Guerrilla User Research: Operation Silver Lake Café On September 23, 2013, an unarmed team of UX vigilantes launched an organized attack on the value proposition of the software engineer I introduced in Chapter 1. The treatment center operation lasted 8 hours and involved 10 participants in two hipster café locations in Silver Lake, California. The entire team of vigilantes (team lead, UX researcher, and event coordinator) and interview participants walked away unscathed. Neither café location was compromised, and all interviews were conducted without major incident. However, the client left the scene emotionally exhausted because the result from the research falsified his hypothesis that his desired customer segment — everybody — would be willing to pay for this solution, which left his business model in shambles. Here is how the events played out: 1:10 p.m. A UX researcher arrives at Café Location One. She buys a coffee and leaves a large tip. She then walks to the upper level to find an isolated area, out of view from café workers. The area has about six square tables. All the seats are taken, so she waits for a table to clear. 1:30 p.m. A table clears with two seats; the UX researcher grabs the table and throws her extra jacket over the one seat. She takes out her laptop to test the WiFi connection and AC power outlets. While she sets up, Jaime (team lead) and the client (the software engineer) enter the café. They buy coffee, leave a large tip, and make their way upstairs. They make eye contact with the UX researcher and scan the area for a possible primary interview table for three. 1:45 p.m. A table for three clears that is near an AC outlet and also has a view of the staircase. Jaime sits at the seat facing the stairs. The client sits opposite from her. Jaime texts the event coordinator: The interview location is ready. The event coordinator takes his position in front of the café and pulls out his clipboard to look official. His job is to catch participants before they enter the café. 1:55 p.m.