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Requirement Analysis with KANO

When is this method appropriate?

One needs this kind of analysis if the customers’ needs and requirements should be differentiated researched and to fulfil them pointedly and resources adequately. With the help of the Kano-Analysis user-requirements can be divided into three categories:

Base requirement: What is already today expected from a potential customer or user and have to be implicitly offered on the website?
Performance factor: What should be offered with a view to the competitors?
Joy of use factor: By what can customers/users be delighted?

Possible questions:

In what contents, functions and services of your website should you invest resources (financial, temporal, personal)?
What does the users expect from your website?
What is already strictly presumed referring to contents, functions and services of the users?
What counts to the strict spectrum of expectations from the users’ perspective with the view to the competitors? What are the performance factors?
What functions, features have not been presumed, yet, but could contribute to increase the satisfaction of the customers?
Are there elements on the website which can be neglected (indifferent factors) or which elements could be resigned (reverse factors)?
How could the planned functions on the website be prioritised (referring to point of time and effort)?

And many more…

In what project phase applicable?

Analysis
The first step is the ascertainment of requirements and expectations of the user for a resource-optimised definition or specification of a new concept for an already existing website. Besides revision on an existing website requirements and expectations of a completely new website can be ascertained.
Live Activity/Usage
During the usage one can check whether the website meets the customers’ or users’ requirements. If the base requirements are neglected, a strong dissatisfaction of the user threaten to arises.
By fulfilling the performance requirements one can specifically differentiate from the competition. And by offering joy of use factors the satisfaction of the customers can disproportional increase.

What is the procedure of this method?

A Kano-analysis can be realised by an onsite survey or by a panel survey of our own online-access-panel. The interesting performance components (contents, functions, services) are comprehensively described and clarified with aid of multimedia resources.

With the help of an optimised Kano-simplescale a categorisation into base factors, performance factors and joy of use factors can be made.

Furthermore indifferent performance features can be identified. Its fulfilling has no influence on the level of satisfaction of the user. On rare occasions reverse factors, which should not be offered on account to evoke dissatisfaction, can be identified.

The result is a roadmap that shows a resource-protecting allocation of the available resources (prioritisation). The results can be displayed for all users as well as for more precisely defined subgroups.

If an online-survey of test subjects via email or internet is impossible, then additionally focus groups put themselves forward to gain detailed information about the requirements of your target-group(s).

Strengths of this method:

An improved comprehension of customer wishes.
Enables a differentiated analysis of the spectrum of expectations.
The Kano-analysis gives information about conclusively essential need for action – for instance offering base factors and avoiding reverse factors.
The analysis enables a pointedly application of resources to increase the fascination of the users and therefore creates safeness of investments.
By an iterating application, or rather, a continual survey a possible change of joy, performance or base factors is shown.
Segment specific analysis can be implemented.

What about the sample size?

To get reliable results for sub-groups a preferably big sample should be interviewed. To measure significant differences between the sub-groups 200 tests subjects for each test group and website should be aimed-at.

How much time takes the implementation?

For a representative sample the onsite survey (that means a direct survey on the website) should be online for one week. So the likelihood increases that people who are online less frequent attend at this survey.

By recruiting attendees of our online-access-panel (panel survey) bigger samples are possible within a few days.

Postulate a one-week field phase the complete project takes about 3 to 4 weeks.

What input do you have to provide?

Experience has shown that it is very useful to weight and to concrete the evaluating performance features and questions together with you. We would like to help you with this task within a workshop in your premises on the spot or via a conference call.

What do you receive from us?

Offered services at a glance:

Conception and creation of the online Kano-questionnaire, or rather, consulting for the questionnaire creation
Designing the flash-layer or buttons/banner for quarrying of survey-attendees (for an onsite-survey)
Programming of the online Kano-questionnaire (incl. integration of pictures, audio and video files)
Online reporting: Possibility to have a look at the to date ascertained data during the current study
Implementation of the Kano-analysis and data analysis
Interpretive chart report with the following content:
- Management summary
- Detailed illustration of the results based on survey-data (tabular/graphical preparation)
- Identification and description of the base factors, performance factors and joy factors
- Data interpretation: Identification of the reasons and causes for the ascertained data
- Creation of a roadmap for the pointed application of the available resources
- Concrete guidance and advices for optimisation