Labels / terminology

– Inform research plans

Design innovation comes from design ideas.

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#UXPA2015

Usability testing: more than just watching users use your design

Both involve skill and technique

UX Competitive Analysis:

More than just “checking out

the competition”

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#UXPA2015

Competitive Analysis is…

The comparison of other offerings in the

marketplace as a source of ideas and insights.

UX Competitive Analysis can provide input to…

• Strategy

• Product roadmaps

• Research

• Content strategy

• Technology

• Metrics

• Design

• Information architecture

• Branding

• Pricing

• Positioning

• Messaging

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#UXPA2015

How to do a UX competitive analysis

1. Decide on scope of comparison

2. Identify competitors / comparators

3. Research & Review

4. Report Key Insights

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#UXPA2015

• Niche feature only

(e.g. Search, Live Chat)

• Product or service

(e.g. Online Invoicing application)

• “Enterprise” experience / solutions

1. Decide on scope of

comparison

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1. Scope of Comparison

• Based on a specific organization or team’s need

• Strategic

– Should we build our own or integrate with existing solutions?

– Should we improve our core offering or add new supporting products?

– Are new start-up offerings a threat to our market share?

• Tactical

– How could we improve feature X to reduce customer confusion and

support calls?

– What are new ways for presenting product information in responsive

designs on small screens?

• UX Competitive Analysis needs to be focused to get value –

like any other UX method

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• Limit to 3-6

• More breadth = Less depth

• Get stakeholder input & approval

2. Identify competitors &

comparators

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2. Identify competitors & comparators

• Direct competitors are working with similar users & challenges

• No competitors or “fastest tortoise”

– What products set user expectations?

– What companies / products do you

aspire to be more like?

– What companies are working on

similar issues in another context?

• Avoid the Google / Amazon / Apple pitfall (GAAP)

• Get stakeholder input if you want them to value your output

• Market maturity impacts comparator options

– Industry maturity

– UX maturity in industry

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• Competitor UX Overview

• Site / App Organization & Navigation

• Content / Functionality

• Branding & Design

3. Research & review

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3. Research & review: profile = design context

Comparator Profile: Goldman Sachs

Headquarters New York, NY

Site URL http://www.goldmansachs.com

# of Employees 32,400

Sector / Industry

Financial Services

Investment Banking

Currency, Commodity & Futures Trading

Fixed-Income Trading

Notes #68 in Fortune 500

#103 in FT Global 500

Focus: Thought Leadership

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3. Research & review: branding & visual design

Colors:

• White

• Blue

• Black

• Gray

Photos:

• Many photos

• Often feature people

• Experts

Notes:

• “Boxy”

• Lots of gradients

• Strong font usage

• Confusing secondary

navigation within

sections

• Inconsistent link colors

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3. Research & review: Content & Information Architecture

Goldman Sachs Site IA:

4 Main Sections:

• Who We Are

• What We Do

• Our Thinking

• Citizenship

Additional Sections / Features

• Careers

• Investor Relations

• Media Relations

• Worldwide

• Lots of videos

• Search

Focus: Thought Leadership

Impacted: Visual Design, Content Strategy, IA, Content Style Guide

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3. Research & review

Site A: The Massive Search Form Approach

Site B: Fast Results with Filters

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3. Research & review

Matrices: great for high-level comparisons

Corporate site comparison within an industry – focus on content / features

Timing: Strategy development, pre-redesign

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#UXPA2015

3. Research & review

Matrices: great for high-level comparisons

Corporate on-site search feature comparison

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#UXPA2015

3. Research & review

• Combine UX methods with Competitive Analysis

– Comparative Usability Testing

– Comparative Expert Reviews

– Surveys

– Task Analysis

– Journey Mapping

• Data Sources

– Online reviews

– Product history (e.g. Wayback Machine)

– Annual reports

– Hoovers.com

– Sales & Marketing materials

– Patent applications

– Press releases

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• Deliverables communicate value

• Keep it relevant

• Sometimes there is no “eureka!”

4. Report key insights

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‘Isn’t it a shame that with

the tremendous amount of

work you have done you

haven’t been able to get any

results?’

- Walter S. Mallory

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‘Results! Why, man,

I have gotten a lot of results!

I know several thousand

things that won’t work.’

- Thomas Edison

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#UXPA2015

4. Reporting insights: Structure

• If few, highly related comparisons…

– Presentation with “profile” of each competitor

– Demographics (size, location, etc.)

– Screenshots

– Opportunities & threats

– Recent changes / developments

• If aspirational comparisons…

– Look for UX themes, values, opportunities

• If feature or low-level design specific comparisons…

– Identify design patterns to test or implement

– Source is less important than the idea

Page 34: Competitive Analysis: Strategic UX Spy Games - Lyle Kantrovich

#UXPA2015

4. Reporting insights: Patterns

Multi-National Enterprise Approaches to Globalization/Localization

Globalized Model Users select a language to view content. All company products are accessible through one site. Used by companies with global business but no global location presence (e.g. online retailers)

Localized Model Users select a country before viewing content. Content is tailored for local markets; products are accessed via local sites. Used by companies with key regional market differences or marketing needs (e.g. trend-based or youth retailers).

Hybrid Model Users select a language to view global content and a country to visit local sites and content. Content that applies to all businesses lives at global level (e.g. About Us). Used by companies with both global and regional products or marketing needs.

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4. Reporting Insights

• Avoid Scorecards

– Insights = ideas, not numbers

– Scorecard numbers punish or reward

– Focus on generating discussion about design, not validating or

disproving existing thinking

– Even market leaders can improve – find the opportunities

• Be a UX leader

– Competitor hiring UX talent?

– Competitor following your company’s lead?

– Start-up hammering on your product’s weaknesses?

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#UXPA2015

A few words of caution

• Respect patents and copyrights

– You want inspiration, not infringement

– Ignoring competition doesn’t prevent infringement – be informed

• Be prepared to deal with egos

– Not Invented Here Syndrome

– Gold Star Seekers

– Good ideas can come from bad products/companies

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#UXPA2015

Unique Value of Competitive Analysis to UX

• Different focus than testing & expert reviews

– More generative than evaluative

• When new to an industry/product, a great way to learn a lot

quickly

– Industry

– Jargon

– Positioning of many companies / products

– Users / customers

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#UXPA2015

Competitive Analysis: Another Great Tool for UXers

Consider your next re-design opportunity.

Questions?

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#UXPA2015 #UXPAMN

Twitter: @Lkantrov

Email: [email protected]

LinkedIn: Lyle Kantrovich

thank you