Challenge: Unpack and Examine the User Experience
A Hardware as a Service (HaaS) startup came to Chariot for help. They had built an MVP, a minimum viable product. It was good for what they needed at the time. But the product wasn’t scalable, and there was room for improvement around user experience.
The startup had initially worked with a design consultancy that helped establish look and feel. The challenge for Chariot was twofold: to understand what users needed from this application, and to create a prototype.
Solution: Discover, Diagram, Design
The first task was to reveal high level business objectives. “The initial step is to do a deep dive with the client and relevant stakeholders and develop a discovery plan. In this case, it meant doing interviews with pilot customers as well as potential customers. Our first job was to talk to clients, and try to extract what they found valuable, and what they wanted in this interface,” said Peter Fleming, Head of Product & UX Design at Chariot Solutions.
A collaborative workshop with the client helped take the initial hypothesis Chariot had about the software and turn it into wireframes and a prototype, which was tested with potential and current customers. “We learned from that prototype that we got a lot of things right, and we got a few things wrong. And we learned a few things that we hadn’t even thought about,” explained Peter.
These vital prototype review sessions gave Chariot the insights to create the next iteration of prototypes and visual designs. “In a short period of time, we were able to glean a lot and make sure we were on the right footing moving forward.” The discovery phase was a success.
Early stage startups require this kind of deep dive discovery process. “They’re worried about whether they’re even solving a problem that needs solving. In an established business, there is a problem and they’ve solved it. The challenge is to figure out how to solve it a little bit better,” said Peter. “But with a startup, a lot of times you’re figuring out if this is really something that needs to be solved and whether it can be monetized. What’s the biggest core assumption that, if we’re wrong, this whole business doesn’t work? Let’s validate that as quickly and as efficiently as possible. And then we move on to the next assumption.”
Result: From Prototype to Product
“We really listened to the clients and gathered great insights. We developed a good roadmap to make sure that we identified the desired outcomes for users, and the opportunities to get there.” Add to that all the tactical, ground level ideas, the features and functionalities that should be included, and the Chariot team was certain that it achieved all the objectives for a successful project.
Chariot measured success through a clear understanding of user needs, and a validation of the prototype. The startup saw exactly what would lead to customer satisfaction, and in the process, saved a lot of time and money.