Person 1st Research

The problem with research is…

We dictate the terms on which research is done. We book in our sessions with participants…This time, for this length, this way…

But that doesn’t suit everyone. Qualitative research works really well with and for middle class… articulate… women. But less well for people who have disorganised lives. Or aren’t very good at talking. Or people who don’t live in accessible places, or for anyone really who isn’t whatever ‘normal’ is…

We want to make research work for everyone, or at least for as many people as possible, so we can get our clients closer to the diverse groups of people who buy their things, or use their services.

And so we developed the Person 1st approach.

It’s an approach that co-produces with participants the way that they do research.

We do an ‘establishing interview’ (often on the phone or via zoom) with a participant to get to know them and to describe what we want to get out of the research project. We then set about designing an approach with them that suits them and fits in with their life. They might send us voice notes about their experiences, or we might interview them at home. Or they might send us a bunch of videos and photos that we chat about together. The point is participants do the research in a way that suits both them and us, so we can get deeper insight which reflects their lives.

This means we can learn what we don’t know we don’t know: deeper, richer inadvertant insight rises to the top…

Which delivers amazing insight for our clients that really connects them to the people who matter: the people who buy their stuff and use their services…