Discovery process

Quantitative research | Survey

Held in 2024 for ident, an online dentistry course platform.

My role was conducting the end-to-end research process, from planning to recommendations.

Context

Qualitative research carried out previously, such as brand perception and persona research, provided relevant insights into users’ views and needs;
Based on these results, it was recommended that this research be carried out to quantitatively validate the hypotheses.

The problem

Ident is a pioneering and innovative product, the first of its kind. At the time of the research, the platform was well rated both in NPS and in app stores, but it still faced a high churn rate (9.1).
- The biggest reasons for cancellation were lack of time, financial limitations and lack of interest.

Objectives

Quantitatively understand which problems hurt users the most;
Find out what new features and improvements users want;
Be more assertive in the product path, targeting the users’ needs;
Focus on solutions and improvements that impact users and help them in their daily lives,

The macro goal was to make the platform indispensable, increasing retention and reducing churn.

Results

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Increase in practical classes (hands-on), meeting user demand, with courses reaching +5000 students, with an average rating of 4.9/5.
I conducted qualitative research that guided 3 innovations generated based on the results of this research:
- Marketplace of in-person courses, meeting the demand for clinical practice;
- New search tool praised by users in subsequent searches;
- AI that answers questions and provides guidance on procedures in real time, meeting the need for rapid content consumption.

The innovations, aligned with users' needs and requests, neutralize the reasons for cancellation. The impacts were increased loyalty and a 29% reduction in churn.

Read on to see the process and insights!

Methodology

Research model

The research model was quantitative, conducted through a survey.
- Chosen to quantitatively validate hypotheses generated from previous qualitative research.

Sample

All audiences, regardless of subscription status and persona;

Defined with the purpose of reaching the entire user base, to achieve the research objectives.

Process steps

Questionnaire development;
Data collection;
Analysis of quantitative data;
Report production and presentation.

Process

Questionnaire development

First, I will talk about how I constructed the research questionnaire:

I divided the survey into three questions based on the objectives: mapping difficulties, desired features and suggested improvements.
Each question had 10 options, plus a field for “other.” I used hypotheses from qualitative research to develop these options.

Selection of 1 to 5 options was allowed in the questions, allowing for a variety of suggestions while maintaining a sense of priority. This allowed for a broader understanding of the retention strategy.

Data Collection

The survey was emailed with a link to the Typeform survey, which tracked respondents;
- This tracking extracted data from the user database, such as persona.

Quantitative data analysis

I performed two analyses using Google Sheets, segmented by persona:

The first considered the theme of each question, that is, difficulties, functionalities and improvements.
In addition, there was an analysis by categories of needs addressed in the research.

These needs covered several themes (challenges, resources, and improvements). For example, the need for supplementary materials in different formats included three resources, two challenges, and one improvement.

This methodology allowed for in-depth analysis, finding patterns and generating insights to enable a strategic vision and facilitate the prioritization of actions, focusing on the objective of reducing churn.

Report production and presentation

I documented user trends and priorities, showing insights and recommendations for the product.

I highlighted the expected results of the actions taken based on this research, which included, for example, a reduction in the churn rate.

I created bar charts to visually present the analysis in both the report and presentation:

In the reports, I provided a detailed analysis using these charts, comparing the personas to understand their patterns and trends, highlighting their differences and similarities;
In the presentation, the data was shown objectively, focusing on the most relevant topics and recommendations.

Chart of the learning and skill improvement category, comparing clinicians and recent graduates with experts. Due to confidentiality, I cannot display the option titles or the number of respondents.

Click this link to open the image in its original size.

Challenges & learnings

There was difficulty in obtaining responses to the survey and three email blasts were needed to reach the required quantity;
It was a great experience working together with a member of the CX team to analyze the data, his vision and experience enriched the analysis process;
I gained a better understanding of user patterns and needs, which helped me look at the churn problem more strategically.

Insights

I’ve shared the process, the challenges and the lessons learned. It’s time to reveal the main insights that this research provided!

The main difficulties reported were learning and improving techniques, lack of time and, in the case of less experienced professionals, insecurity when carrying out procedures;
The main desired features were quick search for questions, complementary materials and a step-by-step guide to techniques;
The main suggested improvements were more practical content (hands on), a list of recommended scientific articles and improved search;
Several relevant topics relate to clinical practice and access to information and solving doubts.

Conclusion

The research provided valuable insights and is being used as supporting material to prioritize new features and improvements to the platform.
Recommendations were made based on the results, here are some:
- Creating a quick way to consume content and answer questions;
- Production of more practical content (hands-on);
- Sale of in-person courses directly on the platform;
- Improved search tool;
- Inclusion of complementary materials such as handouts and simulations.
It was also recommended to carry out qualitative research to delve deeper into points and manage expectations of the actions mentioned above.
Innovations will be prioritized and developed based on research, seeking to increase user interest in the platform, increase frequency and duration of use, and improve the perception of value. These factors are associated with reasons for cancellation, making this strategy increase retention.

Julia Abreu

| UX Researcher