Prototype Outcome

Nothing can replace actually experiencing designs on a real device, in a real environment. Prototypes should be tested in real devices as much as possible before considerable amounts of time and resources are spent developing it into the final product.

Kickoff meeting

I met the 2 founders of Igloù. Elena and Rony. My first meeting was only with Rony because Elena was unavailable. This is a very important detail and you will understand why later. The kickoff is the perfect time to discuss goals and expectations.

First meeting

Rony wants to broadcast videos everywhere in public spaces and on public transport platforms (only bus). The videos will be produced by Igloù but there is no scenario yet. The aim is to make its inhabitants discover the city in a different way, but not the tourists. This concept will be monetized in other cities.

Even though I didn't have a lot of info about the product, I was able to start doing my quantitative and qualitative research to see if the assumptions are good or bad.

Synthetize the user research

Now, I need to turn data into actionable information. I decided to organize a workshop (one-day) with the 2 founders to do this work together as a team. Igloù is an association, it's like an early-stage startup. They need to structure their ideas and define the problem solving. I would have organized a Design Sprint but block five full days on the calendar was impossible. I was inspired by Jake Knapp's book Design Sprint to create the roadmap for my workshop.

"Turn data into actionable information"

Workshop

I started the conversation with a series of questions. This question was complicated: What is the goal of the app?

The founders disagreed with the purpose of the app. Especially about where the videos would be shown. Rony wants to broadcast videos everywhere in public spaces but not on public transport platforms. Elena the public transport platforms and also in public spaces.

That's why I focused my user research on walks and then on public transport. While I was writing the summary of the whiteboard questions, the discussion between them became tense.

"The discussion between them became tense."

Rony (dryly to Elena): "What's the goal of the app for you, huh?"

Elena (holding the table with her two hands and looking Rony with a killer eyes): "An app that offers videos!"

Rony (to me) "What's the goal of the app?"

Me (At that moment I was a bit distraught because it had been more than 45 minutes the workshop had started and I wanted to move the workshop forward) : "An app that offers...videos as a series...artistic...or not! Obviously there's a lack of clarity between you and that's good because the goal of the workshop is exactly created to help you clarify the objectives and respond precisely to the needs and expectations of your users. We will validate your ideas and assumptions...or not! We will now continue the workshop...

Spontaneously, they thanked me. They had just realized that it wasn't clear between them. The mood is now relaxed between them.

Affinity Diagram

It's a great tool used to cluster findings so that you can physically see trends and relationships in data. To save time before the workshop, I downloaded my survey and user interview data. I wrote any quote, insight or all relevant information on sticky notes.

I asked to organize the notes

1. Start by posting them without organisation.
2. Physically group them by similiraties, creating clusters.
3. Give a title for each cluster on a big sticky note.
4. Highlight the main pain points with a dot voting.

Main pain points

The main pain points that was voted is about the mental confort when people waiting for public transportation. The lack of comfort while waiting is also important and was not voted on.

Define the problem statement

Now, we know the main problem that needs to be solved. It's time to reframe problems as opportunities with HMW. Using this formula:

How might we improve [situation/service/product] so that our customers are more successful based on [these measurable criteria].

"I just dropped a bomb."

I just dropped a bomb because Rony doesn't want "again" to make an app for people waiting for public transportation. I knew I was going to get stuck at this step and I bounced right back.

To disarm the bomb, I said design is about solving problems. I suggest doing complete this HMW together and do other HMWs based on your opinion with the help of the first survey and user research in public spaces.

User Journey Map

It is useful to create User Journey Maps because it visualizes the user’s experience at different levels. We should establish stages in a timeline and then add context, thoughts, and emotions. This tool helps us further empathize with the user so that we can find opportunities to make their journey better.

We understanding better the emotions and the user pain points. This user journey "The user goes for a walk" was done without digging deep enough into the needs of the users (e.g. no affinity diagram). My role as a facilitator is to unleash creativity and keep a good team dynamic. To move forward in the best conditions and save time, we made this user journey. This idea is an obvious solution but the notification is an interesting feature to encourage the user to consume a video during his walk. It will address users already sensitive and willing to see the content of the app.

Lightning demos

I will not detail each points of the workshop that we did with the founders of Igloù. We took 30 minutes to get inspired with products or services that we think we can use as inspiration for Igloù app.

We talked about Cinemacity app, which was an app that allowed you to display film clips on a map in the same place where it was shot. You have to be within 300 meters to be able to view the clip.

See the trailer:

When I read Igloù's brief I immediately thought of the Cinemacity app. I did some digging to find out why the app was no longer available and how it had been designed. I contacted the founder of the Small Bang agency, Pierre Cattan, the creator of Cinemacity. Pierre Cattan explained to me that he knew from the beginning the lifespan of the app. Indeed, Arte had given the broadcasting rights for only 3 years.

They tried to convert users into creators. Users could also express their creativity by proposing remakes of the films. But it's completely different between watching a movie and being an actor. The concept didn't work and the Cinemacity app died at the end of the broadcast rights. It should also be remembered that Cinemacity was launched in 2013 and at that time the internet and mobiles were not as powerful as they are today. For example, there was no 4G network. The people did not have the same culture.

The founders of Igloù want to make a similar app but the difference is that they have control over the films because they will produce the video clips themselves.

For the part of the video clips to be made. I proposed the overlap reality technology developed by Skyboy.

See the demo: