Contextual inquiry should be considered as one of the first and most important components of detailed user/customer research. The aim of a contextual inquiry interview session is to form a comprehensive understanding of how real customers use products in the context of their daily life.
Typically, participants are far more relaxed and anecdotal in their own, familiar surroundings. By studying people in a natural environment, observations can be made as to the context of use which may inform design decisions.
Contextual inquiry can also be used to validate existing designs by understanding how they perform in ‘the real world’ and not in a lab-based, manufactured environment.
EXAMPLE:
As illustrated on the previous page, contextual depth interviews were used in combination with an online survey to capture a wealth of data regarding a large pharmaceutical company’s intranet.