As a user researcher, I often deliver bad news to clients – a long list of problems with their application or product and an intimidating list of recommended changes. It’s easy for me to think that the client should immediately set about making all these recommended changes. And when some of those changes aren’t made, I shake my head and can’t understand why they just don’t get it.

It’s not often that I’ve put myself in the client’s shoes to think about what they’re going through when they get the news. I’ve never been in the position of being the owner of an application or product who has to listen to a long list of problems that need to be fixed. So how can I empathize with what the client goes through?

I am, however, a homeowner who bought an older house after getting a home inspector to inspect the house. His inspection gave us a long list of problems to fix. It was intimidating and depressing to see how much work would be needed even after the high cost of buying the house.

What prevented us from giving up on the house, was that he prioritized the list of problems to show which items were critical to fix before purchasing the house, what would need to be done within the next year, which things could wait a few years, and what were optional but recommended fixes. That made his recommended changes seem more doable. We knew what fixes it would be reasonable to ask the seller to make, which items to focus on first after buying the house, and what we could wait on.

With user research findings and recommendations, it’s important to give your audience a sense of the severity of the problems and the priority of what should be addressed first. Like a home buyer, few clients have the time and money to fix all the problems right away. Receiving a large list of problems and recommended fixes can lead to a defeated feeling and a desire to ignore the problem or just give up. Instead, give them a sense that the problems are manageable and that it’s possible to focus on fixing a few items first and then gradually address additional problems over time.