Persona Discovery in 5 Countries (BR-AR-CO-GT-MX) – Online Survey

Yara Digital Solutions – Jan 2021

Context

The product: Ayra is a digital solution used by agricultural consultants to support the creation and planning of nutritional recommendations based on soil analysis. Already established in Brazil, the tool was in use in eight other Latin American countries.

The demand arose from the need to understand the views of users in other countries, providing input to guide international expansion.

Challenge

In each research sprint, I usually start with a retrospective of what has already been studied, to identify opportunities and align learnings.

On this occasion, the team identified the need to expand the vision to other markets (Mexico, Colombia, Guatemala and Argentina), in addition to Brazil.

The biggest challenge was:

Language barrier (facilitate workshops and interviews in Spanish).
Time zone logistics, reconciling stakeholders from Germany, Brazil and Central American countries.
User engagement: in some countries there was a lack of participants, which required adaptations.

Methodology

Online ethnographic research with field users.
Remote workshops to map journeys, frustrations, needs, and touchpoints using digital tools.
Quantitative complementation via online form in countries with low adherence (such as Argentina).
Cross-functional collaboration with PM, Devs, UX, and UI, using scope canvas in the kickoff meeting to align hypotheses and objectives.

Tools used: Figma, Tetra, Airtable, Records Voice App, WhatsApp, Mural, Jira and Confluence.

Process

Initial alignment with the product team → definition of hypotheses and objectives.
User testing in Brazil as a basis for replicating workshops in other countries.
Localization of research into Spanish, with support from the project team.
Conducting remote workshops in 4 countries (MX, CO, GT, AR).
Additional data collection via survey to fill participation gaps.

Results

Direct contact with 44 users in 5 countries. Identification of patterns of needs and recurring pains.

Creation of unified personas and journeys, centralizing the backlog in Brazil (where there was a greater number of users).

Final delivery in infographic format with personas, points of attention, and main needs, accessible to all units involved.