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| Criterion |  UX Research Usability Testing |  UX Research Card Sorting |  Growth A/B Testing |  Product Discovery Smoke Test |
|---|---|---|---|---|
Purposedifferent | When a product is built but people get stuck on tasks, usability testing shows the friction at concrete points. Observed use instead of self-report makes visible where orientation, understanding, or interaction breaks down. | 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. | 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. | 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. |
Complexitydifferent | Medium | Low | High | Low |
Timedifferent | 1-2 h je Session | 20-45 min | 1-4 Wochen | 1-5 Tage |
Participantsdifferent | Based on research question | Based on research question | 1-6 | Nutzertraffic |
Formatdifferent | Workshop + async | Workshop + async | Async | Async |
Outputdifferent | Usability Issues, Severity List, Recommendations | Content groups, Label set, IA hypotheses | Experiment results, Decision log, Learning summary | Interest Metrics, Conversion Signal, Learning Note |
Tagsno overlap | ValidationUXPrototype | Information architectureNavigationStructure | ExperimentsGrowthAnalyticsValidation | ValidationExperimentsDemandGrowth |