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IDEO’s Process--Observe
Getting out in the world and watching people in real-life situations helps the team understand how people really use strollers.
IDEO teams in different cities watched stroller users in places like shopping malls, parking lots, zoos and aquariums, and at home.
IDEO doesn’t use focus groups or other traditional surveys much. Instead, teams rely on carefully observing small numbers of users, trusting that if they get the product right for them, it’ll be better for everyone else, too.
The stroller team identified many areas for improvement.
Another way to understand problems and their solutions is to put yourself in the shoes of your user.
“I didn’t have any idea why [stroller users] would want to lock the wheel pivots. [Evenflo] told us, ‘It’s for slippery surfaces, like ice or wet grass, where the wheels would pivot too much and lock up the stroller.’
I didn’t really believe it until I experienced it myself. I was pushing Casey over carpeting as we were going through the airport in Las Vegas, and I kept jackknifing the front wheels. Then I remembered the wheel pivot locks, and I locked them.
Problem solved, and now I understand pivot locks. There’s no better way to understand why something is useful than to experience the situation yourself.”
--Larry Cheng
Using a stroller requires a lot of bending.If seats were higher, parents would have to bend less. Kids could see and interact more and storage could be improved, too. Adjustable handles would help the stroller fit more users.
Because parents are often standing and holding a child while trying to fold, store, or unfold a stroller, it needs a one-handed collapse mechanism. The new stroller should be compact and light.
“We watch and talk to people and try to figure out why they do what they do and how they use things.”
--Bryan Walker
Next: The IDEO Process--Visualize ›
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