How to hire behavioural expertise
How to hire behavioural expertise
So you want to start integrating behavioural science into your team, workflow, or product roadmap?
That’s a smart move!
Understanding and influencing user behaviour with behavioural science at your side can drastically improve how people interact with your products, services and campaigns. And ultimately, how successful they are in the market.
But with various specialised roles within behavioural science, figuring out who you need can feel like a puzzle.
Let's simplify this and help you find the perfect fit for your team.
The three behavioural roles
1. Behavioural Scientist
What does a Behavioural Scientist do:
Behavioural Scientists are like the detectives of the human mind. They study why people do things, what they like, and how they make choices. They use specific methods, like surveys, study design or watching how people behave, to gather their information. Then, they analyse all the data they've collected to find patterns and answers.
When to hire a Behavioural Scientist:
You should think about hiring a Behavioural Scientist when you need to dig deep into understanding your users' needs and behaviours. If you're planning to launch a new product or feature and want to make sure it really fits what your users want, a Behavioural Scientist can provide those crucial insights. They are especially useful during the early stages of product development or service discovery when you’re still figuring out the big questions about your users and the wider context.
Key benefits of a Behavioural Scientist to your team:
Better Insights: They bring a level of understanding about your users that goes beyond general guesses or assumptions. This means you can create products that truly resonate with your audience.
Data-Driven Decisions: With a Behavioural Scientist on your team, your product decisions can be based on real data about how users think and act, rather than just hunches. This often leads to better results and happier users.
Reduced Risk: By knowing what your users really need and how they might react to different features, you can avoid costly mistakes and wasted effort.
Having a Behavioural Scientist as part of your team can transform the way you develop products, making sure that every feature is crafted with a clear understanding of your users. This not only saves time and money but also makes your product more likely to succeed in a competitive market.
2. Behavioural Designer
What does a Behavioural Designer do:
Behavioural Designers are the action-takers who use the insights gathered by Behavioural Scientists to solve real-world problems when behaviour change is the outcome. They design and implement strategies to influence people's behaviour in positive ways. For example, they might create a program to help people exercise more often or design an app feature that encourages users to save money. Their work is all about turning the 'why' of human behavior into the 'how' can we help influence and change it.
When to hire a Behavioural Designer:
You'll want to bring a Behavioural Designer into your team when you're looking to enhance the usability, reliability and impact of your products, services or campaigns. They are valuable when your goal is to improve specific interactions users have with your product, such as increasing sign-ups, boosting engagement, or ensuring that users follow through on important actions like completing a training module. But they are also valuable when you're ready to move from researching people’s behaviours to actively shaping and changing those behaviours through your products, campaigns or services. This means that some sectors benefit more from an Behavioural Designers, like health, finance, social and behaviour change and sustainability programmes.
Key benefits to your team:
Targeted Interventions: Behavioural Designers craft design interventions that directly address the specific behavioural challenges or opportunities you face. This means your strategies are tailor-made to influence user actions effectively.
Improved Experience: Behavioural Designers focus on making products and services easier and more delightful to use, which can significantly enhance the overall user experience.
Increased Effectiveness: By designing with an understanding of human behaviour, they ensure that your product not only meets the needs of users but also gently nudges them towards their desired behaviours, making your product more effective at achieving its goals and users theirs.
Ethical Influence: They are trained to influence behaviour responsibly and ethically, ensuring that the product encourages positive behavioural influence without manipulation.
Incorporating a Behavioural Designer into your team can lead to products and services that are not only more engaging and user-friendly but also more successful in guiding user behaviour in beneficial ways. This role is crucial for ensuring that every touchpoint within your product and those within the wider customer journey is optimised for positive interaction and meets the high standards of today's competitive market.
3. Behavioural Strategist
What does a Behavioural Strategist do:
Think of a Behavioural Strategist as the big-picture planner for your overall product, service or business strategy. They weaving together insights from research, design, and applied science to shape strategies that improve how products and services function. They look at the big picture, ensuring that every piece of the behavioural science puzzle fits perfectly to meet business goals. Their job is to understand the company’s vision and user needs and then develop a clear plan that uses behavioural principles to drive success.
When to hire a Behavioural Strategist:
It’s time to hire a Behavioural Strategist when your projects or initiatives require a coordinated effort across various disciplines—like marketing, product design, and customer service—to ensure all parts are working together seamlessly. They are invaluable when you’re setting up new projects that need a clear direction or when existing projects could benefit from a more unified approach to user behaviour. Looking to build a behavioural roadmap into your product, service or capabilities offering? Behavioural Strategists are who you want.
Key benefits to your team:
Cohesive Strategies: Behavioural Strategists help ensure that all efforts from different teams align with the overall business objectives and user expectations. This alignment helps prevent conflicts and duplicated efforts.
Enhanced Decision Making: With their high-level overview, they can provide insights that help your teams make better decisions about product development and marketing strategies.
Strategic Roadmaps: They map out a detailed guide showing how every part of your project will come together to meet your goals, making sure you know exactly what needs to be done.
Facilitate Collaboration: They ensure everyone is on the same page and understands how behavioural insights can drive better product development, service delivery and marketing strategies. They advice, train and up-skill your team, stakeholders and clients where needed.
Having a Behavioural Strategist on board can transform how your teams work together on projects, leading to more efficient and successful outcomes. They bridge the gap between knowing what needs to change in user behavior and actually making it happen on a large scale.
