Challenge 2: How I scoped just-enough-research to the real conditions

When the ideal research process is not available, my job is to customize a framework that still tests our hypothesis fitting actual circumstances.

SEO data was a defensible starting point, showing user patterns at scale, while UX best practices gave us reasoning to move fast on micro-UX decisions. Informal usability tests with our parents were not a substitute for proper research, but they reliably surfaced friction that data and heuristics both miss. Each layer earned its place by testing a part of the hypothesis, building the judgment behind our final prototypes.

The key is knowing which framework fits which problem, reading the resources you have realistically, and speculating alternative methods to navigate a deliberate process.