Create a good report

Use this article to help you create a clear, actionable research report that highlights key insights, supports them with evidence, and provides recommendations.

This article applies to: UserTesting 

On this page:

• Key elements of a good report
• Report templates and structure
• Incorporating Atomic Research Principles
• Best practices

 

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Key elements of a good report

• Clear Structure: Organize findings logically so stakeholders can quickly grasp key takeaways.
• Concise Insights: Focus on high-impact insights rather than listing every detail.
• Support your points with Evidence: Easily add video clips, screenshots, charts, or summaries to reports to support your recommendations.
• Actionable Recommendations: Provide next steps that are based on research findings and are clearly actionable.
• Tailored for the Audience: Adjust depth and tone depending on whether the report is for executives, designers, product managers, etc.
  💡Note: Consider including an executive summary for quick insights.
• Defined research methodology: Clearly outline the research type, participant details, recruitment criteria, and tools used to provide context and ensure insight reliability.

 

 

Report templates and structure

Here are a few structured templates you can use: 

Executive summary report (For Stakeholders and Leadership)

• Title
• Objective of the Study
• Key Takeaways (3-5 bullet points)
• Top 3-5 Findings (with short explanations and evidence)
• Recommendations
• Next Steps & Action Items

 

Detailed research report (For UX and Product teams)

Introduction

• Background & Objectives
• Research Questions
• Methodology (e.g., unmoderated usability tests, surveys, etc.)

Key Findings

• Group insights into themes (e.g., usability, navigation, trust, engagement)
• Use direct quotes or clips to support findings
• Include quantitative data where applicable (e.g., success rates, charts, QX Score visualizations)

Pain Points & Opportunities

• What’s not working?
• Areas for improvement

Recommendations

• Prioritized based on impact
• Potential solutions or design changes

Appendices

• Full responses, session details, additional data
  

 

Quick feedback snapshot (For Agile teams)

• Study Goal
• Key Insights (Bullet Points)
• Supporting Data (Screenshots, Videos, Metrics)
• Next Steps & Prioritized Action Items

 

 

Incorporating Atomic Research Principles 

• Atomic Research is an approach that breaks down research findings into their smallest components, known as "nuggets."
• Each nugget represents a single insight, observation, or piece of data, which can be tagged and organized for easy retrieval and combination in future analyses.
• This method promotes flexibility and reusability of insights across various projects.

Implementing Atomic Research

1. Create Nuggets: After each user session, distill observations into discrete nuggets.
2. Tag Effectively: Assign relevant tags to each nugget for easy categorization and retrieval.
3. Build Insights: Combine related nuggets to form comprehensive insights that inform design decisions.

 

 

Best practices

• Be Story-Driven: Instead of just listing insights, tell a story that helps stakeholders understand the “why” behind the findings.
• Use Multimedia: Leverage UserTesting clips and video reels to bring insights to life.
• Keep It Actionable: Ensure every insight ties back to a clear next step.
• Highlight Patterns: One-off feedback is less important than recurring themes across multiple contributors.

 

 

Related content

Want to learn more? Check out these Knowledge Base articles...  Insights Reports Insights Discovery Insights Data	Interested in growing your skills? Check out our University courses... Getting started with Insights Hub Communicating findings in a compelling way
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