Customer experience research that uncovers what people actually need

Stop guessing what customers want. Get ethical, rigorous research that reveals real needs, validates ideas, and prevents expensive mistakes.

You're making decisions based on assumptions, not evidence

Everyone has opinions about what customers want. Sales says they need feature X. Marketing insists on messaging Y. The executive team remembers feedback from three customers who shouted loudest. Meanwhile, your actual users struggle with basic tasks nobody's paying attention to.

Customer experience research fixes this. It replaces assumptions with evidence. Instead of building what you think people want, you discover what they actually need, why they struggle, and what would genuinely make their experience better.

We conduct ethical, inclusive research with your customers, users, patients, or citizens - then translate insights into clear recommendations your team can act on. No research theatre. No endless reports. Just practical insight that drives better decisions.

The outcome: Confident decisions backed by real customer evidence. Features that people actually use. Experiences that reduce friction instead of adding it. Lower support costs and higher satisfaction scores.

Why customer experience matters

Customer experience isn't fluffy marketing speak. It's the difference between customers who stay and customers who churn. Between referrals and complaints. Between efficient operations and expensive firefighting.

Organisations with superior CX grow revenue 4-8% faster than competitors, according to research. They also spend less on acquisition and support because satisfied customers stick around and solve their own problems.

But CX improvement requires understanding the current experience first. You need to know where friction exists, why people struggle, what delights them, and what makes them consider alternatives. That requires research, not assumptions.

How we approach customer experience

Research Planning: We start by understanding what decisions you need to make and what questions you need answered. This shapes the research approach - we choose methods based on your needs, not what's trendy.

Ethical Recruitment: We recruit diverse participants who represent your actual customer base. Inclusive recruitment practices ensure we hear from people with disabilities, different backgrounds, and varying levels of digital literacy.

Data Collection: We use depth interviews, usability testing, diary studies, surveys, contextual observation, or prototype testing depending on what you need to learn. All research follows strict ethical guidelines with informed consent and fair compensation.

Analysis & Synthesis: We identify patterns, pain points, unmet needs, and opportunities. The goal isn't to produce mountains of data - it's to extract actionable insights that inform strategy and design decisions.

Recommendations: We translate insights into specific recommendations with priority levels and expected impact. Every recommendation ties back to customer evidence so decisions are defensible.

Implementation Support: Through our service design and delivery leadership services, we can help you actually ship the improvements, not just document them.

Research methods we use

Depth Interviews

One-on-one conversations to understand motivations, pain points, and context. Ideal for complex topics or sensitive subjects.

Usability Testing

Watch people use your product or service to identify where they struggle, get confused, or make errors.

Diary Studies

Participants record experiences over time to reveal patterns, context, and changes in behavior or sentiment.

Surveys

Quantify attitudes, behaviors, and preferences across larger samples. Best combined with qualitative methods.

Contextual Inquiry

Observe and interview people in their natural environment to understand workflow, constraints, and workarounds.

Prototype Testing

Validate concepts and designs before building them. Prevents expensive mistakes and reveals usability issues early.

Real customer experience outcomes

Retail

Checkout abandonment research

An online retailer had 68% cart abandonment. They assumed it was pricing or shipping costs. Analytics showed where people dropped off but not why.

We conducted usability testing and follow-up interviews with people who abandoned. The real issue: confusing delivery options, unclear payment security, and mandatory account creation. We redesigned the checkout flow based on insights.

-32%Abandonment rate

+6%Conversion increase

Healthcare

Patient portal accessibility research

An NHS trust launched a patient portal with low adoption, especially among older patients and those with disabilities. The trust assumed digital literacy was the barrier.

We conducted inclusive research with diverse patient groups including people with visual impairments, cognitive disabilities, and limited digital skills. We discovered fundamental accessibility issues and unclear value propositions - patients didn't understand why they should use it.

47Accessibility issues fixed

+134%Adoption increase

Our commitment to ethical research

Research is only valuable if it's conducted ethically and represents real user diversity. We follow strict principles:

Informed consent: Participants understand what they're taking part in, how data will be used, and can withdraw anytime.
Fair compensation: People are paid appropriately for their time and expertise.
Data protection: Personal information is protected, anonymised, and stored securely in compliance with GDPR.
Inclusive recruitment: We actively recruit diverse participants including people with disabilities, different ages, backgrounds, and digital literacy levels.
Accessible methods: Research sessions are adapted for participants with different access needs - BSL interpreters, accessible locations, flexible formats.
Respectful practice: We treat participants with dignity, avoid leading questions, and create safe spaces for honest feedback.

