Inspire in the Product Design Process

A Fortune 500 consumer electronics manufacturer partnered with W5 as they launched product strategy for all of their devices to explore current device usage and create a framework for understanding their role in consumer lifestyles. Resulting insights uncovered consumer needs that underscored product design.

APPROACH

W5 designed three phases of research. An initial series of qualitative focus group discussions explored general attitudes toward technology, basic needs and functionality, and purchase decision criteria allowing the W5 team to develop hypotheses that would be explored in subsequent phases.

The next phase involved an ethnographic research study. W5 ethnographers observed and interviewed consumers as they interacted with devices in their homes. W5 gathered data on human factors and ergonomics, unmet needs and solutions for connectivity, and sharing between devices. The final phase featured a quantitative online survey to validate the hypotheses developed during the previous qualitative research and prioritize strategies for future product design and development.

RESULTS

W5 identified product design strategies that would move the client closer to delivering the ideal experience on a number of devices. The research findings prioritized key consumer values in the technology experience, allowing the client’s design teams to explore innovative solutions based on actual behavior and lifestyles.