Phenomenological Analysis
Studying experience as lived from the inside — what a moment feels like, what stands out, what is taken for granted — rather than as categorised from outside; the discipline behind good customer research.
An everyday example
Shadowing a customer through a checkout and noticing the hesitation your funnel data records as a 'drop-off'.
What it can cost you
Replacing lived experience with categories and surveys; missing what is obvious from the inside.
Warning signs
- My model of the user comes from data, not from watching one.
- I have categories and no moments.
One thing to do
Before deciding about people, spend time in their experience — observe, ask them to narrate, suspend your categories.
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