97 Things Every UX Practitioner Should Know

Chapter 97. Tell the User’s Story via Effective Research Reports

Susan Mercer

The goal of the research report is twofold: it should describe what you learned and what you recommend doing next. For usability studies, it should also clearly document what was tested, as that can help document why the team made certain design decisions.

To influence design decisions, you must communicate your findings clearly. Speak directly to your business stakeholders, product managers, designers, data analysts, and engineers. Avoid UX jargon, use clear business language, and speak to their interests. You never know where a report will land later, so explain the details as if the reader has no idea what the study was about.

Pick a format that your organization will most likely read and reference. A slide deck is the norm for many companies; others use wiki pages or formal written documents.

Organize your report to tell a story of your research. The following sections work quite well.

Background

Provide the background that led to the research. This might be a finding from your site analytics that you want to better understand, or a big question that the team wants to investigate.

Goals

Concisely outline the goals for the research study in three or four bullet points. This provides context to your audience to help them understand the study approach.

Executive Summary

Provide a short, scannable ...