Portfolio: Constant Contact — Customer research

Constant Contact offers email marketing and survey tools to help small businesses and organizations stay in touch with their customers, clients and members.

The User Experience group wanted to learn more about their customers: how they currently use the products and what they might need in the future. I helped develop and implement a great program of customer research, interviewing people about a wide variety of topics. I also helped write design specifications in their agile environment based on what we learned in the interviews.

Highlights of the research

A detailed, but loose, interview script ensured that we'd cover all of the important points, but allow the customer to direct the conversation.

Careful recruiting ensured that we'd have a good cross-section of customers.

In one project, we developed a survey along with the research. Interviews gave us deep information from a small group, while surveys gave us a little less detail, but from many more people.

We included Product Owners in the customer visits so they'd have first-hand knowledge of the interviews. There's nothing like hearing customers speak directly, and being able to ask them follow-up questions.

From a marketing consultant to a day spa owner, the interviewees had so many different ways to use email marketing that every interview was really fascinating and very informative.

The interview series each ended with a presentation to management, so that everyone could apply the knowledge gained.

It was a very successful program.