Case 05 · UX Research
CH.3 · New B2B business research → launchSmart-Apartment IoT Usability Research
As UX researcher, from study design to shipped fixes
As the UX researcher, designed, ran and analyzed usability research at three smart-apartment complexes, then fixed the hurdles it found — raising SmartThings adoption.
Context · Problem
We had to verify how SmartThings, built into smart apartments, is really used in daily life — and find and fix the causes of low adoption.
Three complexes
Studied residents of Raemian Leaders One, Songdo The Sharp Triple Tower and Hyochang Park Prugio with the same procedure.
Low adoption
Even with SmartThings built in, few households actually connected and used it.
Real use
We needed to see real moments of use at home that a survey alone can't reveal.
Role · Approach
As UX researcher — design, operation, analysis and fixes, hands-on
Role: UX researcher and research lead (design, operation, analysis); derived and applied improvements
- 01
Research design
Set the study goals and participants, and designed every research tool — recruitment notice, screener and quotas, study guide, survey, focus-group guide and home-visit guide.
- 02
Pilot → second study
Validated the method with a first pilot, then improved it and added usability researchers for a second usability study.
- 03
Running three sites
With research agency Ipsos Korea, ran the same procedure at three complexes, from recruitment to home visits.
- 04
Analysis and fixes
Analyzed quantitative and qualitative results into insights, derived improvements and applied them to the product.
Key Design · Research design
1st pilot → 2nd usability study — six-step mixed methods
- 1
Designed from recruitment
Recruited via a management-office-approved notice, screener and quotas.
- 2
Let them really use it
Five tasks over three days after sign-up — control, alerts, modes, automation, family invites.
- 3
Survey → FGD → visits
Selected from the survey (~30 homes per site) into focus groups (2 × 4 homes), then home visits.
- 4
A repeatable process
Established it as a repeatable research process that works the same way at all three complexes.
Key Design · Insight → improvement
Turning the hurdles we found into improvements
- 1
Simpler linking, applied
Simplified linking and onboarding, the biggest hurdle.
- 2
Preset modes and automation, applied
For modes and automation that people couldn't picture using, offered favorite presets such as power ventilation, away mode and fine-dust automation.
- 3
More improvements derived
Derived family sharing and member settings, alerts on by default, room- and home-level lighting groups, and a restructured home screen.
- 4
Community-facility alerts
Residents also wanted alerts from community facilities such as the gym and pool.
Impact
- 8% → 12%SmartThings adoption
- 40–50% → 80–90%Adoption at complexes without their own app
- Applied improvements such as preset-based modes and automation and simpler linking
- SmartThings adoption rose from 8% to 12%, and from 40–50% to 80–90% at complexes without their own app
- Established a repeatable research process that applies the same way to all three complexes
- SmartThings smart apartments, first applied at Raemian Leaders One in 2020.11, passed 100,000 households by 2022.10 (112 complexes from 18 builders)