User Research Academy’s Substack
The Ever-Green User Research Book
For the UXR who wants to pack a punch and get creative with your projects, the User Research Academy is the place that will give you new ideas, approaches, and inspiration without you having to spend hours Googling. I am dedicated to helping user researchers conduct research more creatively and confidently. Written by Nikki Anderson, the user researcher, blogger, podcaster, and founder of User Research Academy
EXPENSE IT 💰
Did you know that many employers will pay for my Substack?! So you can expense this entire newsletter from your learning and development budget and enjoy the perks of the paid content without having to give up any coffee/matcha/tea/soda/snack to make up for the spend.
In fact, I tried to make it as easy as possible with four different email templates that you can send to your manager to expense it — choose whichever feels the best for you:
What you get:
🔒 For paid subscribers:
Three articles or walk-throughs a month. Articles typically go deep into a topic relevant for user researchers with hugely actionable advice and insider examples, including case studies from my own work. Walk-throughs can include me walking you through a previous project I did with detail OR walking you through current work I am doing.
Two research round-ups a month. The five most creative, helpful, new, and informative user research-based articles, podcasts, events, books, and academic resources I've found on the internet with my comments.
Three podcast episodes a month. The Dear Nikki podcast is all about answering your personal questions to the best of my ability. You submit your questions, and I chat over potential solutions and approaches for thirty minutes.
No ads. No sponsored content, job ads, or other types of ads.
Suggest article and podcast topics for me to cover.
How much does it cost? £13/month or £143/year (or local currency equivalents).
🙌 For free subscribers:
You’ll get roughly a quarter of the content that paying subscribers get.
A monthly, full article that goes deep into a topic relevant for user researchers with hugely actionable advice and insider examples, including case studies from my own work
A monthly podcast episode answering common user research questions or inviting expert guests
Publishing schedule and holidays
User Research Academy publishes long-form pieces on three Wednesdays a month, three podcast episodes a month on Mondays, and a bi-weekly link round-up every other Thursday.
Expect to get 90 or more pieces of content in your inbox, every year.
Exceptions to this are holidays such as in the summer and winter. For 2024, you can expect breaks in content:
December 19th - January 6th
I appreciate your understanding and thank you for your ongoing support.
This schedule can be changed in case of unexpected events. Last updated September 12, 2024.
Gift subscriptions
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Usage guidelines & sharing content
One subscription is intended for one individual, and not for groups. See the ‘Group/company subscriptions’ on details for group subscriptions.
Occasional forwarding of newsletter issues internally is completely fine. If you do this regularly, please consider getting those people a subscription - or gifting them one!
Refunds
My business philosophy is that if you, as a customer, are not happy, then I’m not happy. I have a 30-day, no-questions-asked refund policy. Please email nikki@userresearchacademy.com for a full refund. I appreciate it if you can share the reason you were unhappy with the contents or purchase, but doing so is not necessary for a refund.
What people say about my content
I just wanted to say that it's really great what you do, and when I say that, it's for two main reasons. The first one is that you are really an expert in what you do. I have been doing UX research for some time now and believe I am quite good at it, but I still learn so much from you. The second reason is that you give so much concrete insight. It's real, tangible advice and examples that can really help someone get started and advance in the field while falling in love with UX Research.
“First, you are AMAZING! Thanks for the generosity you have in sharing so many good resources. I’ve been reading and following you for a while now, and you are my go-to in terms of research inspiration. All your content is not just a piece of info but so useful that one can take it back to a workplace and implement it!”
“After 6 years as a user researcher, I'm looking for my next opportunity and dusting up case studies and my resume. I've been using your articles on case studies and resume writing! This will now be a quarterly task I take on to ensure resume and work examples are ready to go! ‘If you stay ready, you don't have to get ready!’ sage advice! Thanks, Nikki, LOVE your content. It's nice to know I'm not alone in this expertise and also in this particular experience/moment in life.
YOU ROCK!”
“Thank you very much for your content. Every time I find all the articles so useful and insightful. And the most important thing is that you somehow manage to include all levels of UX researchers in your content. I hope that you will never stop writing them, as we really get a lot from it”
“Thank you so much for all your content, I really appreciate it, and I cannot tell you how much your templates, articles, and advice have helped me become a better and more confident UX Researcher.”
Hi there - I’m Nikki 👋🏻
If you got this far, you might want to know some stuff about me.
I once entered a bar as a normal graduate student and emerged as an aspiring user researcher.
I first heard about user research at an NYC bar party way back in 2015, the year we had the seemingly never-ended debate on whether that dress was #blackandblue or #whiteandgold and also the year Google changed its logo for the first time since 1999.
I’d love to say, since becoming a user researcher, I haven’t looked back, but there were quite a few times when I seriously considered quitting to be an interior decorator or open my own bookstore (which my husband still has to tell me is a financially irresponsible idea).
What gave me self-crippling doubt about user research?
I was so lonely as a UXR team of one that I practiced my presentations in front of the bathroom mirror at work rather than with colleagues.
My fingers nearly broke from the hours I spent googling “how to build a persona,” “what is an executive summary,” or “how to write insights that stakeholders will actually listen to and care about that will also get me promoted because all I do is work?” (The last one didn’t yield great results.)
Luckily something told me to keep on keeping on, and now people call me an “expert in the field” - someone once even called me a “legend.” I have written over 250 articles - I am attempting to wrangle them into a book, stay tuned - on user research, spoken at dozens of conferences, and upwards of fifty podcasts and events with super cool people and organizations such as UXPA, dscout, UXInsight, and Dovetail. I also spoke one-on-one with my idol, Indi Young, during a conference tech check, so I’m pretty thrilled.
The point is, I don’t want you to experience the crippling self-doubt and impostor syndrome I did. I’ve rallied hundreds of user researchers together, cheering them on and supernova-ing their careers so they are fulfilled in their careers and turning heads with their amazing research.
And that is what this blog is all about - giving you what you need to be the most confident UXR you can be and to fall in love with user research again.
