Interactions - January/February 2010

that seems to be the case in Dan
Formosa’s article as well, which
focuses specifically on design
research vis-à-vis market research.
Although I would agree the two are
far from interchangeable, I do claim
they are complementary and their
ground rules are not as different as
Formosa would have us think. They
are both built on scientific method
and thus should comply with
principles and requirements related
to data collection and analysis.
Understanding “independence
of events” and “levels of
measurement” is no different for a
design researcher than for a market
researcher, as Formosa seems to
argue (although I admit to having
a difficult time understanding
the coin-toss metaphor, as it
supposedly relates to different
underlying statistical principles
of design research and market
research). It is also simply not true
that market research focuses only
on evaluating a product after it is
finalized, whereas design research
focuses only on evaluating a
product before it is finalized.
There is no doubt that Formosa
has been exposed to a lot of bad
market research in his career.
Photograph by Claudia Betia / claudia@flickr
So have I. But I have also been
exposed to a lot of bad design
research, whether dealing with
qualitative data or quantitative
data. I cringe at both. And while we
should point out when the emperor
has no clothes in our daily work
situations, it is not the bad research
that defines a discipline. I have
been exposed to both good market
research and good design research
as well and, more important,
some of the most compelling and
impactful research combined
different research techniques for a
more comprehensive and insightful
outcome. That, I suppose, leads me
to my conclusion.
First, as professionals who rely
on research insights, we must take
responsibility for shaping the quality
and usefulness of the research
outcomes. Step out of the victim
role and demand representation
if you don’t have it, or proactively
define your research needs with
your research teams (Formosa lists
some do’s and dont’s to be aware
of; hopefully your research team is
no stranger to such considerations).
Better yet, show that you
understand the research process
and that you understand how to
make informed decisions based on
a range of data—both qualitative
and quantitative.
Second, find ways to bring your
research teams closer together.
For example, have you considered
merging your market research
team with your design research
team to actively seek to leverage
the different perspectives and
skills for the better of the whole?
Formosa refers to “failed attempts”
of bridging the gap, and while it
is certainly possible to point to
examples of such, I have seen
only very few attempts of close
collaboration based on a shared
understanding of underlying
principles as well as respect for
differences in research needs.
One such example is the research
organization and practice at Yahoo
that actively seeks to leverage the
perspectives and competencies
of both disciplines for a better
combined outcome.
Third, create opportunities for
your product marketing and design
teams to improve collaboration
on product strategy, planning,
positioning, and innovation.
Marketing and design have more
in common than we seem to
acknowledge today. It is time
to define where and how that
overlap—which, in my mind, is
complementary—can lead to
more positive outcomes. Surely,
it would not hurt many design
professionals to better understand
market analyses, ROI, NPV, and
customer value analyses, just as
it would benefit many marketing
professionals to better understand
persuasive design, affordances,
and the role of design in user
behavior. Cringing at examples of
poor practices and stereotyping
other disciplines will not move
either of them forward.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR Klaus Kaasgaard is the executive director of customer experience at Telstra in Sydney, Australia. He leads the user experience design team responsible for bringing to life the company vision of “ 1 click, 1 touch” simplicity. Before joining Telstra in April 2009, Kaasgaard held the position of Vice President, Customer Insights, at Yahoo! where he was responsible for user experience and market research across the business. He spent more than six years at Yahoo! in a range of roles including Vice President, User Experience Design, and Director, User Experience Research. Prior to this, he held user research roles at MSN Hotmail and KMD in Copenhagen, Denmark. Klaus has a Ph.D. in sociology of technology from Aalborg University in Denmark and an M.A. in human-computer interaction and philosophy from Aalborg University and Aarhus University, Denmark.