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| Criterion |  UX Research Card Sorting |  Innovation Lean Startup |  Product Discovery Smoke Test |  Growth A/B Testing |
|---|---|---|---|---|
Purposedifferent | When content only makes sense internally and users can't find the structure again, card sorting exposes their mental order. Terms, groups, and naming are then aligned with the target group's expectations. | For uncertain business assumptions, the method forces the idea into contact with real market reactions early. It separates wishful picture, assumption, and observable behavior, so that learning becomes faster than planning. This translates uncertainty into measurable insight. | When demand only needs to be roughly verified, it tests interest with minimal effort. It measures whether people would take a next step at all. | When two variants compete, discussions quickly decide by taste rather than effect. A/B Testing checks behavior under controlled conditions and separates real improvement from chance or expectation effects. |
Complexitydifferent | Low | Medium | Low | High |
Timedifferent | 20-45 min | Wochen bis Monate je Lernzyklus | 1-5 Tage | 1-4 Wochen |
Participantsdifferent | Based on research question | 2-8 | Nutzertraffic | 1-6 |
Formatdifferent | Workshop + async | Workshop + async | Async | Async |
Outputdifferent | Content groups, Label set, IA hypotheses | Hypothesis list, MVPs, Learning reports, Pivot or persevere decision | Interest Metrics, Conversion Signal, Learning Note | Experiment results, Decision log, Learning summary |
Tagsno overlap | Information architectureNavigationStructure | LeanStartupValidationMVP | ValidationExperimentsDemandGrowth | ExperimentsGrowthAnalyticsValidation |