We are able to determine the viability of a product by working with your target users

Multi-channel workshops. We will work with you to match your product ideas to the most appropriate channels, taking into account the strengths and weaknesses of each kind of media, whether web sites or interactive TV or anything else.

Consumer feasibility studies. We use a variety of user-centred prototyping and field study techniques to determine both the usability and usefulness of products that are in various stages of development.

Focus Groups. We find that focus groups can be a particularly useful technique early in the development of a strategy for a new product. Our focus groups are facilitated by highly experienced consultants and group participants are selected carefully to match your requirements.

Process improvement. We help you develop a broad usability strategy, be it helping you position usability specialists in your organization, developing a business case for usability, advising you on how to build a Viewing Facility or helping you to recruit a usability team.

An early focus on user needs ensures that your product is user-centred from the outset, saving time and money during later stages of design.

Field research. We use established 'contextual research' techniques to analyse the behaviour of users in the home, office, or shop — wherever they'll be using your products — shadowing the users in their own environments. This information is a powerful tool for helping you design products that fit into your users' lives, and will drive the rest of the development process along a user-centred path.

Competitive analysis. We evaluate your competitors' products for you, using our user testing techniques. If you already have an existing product, we can even compare it to your competitors' products. The results of our competitive analysis can tell you which of your competitors' features are successful and where their weaknesses are, and which features users care most about. This analysis can help you focus your development efforts where they matter most.

Experience probe. We put together a probe pack which is sent out to a group of participants chosen by you to reflect your target user group. Participants use the contents of the probe pack (e.g. camera, diary) to record their feelings and perceptions of the service in question. Participants may then be called in to discuss their feedback.

We can evaluate your early design concepts to give you in depth feedback from users before it becomes time consuming and costly to make amends.

Paper prototype usability testing. We can gather feedback from users on early paper or electronic prototypes.

Card sorting. This cost-effective technique is used to structure the information contained in your product. Card sorting will help you to understand how customers visualize information. It will help you to create an intuitive information architecture.

Collaborative design. We will facilitate a design workshop for you, to define the form and scope of a low-fidelity paper prototype. We will gather feedback from end users on the paper prototype, by asking them to demonstrate how they would use it to complete a representative selection of tasks. The paper prototype is adjusted to accommodate feedback from each collaborative design session. The end product is a paper prototype that closely meets users’ needs.

There are various techniques listed below that we use during this phase to investigate the usability of your product and its brand messages fully.

Usability testing. This technique provides a powerful tool to communicate what parts of your design work well and what requires refinement. Our open approach to usability testing enables marketing experts and designers to witness first hand the experiences of your users. Our long-standing experience allows us to provide practical design recommendations based on the results of the user testing.

Field-based evaluation. Using observational field research techniques inspired by the ethnographic method, we get a close look at your customers and assess the usability of your product in its everyday context. We use video cameras to record users' interactions with your product. The tapes enable us to share with you unique insights into customer behaviour, brand awareness, and product usage patterns, and to give you a sense of 'being there' while events unfurl.

Experience probe. We put together a probe pack which is sent out to a group of participants chosen by you to reflect your target user group. Participants use the contents of the probe pack (e.g. camera, diary) to record their feelings and perceptions of the service in question. Participants may then be called in to discuss their feedback.

Expert evaluation. Two of our consultants carry out a review of your product or service, working through it according to key tasks identified by the client. Industry standards and guidelines are used to determine where potential usability issues lie, and we then make recommendations for improvement.