pm/user-research

Start by listing all user types, then select 2-3 primary personas to analyze deeply. Document basic traits, behavior patterns, psychology, core needs, and pain-point scenarios, giving each persona a name and story. Validate against real user data or competitor research rather than guessing.

Define the core task, split it into stages like discovery, first use, and retention, then record behavior, thoughts, touchpoints, and pain points per stage. Score user emotion from 1 to 5 at each stage and plot the curve to find low points to fix and peak moments to design.

Two to three personas are enough for most products. Designate one primary persona whose needs take priority, secondary personas served when they do not conflict, and edge personas used to test robustness. Too many personas dilute focus and make prioritization impossible.

Common mistakes include personas with only demographics and no behavioral or psychological detail, creating too many personas, inventing attributes without data support, and treating personas as one-time deliverables. Personas should be updated continuously as real user understanding grows.

User research should happen before product design and PRD writing, when the team needs to clarify target users, understand behavior and context, or design experience flows. Its outputs typically become the target users chapter of the PRD.