Design Research
Keeping people central
Our design research team has decades of experience understanding people, their values, needs and desires. The team keeps the consumer, patient or end user central throughout the whole design process. We believe there are four key aspects of our team that make the difference.
Our researchers understand design. They know the questions that the design team need to be answered to inform and inspire the design and development.
Our researchers are integrated with the design and development team. Our team is immersed in the design studio every day.
Our research does not end with a report with generic recommendations. The research team work seamlessly with the design team to create tangible, actionable solutions.
Our researchers bring people to the process. We know how to keep users and stakeholders central throughout the process. Drawing on a wide range of tools and approaches, we can keep sight of what is relevant and valuable to people to increase the probability of success.
Our researchers understand design
We can prototype and test any experience whether physical or digital or where they blend. It is vital to continuously test and iterate concepts and hypotheses with users. We are uniquely positioned to do this through our in-house prototyping, whether it is a connected medical device or a train.
Design ethnology
Design ethnology combines design and anthropology to better understand people’s behaviours, values, and cultures in the context of product design and development.
It involves observing, interviewing, and interacting with people to gain insights into their needs, desires, and experiences with products. Our goal is to create products that are culturally relevant and meaningful to the people who use them. Our design ethnologists use a variety of techniques, such as user personas, cultural probes, and participatory design, to gather and synthesise data. By considering the social and cultural context of design, our designers can create products that not only function well, but also resonate with the lives of users.
Technology-assisted design research
Our research team is fortunate to be embedded in a broader multidisciplinary technical team. This means we understand and can harness the latest technologies to assist our design research.
Technology-assisted design research is the use of technology to gather, analyze, and interpret data related to user experience and behaviour. This includes techniques such as eye-tracking, heat mapping, A/B testing, and data analytics. Eye-tracking allows our team to understand how users interact with interfaces by tracking their eye movements. Heat mapping provides insights into which areas of a user interface are receiving the most user attention. By utilising technology-assisted design research, designers can gather better evidence and insight to make data-driven decisions and improve the user experience of our client’s products. These techniques also allow for quick iteration and testing, larger scale qualitative studies and easier remote research, ultimately resulting in a better-designed product that meets the needs of users.
Remote research
During the various lockdown periods of the early 2020’s our team rapidly expanded and developed our remote research techniques and offer.
Remote research techniques have become increasingly popular as more companies adopt a distributed workforce model. These techniques allow our researchers to gather valuable data from participants who can be located in different parts of the world without the need for physical travel. We have expanded our more traditional remote research techniques including online surveys, video conferencing and remote interviews. Online surveys allow researchers to reach a large number of participants quickly and efficiently. Using our various video conferencing tools enables our researchers to conduct interviews and focus groups remotely. Fusing these existing remote research tools with some of our latest technology-assisted design research tools the team has developed a suite of new remote tools using augmented reality (AR) and mixed reality (AR and low-resolution physical models). By using these various agile, remote research techniques, our researchers can achieve high-quality insight more rapidly, anywhere globally.
Prototyping experiences
Prototyping experiences involves creating tangible representations of user experiences to test and refine the design of a product or service. This iterative process allows our researchers, designers and engineers to quickly identify and address any usability issues, allowing for a more user-centred final product.
We have one of the best capabilities to prototype a new experience anywhere globally. We can help you prototype any user experience from a new train to a new electric toothbrush, with any combination of physical or digital interaction. We prototype user experiences at varying resolutions depending on time, budget and project stage. Prototyping is to test and iterate a user experience. We will help our clients decide what resolution is right for the design decision that needs to be made. A rapid card rig or paper prototype may be appropriate, while in other scenarios mixed reality - combining low-resolution physical mock-ups with high-resolution virtual reality - can be the answer. Our research team and prototyping team are integrated creating an efficient and very effective solution to developing and testing any new experience.
Helping our clients achieve success through great product design
