Contrary to popular belief, users do not always know what they want and they can't always recognize what they want when they see it.
Contrary to popular belief, usability testing and statistical analysis of user behavior have nothing to do with giving people what they ask for, and everything to do with giving people what they actually really want (even if they don't know it) ;-)
Usability testing and A/B testing are not about asking people. They are about observing people, about looking at what they actually do. There is absolutely no contradiction between telling people what they really want, and doing usability research. In fact, if you're going to do something crazy that has never been done before, you better do the research and make sure people can actually use it.
by Lukas Mathis — Oct 20
Contrary to popular belief, usability testing and statistical analysis of user behavior have nothing to do with giving people what they ask for, and everything to do with giving people what they actually really want (even if they don't know it) ;-)
Usability testing and A/B testing are not about asking people. They are about observing people, about looking at what they actually do. There is absolutely no contradiction between telling people what they really want, and doing usability research. In fact, if you're going to do something crazy that has never been done before, you better do the research and make sure people can actually use it.