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| Criterion | ![]() Innovation Design Thinking | ![]() Product Discovery Outcome-Driven Innovation | ![]() UX Research Tree Testing | ![]() UX Research Card Sorting |
|---|---|---|---|---|
Purposedifferent | For complex user problems with an uncertain cause, the method connects observation, interpretation, and experiment into a learning cycle. It keeps the focus on real needs and avoids premature solution language. This produces robust decisions for product and service. | Outcome-Driven Innovation clarifies customer problems, solution opportunities, and evidence. It separates jobs, desired outcomes, importance, satisfaction, and opportunity, and captures results as desired outcome statements, an opportunity landscape, and segments by underserved needs. | When a navigation exists but search paths still fail, tree testing checks findability without visual distraction. The method shows whether labels, levels, and paths really lead to the intended destination. | 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. |
Complexitydifferent | High | High | Medium | Low |
Timedifferent | 1 Tag bis mehrere Wochen | Mehrere Wochen | 1-2 Tage | 20-45 min |
Participantsdifferent | 4-10 | 2-6 researchers plus sample | Based on research question | Based on research question |
Formatdifferent | Workshop | Workshop + async | Async | Workshop + async |
Outputdifferent | Problem Statement, Prototype, Test Learnings | Desired outcome statements, Opportunity landscape, Segmentation by underserved needs, Innovation hypotheses | Findability Metrics, Path Analysis, Revised IA | Content groups, Label set, IA hypotheses |
Tagsno overlap | InnovationPrototypeResearch | OutcomesInnovationResearchQuantitative | Information architectureNavigationFindability | Information architectureNavigationStructure |



