A rough guide for aspiring motorcycle-designers
Ok,
not really. The challenge is actually to design a commuting experience for motorcyclists
in sudden rain.
For inspiration, first do the below:
1. Stuff your face with
kuih-muih (thanks boss!)
2. Drink 7 cups of coffee / milo
3. Play futsal and take photos to post on social media later.
The chart below for guidance:
Step 1: Empathise — Getting out and talking to customers directly
Then, step out into the streets! Interview anyone you can get hold of, including car mechanics (no success), money changers (success!!), etc. Remember to pepper your interview with a few personal questions in order for them not to find out about your real objective. Just go with the flow, watch out for snatch thieves, etc.
Step 2: Define — Defining a problem statement based on empathy work
Ok, now that you have sweated enough for the week, it’s time to get back into an air-conditioned environment. Now, discuss in a team (remember to assemble a team beforehand) about the results of your interview.
Step 3: Ideate a.k.a. Brainstorming
Refrain from judging your teammate’s silly ideas.
These might help:
A. Iteration (Keep improving a prototype)
B. Inferring (Putting our personal assumption into a neutral scenario)
Here we are, hard at work:
Step 4: Prototype a.k.a The really fun part / waking up from lunch coma
Ok, now is the time to test your design. Will your proposed waterproof spray work in real life? Is it marketable? How do you show your design’s benefits using only wigs, plastic bottles and polystyrene?
(We don’t know either, but the other team did a pretty good job.)
Not bad, Team 2, not bad. *Korean death stare.
Step 5: Test – Getting out and testing the prototypes with users
Our proposed design, The Ultimate Scarf™, did not break even after testing with the focus groups since the seat was a metal chair. (Obviously not the most hardworking team lol).
Feedback for Prototype 1 (a rainbow slinky around the neck):
1. EHH what is this?! Trying to kill me ah??
2. Is this going to smear my makeup (I know. HAHHHAHA. Just trying to save lives here.)
3. The screen (a plastic wrap) is too close to my face. I can’t see the GPS (some marker drawing on the plastic).
Take note of all the feedback, good and bad, and work on the improvements. Good design does not happen in one day, except in workshops.
Our end product sample (photo shown for sample only):
Now, ending this post with a quote and since we all love Steve…
Design is not just what it looks like and feels like. Design is how it works.
— Steve Jobs
