01.3 · Capability in Discovery

Problem identification

Pinning down what the problem actually is, how much it hurts, and what causes it. A clearly stated problem is half of a good solution.

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01.3.1Pain pointsThe specific moments where users struggle, waste time or give up.
01.3.2Unmet needsThings people need that no current solution handles well.
01.3.3Root-cause analysisTracing a symptom back to the underlying cause before solving it.
01.3.4Problem statementsA short, precise description of who has the problem and why it matters.
01.3.5Problem severity and frequencyJudging how badly and how often a problem hurts.

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Where to start

3 resources

articleStart here
Problem statements in UX discovery ↗
NN/g · 2021 · 8 min
What a good problem statement contains and why a discovery effort should have exactly one.
articleStart here
Five whys ↗
Wikipedia · 9 min
The technique, its origin at Toyota, and the honest criticism of where it falls short.
articleGo deeper
Opportunity solution trees: visualize your discovery ↗
Teresa Torres (Product Talk) · 2023 · 25 min
Connects an outcome to the user needs and pain points behind it, then to solutions and the tests that check them.

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Tools for this topic are being researched.