Intro to Kano Analysis

Bloggers in the same "circle" as I have recently paid a fair amount of attention to Kano analysis. I wrote in a previous entry that true Kano analysis differs a bit from popular portrayals. What follows is an introduction to Kano analysis. I intend this introduction merely to explain what it is and what people do with it.

You use Kano analysis to help you decide what to put in your product. It helps you determine the relative importance of features or requirements.

With Kano analysis, you categorize possible attributes of your product as:

attractive - satisfies users when present but does not dissatisfy users when not present
one-dimensional - satisfies users when present and dissatisfies them when not present
must-be - taken for granted, but dissatisfies users when not present
indifferent - results in neither user satisfaction nor user dissatisfaction
reverse - dissatisfies users when present and satisfies them when not present

Informed Kano analysis requires researching your market. One way of obtaining quantitative data is to conduct a survey. Kano recommended using pairs of questions such as:

If the product has feature x, how would you feel?
1. I like it that way.
2. It must be that way.
3. I am neutral.
4. I can live with it that way.
5. I dislike it that way.

If the product does not have feature x, how would you feel?
1. I like it that way.
2. It must be that way.
3. I am neutral.
4. I can live with it that way.
5. I dislike it that way.

From the answers to the questionnaire, you use a somewhat complex algorithm for evaluating the importance of each feature.

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