How to Build a Research Repository

Most research teams have the same problem: insights get trapped in the researcher's head, buried in Google Docs, or scattered across Slack threads. Six months later, someone asks the same question and nobody can find the original answer.

A research repository solves this. It's a single, searchable place where all research findings live. Every interview, usability test, survey, and competitive analysis goes in, tagged and organized so anyone on the team can find relevant insights without asking the researcher directly.

Decide on your tool

Your choice comes down to three approaches.

Dovetail is purpose-built for research repositories. It handles interview transcripts, video clips, tagging, analysis, and reporting in one place. If research is a core function on your team (dedicated researchers, regular studies), Dovetail is the right choice. Plans start at $29/user/month.

Notion works well for smaller teams or teams that already use Notion for everything else. You build the repository yourself using databases, templates, and relations. It's more flexible but requires setup and maintenance. The upside: everyone already knows how to use it.

Miro is useful as a complement, not a primary repository. Use it for affinity mapping, synthesis sessions, and collaborative analysis. The output of a Miro session should feed into your repository in Dovetail or Notion, not replace it.

Try Dovetail for research

Define your structure

A research repository needs three layers:

Projects are the top level. Each research study, interview series, or usability test is a project. A project contains the raw data (transcripts, recordings, notes) and the synthesized findings.

Insights are the middle layer. An insight is a discrete finding: "Users don't understand the difference between 'Save' and 'Publish'" or "Power users want keyboard shortcuts for the top 5 actions." Each insight links back to the evidence that supports it.

Evidence is the bottom layer. Direct quotes, video clips, survey responses, behavioral data. Evidence is tagged and connected to insights. When someone questions a finding, you can trace it back to the original source.

Build a tagging system

Tags make your repository searchable. Without them, it's just a pile of documents.

Start with these tag categories:

• Product area. Onboarding, checkout, settings, dashboard, navigation. Maps to your product's structure.
• User type. New users, power users, enterprise, free tier, churned. Maps to your user segments.
• Research method. Interview, usability test, survey, analytics, card sort. Describes how you collected the data.
• Theme. Confusion, delight, feature request, pain point, workaround. Describes what the finding is about.

Keep your tag vocabulary controlled. Don't let people create tags freely or you'll end up with "onboarding," "Onboarding," "new user flow," and "first-time experience" all meaning the same thing. Define the approved tags upfront and review them quarterly.

In Dovetail, tags are built into the analysis workflow. In Notion, use select and multi-select properties on your database.

Create templates

Templates reduce friction and ensure consistency. Build templates for:

Research briefs. Background, research questions, methodology, timeline, participants needed. Fill this out before starting any study.

Interview notes. Participant info, key quotes, observations, follow-up questions. A consistent format makes cross-interview analysis much easier.

Insight reports. Finding summary, supporting evidence, confidence level, recommended actions, stakeholders to notify. This is what non-researchers will actually read.

Set access patterns

A repository nobody reads is a waste of time. Design for consumption, not just storage.

Create a weekly or biweekly research digest: a short summary of new insights shared in Slack or email. Link back to the full findings in the repository. This keeps research visible without requiring people to check the repository proactively.

Give product managers and designers direct access. They should be able to search the repository themselves when making decisions. If they have to ask a researcher every time, the repository isn't working.

Tag stakeholders on relevant insights. When you find something about checkout UX, tag the checkout team lead directly.

Recommended tools

Dovetail for teams with dedicated researchers who need transcription, video clips, and structured analysis. Notion for smaller teams who want flexibility and already live in Notion. Miro for collaborative synthesis sessions that feed into your primary repository.

Start small. A Notion database with 10 well-tagged insights is more valuable than an elaborate Dovetail setup that nobody maintains. Build the habit first, then upgrade the tooling.