BUSINESS SITUATION
Our client sought to understand the reasons behind low engagement in their Support Community. The focus was on addressing challenges faced by two user groups defined as learners and lurkers.
SGA STRATEGIC APPROACH
To meet the client’s objectives, SG Analytics (SGA) conducted a UX research study using virtual diaries, with a pool of respondents recruited from our online community. We followed the below steps to execute the research:
- Recruitment: SGA designed a screener questionnaire to identify and recruit 10 respondents across various usage levels within the client’s community.
- Virtual Diary Study: Participants undertook semi-moderate missions, which included the following four stages:
- Recap: Sharing past experiences using online resources to learn or resolve issues.
- Hangout: Performing assigned tasks naturally to uncover pain points.
- Reflect: Providing feedback on their user journey and preferences.
- Retreat: Resolving issues using the client’s Support Community in a real-world scenario.
- Data Analysis: SGA collected video recordings, notes, and screenshots from the missions and analyzed them along with the qualitative data to extract insights into user behaviors and platform challenges.
ENGAGEMENT
The study explored the following themes:
- Understanding barriers to participation for learners and lurkers.
- Identifying usability challenges that hinder user engagement.
BENEFITS & OUTCOMES
SGA delivered actionable insights that helped the client in:
- Identifying key engagement barriers and user pain points.
- Benchmarking their platform against competitive social networks with higher activity levels.
- Recommending trust and safety measures to empower new users and ensure a positive onboarding experience.
- Improving platform usability to foster participation among users.
KEY TAKEAWAYS
- User Personas and Journey Insights: Identified unique engagement barriers faced by specific user types such as learners and lurkers, enabling a more tailored approach to address their needs.
- Actionable Insights for Community Growth: Provided data-driven recommendations to drive participation, reduce churn, and enhance the overall user experience on the platform.
- Empowering New Users: Suggested strategies to build confidence and engagement among novice users by addressing trust and accessibility concerns.
- Platform Usability Enhancements: Highlighted key usability challenges, leading to actionable recommendations for a more seamless user experience.
