Skip to content
dscout

The dscout Tip Sheet

A resource featuring advice and pro tips on how researchers can better use dscout.

Last updated 12-4-2018

Words by Ben Wiedmaier


Capturing a Moment


Moments-focused diary studies are a hallmark of remote contextual methodology. Getting started can feel overwhelming (or downright confusing), so here are two tips for leveraging dscout for your moments-based work.

Create a Prime or Trigger

When is the "right" moment to capture? That fundamental question should be addressed in an opening prime or trigger, something that focuses the scout on the mission's goals. An effective trigger is brief, clear, and actionable, and usually prefaced with "Show me". Here are some examples:

  • Show me moments when you're shopping for travel.
  • Capture moments when you're feeling productive.
  • Show moments when you use our app to get work done.

Ground Question Language in the Moment

Now that you have the scout's attention, ensure your questions are applicable to the variety of possibilities they'll experience by keeping your questions context-agnostic. In other words, keep their language open-ended enough to apply. Here are some examples:

  • Give this moment a name!
  • From 1[easy] to 10[hard], rate this moment.
  • In a selfie video, show us what's happening.

Each of these is worded flexibly enough to capture just about whatever moment a scout might throw your way. Focus on the key metrics and outcomes of import to your stakeholders and team–then focus the wording on a repeatable moment.

Add Tag Groups and Tags

Tags are a way to code, cull, and organize the contextual data collected by dscout. Tags live at the entry level, allowing for multiple tags (and tag groups) to be applied to any one entry. Once your tag list is populated, it's very easy to apply them to all of your entries.

Check out a GIF of how to use your tag lists here.

Navigate to any part's entry. On the lower-right, click Tags to open the tag editor and viewer. First, create the group by selecting New Tag Group and give it a name (which is editable). Second, add a tag to that group by clicking the + and, once again, providing a name. Finalize the tag by either clicking the check mark or keying the Enter/Return key.

Once you've applied the commensurate tags to the entry, click the right arrow or key the right arrow on your keyboard to move to the next entry and continue tagging.

Add Observers to Your Live Interviews

Stakeholders interested in watching your interview in real time? Need collaborators to help generate in-session questions? Training new researchers on your team? Use dscout Live's observers feature!

See how it works with this quick video.

Here’s how:

  • Step 1 — Add your observers’ emails to your project via the “Add Collaborators” button. Only collaborators on a project can be added as observers.
  • Step 2 — Select a Moderator from the dropdown list before starting your Live session. You’ll find the dropdown in the MANAGE tab of your Live mission.
  • Step 3 — Share the session link with your observers by clicking the ‘Copy Link” text, OR have them navigate to the Live mission and click “Join as Observer.”

    Scouts will only see the moderator during the Live call. Observers and the moderator can chat; there are separate chat windows for moderator-to-scout and moderator-to-observers conversations. Observers can create their own in-call clips and notes during the session separate from ones created by the moderator (all clips will populate in the same post-interview session dashboard, marked according to creator).

Ben has a doctorate in communication studies from Arizona State University, studying “nonverbal courtship signals”, a.k.a. flirting. No, he doesn’t have dating advice for you.

Subscribe To People Nerds

A weekly roundup of interviews, pro tips and original research designed for people who are interested in people

The Latest