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| Criterion |  Product Discovery Smoke Test |  UX Research Affinity Diagramming |  UX Research Empathy Mapping |  Product Discovery Assumption Mapping |
|---|---|---|---|---|
Purposedifferent | 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 research notes, feedback, or observations sit unconnected side by side, affinity diagramming sorts the raw material into solid themes. Many individual points turn into patterns that make decisions and opportunities clearer. | When a lot is assumed about a target group but little is seen jointly, empathy mapping makes knowledge and gaps directly comparable. The picture also shows which assumptions hold up and where evidence is missing. | When assumptions still sit unordered in the room, it weighs uncertainty against leverage. It makes visible which hypotheses should be checked first. |
Complexitydifferent | Low | Low | Low | Medium |
Timedifferent | 1-5 Tage | 45–90 min | 30–60 min | 45-60 min |
Participantsdifferent | Nutzertraffic | 3-10 | 4-8 | 2-8 |
Formatdifferent | Async | Workshop | Workshop | Workshop + async |
Outputdifferent | Interest Metrics, Conversion Signal, Learning Note | Theme clusters, Insight statements, Opportunity areas | Empathy Map, Assumptions List, Research Gaps | Assumption map, Test backlog, Risk ranking |
Tagsno overlap | ValidationExperimentsDemandGrowth | SynthesisQualitativeRoot cause | SynthesisQualitativeWorkshop | AssumptionsRiskExperimentsValidation |