What we deliver

Research Findings: Clear documentation of what we learned, organised by themes, pain points, and opportunities. Evidence-backed insights, not opinions.

Customer Journey Maps: Visual representation of the end-to-end experience showing pain points, emotional highs and lows, and moments that matter most.

Personas & Segments: Detailed profiles of key customer types based on actual research, not stereotypes or assumptions.

Prioritised Recommendations: Specific improvements ranked by impact and effort. Every recommendation ties back to customer evidence and expected outcomes.

Usability Reports: Detailed findings from testing including severity ratings, user quotes, and suggested fixes for each issue identified.

Video Highlights: Clips showing real customers struggling or succeeding. Nothing convinces stakeholders like watching actual users.

Common CX challenges we solve

"We don't know why customers are churning": We conduct exit interviews and churn analysis to identify the real reasons people leave, then recommend retention strategies.

"Our NPS is low but we don't know why": We dig beneath the scores through qualitative research to find root causes, then prioritise improvements by impact.

"Support tickets are overwhelming us": We identify the top contact drivers through research, then recommend experience improvements that reduce unnecessary support needs.

"We want to validate a new feature before building it": We test concepts and prototypes with target users to confirm demand, usability, and willingness to pay before you invest in development.

"Our digital service isn't accessible enough": We conduct accessibility audits and inclusive research with disabled users to identify barriers and recommend compliant solutions.

Learn more about rapid validation through our Participation Studio service.

Customer experience packages

From rapid validation to comprehensive CX programs. Ethical research at every level.

Rapid Validation

£1,950

Quick research to validate ideas or understand specific problems. 5-8 participants, 1 week turnaround.

✓ 5-8 customer interviews or usability tests
✓ Key findings and recommendations
✓ Video highlights of critical moments
✓ 1-week from kickoff to delivery

Book validation

Customer experience questions answered

What is customer experience (CX) and why does it matter?

Customer experience is the sum of every interaction someone has with your organisation - from discovering you exist, to buying, using your product, getting support, and potentially churning. It matters because CX drives retention, referrals, and revenue. Companies with superior CX grow faster and retain customers longer than competitors.

How is CX different from UX?

UX (user experience) focuses on how people interact with your digital product or service. CX (customer experience) is broader - it includes UX plus every other touchpoint: marketing, sales, support, billing, physical locations, and more. Good CX requires both excellent UX and seamless coordination across all channels.

What research methods do you use?

We use depth interviews, usability testing, diary studies, surveys, contextual inquiry, prototype testing, and ethnographic observation. Methods are chosen based on what questions you need answered, not what's trendy or easy. We often combine multiple methods for richer insights.

How do you ensure research is ethical and inclusive?

We follow strict ethical guidelines: informed consent, data protection, fair compensation, accessible participation methods, and inclusive recruitment. We actively recruit diverse participants and adapt methods for people with disabilities, language barriers, or other access needs. All research complies with GDPR and accessibility regulations.

How quickly can you deliver insights?

For rapid validation, we can deliver initial insights within 1-2 weeks through focused interviews or usability testing with 5-8 participants. More comprehensive CX programs with multiple research methods and 15+ participants typically run 4-6 weeks depending on scope and recruitment needs.

Can you help improve our NPS or satisfaction scores?

Yes. We identify the root causes behind low scores through qualitative research with detractors and passives, then work with you to redesign experiences that address the real problems. We've helped clients improve NPS by 15-20 points through targeted CX improvements based on customer evidence.

Do you recruit participants or do we need to provide them?

We handle all recruitment using ethical practices and inclusive criteria. We can recruit from your existing customer base (with your permission) or source participants through professional networks and specialised recruitment partners. All participants are screened, consented, and fairly compensated.

What if we need accessibility testing?

We conduct inclusive research with disabled users including people with visual, hearing, motor, and cognitive impairments. We adapt methods, provide assistive technology, arrange BSL interpreters, and ensure research sessions are fully accessible. This reveals barriers that automated tools miss.

Can you validate ideas before we build them?

Absolutely. Prototype testing and concept validation are among our most valuable services. We test low-fidelity designs, mockups, or concepts with target users to confirm demand, usability, and willingness to pay before you invest in development. This prevents expensive mistakes and builds confidence in the direction.

Ready to understand your customers?

Tell us what you need to learn about your customers. We'll reply within one working day with a research plan.

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