What is a desirability study?
A desirability study is a research method that helps researchers understand if users find a product or design appealing and emotionally engaging. Unlike usability testing that focuses on how easy something is to use, desirability studies dig into whether users actually want to use it.
Think of a desirability study as your product's first date with users. You want to know if there's a spark – that initial attraction that makes someone want to learn more. Just like dating, first impressions matter in product design. A desirability study reveals those crucial first impressions and emotional responses.
For example, when Apple designs a new iPhone, they don't just make sure it works well – they obsess over how it makes users feel when they first see it and hold it. That's desirability in action. Users might find a product perfectly functional, but if it doesn't appeal to them emotionally, they probably won't choose it over competitors.
These studies use specific techniques to uncover users' emotional responses, preferences, and the words they use to describe their feelings about a design. This emotional data helps teams create products that not only work well but also connect with users on a deeper level.
When to use a desirability study in research
You should run a desirability study at specific points in your product development cycle to get the most value. Here are the key moments when desirability testing makes the most sense:
- Early concept phase: When you have multiple design directions and need to understand which one resonates most with users. This early feedback helps teams avoid investing time in designs that users find unappealing.
- Before major redesigns: If you're planning to overhaul an existing product's look and feel, run a desirability study to understand what users like about the current design and what they want to see changed.
- Competitive analysis: When you need to understand how users perceive your design compared to competitors. This helps identify your product's emotional strengths and weaknesses in the market.
- Brand alignment: If you're creating a new product that needs to match your brand's emotional appeal, desirability studies help ensure the design hits the right emotional notes.
The best time to conduct these studies is before committing significant resources to development. Getting desirability wrong can be expensive to fix later, so it's worth investing in these studies early.
What is an example of desirability?
Let's look at an example of a desirability study in action. Imagine a financial app that helps users manage their investments. The development team has created three different visual designs for the dashboard:
- Version A: A minimal, clean interface with lots of white space and subtle colors
- Version B: A data-rich display with detailed graphs and bold colors
- Version C: A friendly, illustration-heavy design with casual language
In this desirability study, researchers show all three versions to participants and ask them to sort through a deck of adjective cards. These cards had words like "trustworthy," "professional," "approachable," and "complex."
The results reveal that while Version B impressed users with its detailed data display, it also felt overwhelming and stressful. Version A came across as professional but cold. Version C, despite its friendly approach, made users question the app's credibility for handling their money.
This feedback helps the team create a hybrid design that balanced professionalism with approachability – combining the clean layout of Version A with selected data visualizations from Version B, while using a more moderate amount of illustrations from Version C.
How to run a desirability test
Running an effective desirability test involves several key steps. Let's break down the process.
Preparation
Start by defining your objectives clearly. What specific emotional responses or preferences are you trying to understand? Create a test plan that outlines your methods, participant criteria, and the designs you'll test.
Select or create your stimulus materials – these might be mockups, prototypes, or competing products. Prepare your research materials, including adjective cards if you're using the Microsoft Reaction Card method, or create your interview guide.
Participant recruitment
Find participants who match your target user profile. For desirability studies, aim for 15-20 participants to get reliable patterns in emotional responses. Make sure participants haven't been heavily exposed to your product before, as you want genuine first impressions.
Running the session
Begin with a warm-up to make participants comfortable sharing emotional responses. Show them your designs in a consistent order, or randomize the order to prevent sequence bias.
Ask open-ended questions about their first impressions: "What's the first thing that comes to mind when you see this?" "How does this make you feel?" "What kind of person do you think would use this?"
If using reaction cards, ask participants to select cards that best describe their reaction to each design. Have them explain their choices to understand the reasoning behind their emotional responses.
Data collection and analysis
Record both what participants say and how they say it. Pay attention to facial expressions, tone of voice, and body language – these often reveal emotional responses that words might not capture.
Look for patterns in the adjectives chosen and the stories participants tell about the designs. Group similar emotional responses together and note any surprising or conflicting reactions.
Reporting results
Create a report that balances qualitative insights with quantitative patterns. Include direct quotes that capture emotional responses vividly. Present clear recommendations for design changes based on the emotional feedback received.
Types of desirability studies
Different types of desirability studies serve various research needs. Here are the main approaches:
Microsoft Reaction Card Method
This popular method uses a set of 118 words (both positive and negative) that participants select to describe their reactions to a design. It's structured and provides both qualitative and quantitative data.
Photo elicitation interviews
Participants respond to different design versions while researchers probe deeper into their emotional reactions. This method is particularly good at uncovering cultural and personal associations with design elements.
Semantic differential scales
Users rate designs on opposing pairs of emotional attributes (like "formal-casual" or "exciting-boring"). This method is great for comparing multiple designs quantitatively.
Brand personality studies
These focus specifically on how well a design matches desired brand attributes. They're particularly useful when emotional alignment with brand values is crucial.
Wrapping it up
Remember, desirability studies are just one tool in the UX research toolkit. They work best when combined with other methods like usability testing and user interviews to create products that are both appealing and functional. The key is knowing when emotional response data will help make better design decisions.
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)
What is the desirability testing method?
The desirability testing method is a structured approach to evaluating users' emotional responses to designs. It combines techniques from psychology and market research to measure how appealing users find a product.
The method typically uses one or more specific techniques: card sorting with emotional attributes, comparative rating scales, or in-depth interviews about emotional responses. The goal is to gather both qualitative insights about why users feel certain ways and quantitative data about the strength of those feelings.
What is desirability assessment?
A desirability assessment evaluates how well a product meets users' emotional and aesthetic preferences. It looks at factors like visual appeal, brand alignment, and emotional engagement.
The assessment usually produces both qualitative insights (specific feedback about design elements) and quantitative metrics (like the percentage of users who find a design "trustworthy" or "innovative"). These metrics help teams track how design changes affect emotional responses over time.
This systematic approach helps teams make design decisions based on user preferences rather than just internal opinions or assumptions. It's particularly valuable when emotional connection with users is crucial to product success.