DISCUSSION FORUMS (INTERNET)

(tool)

Brief description

Use discussion forums to create discussions and get feedback from users about: the problem you want to solve, the experience you are trying to create or directly from your solution by interacting with a prototype or concept. These can be WhatsApp or Facebook groups, LinkedIn, or specialized forum pages.

Step

Prototype Improvement

Input

Problems, experiences or solutions that can benefit from user comments

Output

Comments and lessons learned

Forums with target users

Time

Preparation, medium

Execution, 1 hour to days

Analysis, high

Difficulty

3/5

People

6-25 (participants giving feedback)

2-4 (coordinators of the experiment)

Quick Guide

Determine the issue you are trying to learn more about your concept or solution (type of pain, solve pain, opportunity, functionality).
Determine how the user will interact with your solution or concept (physically or visually with a prototype).
Create a list of questions or actions to be performed by users to obtain information according to the topic.
Determine who your target users are for the forum.
Select the discussion forum to use, if it already exists or you will create a new one (Facebook groups, WhatsApp or specialized pages).
Submit or present the prototype or concept, if applicable.
Make a post with instructions, making it clear what action you want users to take or reply to (interact with a prototype, respond, etc.).
Determine a time for users to leave their messages.
Analyze the answers by looking for patterns and blocks of themes in them.

Benefits

It allows you to reinforce learning and resolve doubts or concerns in an accessible way.
It helps you find patterns of opportunities by matching messages, responses and user opinions.
It allows you to connect and get feedback from users regardless of geographic location.
Improves communication with users by allowing them to express themselves freely.

Helpful Tips

The forum can be guided by a moderator or administrator, who promotes the participation of all participants.
Promotes interaction among users, invites them to respond to other messages previously left by other users.
Encourage participants to use short videos or photos depending on the action to be taken.