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How are you supposed to conduct UX research with zero or limited access to users? Here are some workarounds to better understand pain points:

• Ask for reasons. There might be no good reason you can’t have access to users.
• Find colleagues who are closest to your customers. Befriend your customer success and sales teams. Since many products are subscription-based, these folks are tasked with maintaining customer relationships over time. They get your customers and their needs. Talk to these colleagues, shadow them, and listen in on customer calls.
• Do some homework. Dig in to analytics, CRM reports, and call center logs. Google Trends can help you find product-related search queries, too. Search logs, Jira backlogs, and support tickets. Study reviews, discussions, and comments. Map key themes and user sentiment on TrustPilot, AppStore, etc. Recruit users via UserTesting, Maze, UserInterviews, etc.
• Make a case for UX research. Sometimes stakeholders lack the time and resources to grant you access to users, or they’re working with privacy regulations, or they just don’t trust you. Explain that you’ll only need 5 users × 30 minutes once a month to get started, and that design without research is merely guesswork.

Check out the full post at Smashing Magazine.

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Wake up fam, a new Ocean Spray farmer character just dropped.

Johnny is the “straight-shooter” cousin to the endearing duo we know and love, and he features in 3 new spots for the brand’s “Just Add Cran” campaign.