Researching users and their needs

A product is only good if it works for the people who use it. Great designers find out what users really need.

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Users and stakeholders

The user is the person who will use the product. A client is the person who asks for it to be designed.
Stakeholders are everyone affected by a product, such as users, buyers, makers and neighbours.
A target market is the group of people a product is aimed at, such as 'teenagers who cycle to school'.

Primary and secondary research

Primary research is information you collect yourself: questionnaires, interviews, watching people use products (observation), taking measurements and testing existing products.
Secondary research is information other people have already collected: books, websites, reports and articles.
Quantitative data is numbers (for example, 18 of 25 people prefer blue). Qualitative data is opinions and descriptions.

Exploring for ideas

User-centred design means involving users at every stage: asking them, testing with them and listening to their feedback.
Product analysis means studying an existing product to learn from it, often using ACCESS FM.
Studying different cultures can show how people in other places live, cook, play and solve problems, giving fresh ideas.
Biomimicry means taking ideas from nature: Velcro was inspired by the hooked burrs of the burdock plant.
A mood board is a collection of images, colours and textures that sets the style for a design.
Worked example

Nadia is designing a lunch bag for Year 7 pupils. Suggest one piece of primary research and one piece of secondary research she could do.

  1. Primary research is collected by her, so she could ask Year 7 pupils to fill in a questionnaire about what they carry.
  2. Secondary research uses information others have gathered, so she could look online at the sizes of lunch boxes already sold.
  3. Using both gives a fuller picture.

Answer: Primary: a questionnaire of Year 7 pupils. Secondary: researching existing lunch bags online.

Key idea

Research the user's needs. Primary research is collected yourself (questionnaires, interviews, observation); secondary research comes from others (books, websites). User-centred design involves users all the way through.

Key words
Primary research
Information you collect yourself, such as questionnaires, interviews and observation.
Secondary research
Information already collected by other people, such as books, websites and reports.
User-centred design
Involving users and their needs at every stage of designing.
Product analysis
Investigating an existing product to learn how and why it was designed and made.
ACCESS FM
A checklist for specifications and product analysis: Aesthetics, Cost, Customer, Environment, Size, Safety, Function, Materials.
Biomimicry
Designing by copying ideas from nature, such as Velcro, which was inspired by plant burrs.

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Extra practice

2 more questions

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  1. Which one of these options is primary research?

    1. Watching people use a product
    2. Reading a website
    3. Reading a magazine review
    4. Looking at government statistics
    Show the answer

    Answer: Watching people use a product

    Primary research is first-hand.

  2. Which one of these options is secondary research?

    1. Reading a product review online
    2. Interviewing users
    3. Measuring users' hands
    4. Testing a model with users
    Show the answer

    Answer: Reading a product review online

    Secondary research already exists.

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Sources and references

Last updated 2 October 2026. Spotted a mistake? Tell us and we will fix it.

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