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¶ Diary Study
¶ What it is
A Diary Study usually consists of a (physical or digital) diary given to the customers where they capture their everyday actions, as well as their feelings and observations. It is conducted over a specific time (e.g., one week) and does not require the researcher's presence.
¶ Why it is useful
The Diary Study records habits and patterns in the customer's experience. You can get a realistic picture of the customer's everyday life by tracking how their experience evolves over time and in which context something happens.
¶ When to use it
Use the Diary Study approach to analyse repetitive actions and daily behaviours, things we ignore, or aspects customers might not recall during interview sessions. This tool could help with remote research and facilitate self-reflection before an in-depth interview.
¶ How is it done
- Establish the characteristics of your target customers and identify candidates who are willing to participate in the study over some time.
- Determine how the diary study is conducted and instruct the customers on that procedure:
- Point in time: Do they capture their experiences before, during, or after an action or problem? Does the time of day matter?
- Method: Do they audio or video record themselves? Do they reflect on the experience by speaking to the camera, writing a blog entry, …?
- Content: What should they focus on? Do they answer pre-determined questions or create an open, free-style report?
- Frequency: How often do they add entries to the diary? Daily, weekly, monthly, and every time they perform an action or encounter a problem?
¶ Do's & Don't
Do's
- You can use a screener to recruit your target customers.
- Provide a checklist and some examples to the participants of which data they are expected to return.
- Follow up with the participants during the study to ensure tasks are straightforward and the reports are on track.
- Keep participants motivated by assigning one mission at a time and letting them play with it.
- Regularly collect the inputs rather than receiving the whole diary at the end of the study. This way, you can keep up to date with the customers’ experience.
¶ Tools needed
- Diary checklist
- Recording device (e.g., camera, laptop, phone)
- Notebook for offline diary / mobile phone for a diary app