A team in the software organization approached me to help them plan and execute a pilot test to validate a new product they were planning. The product was a novel in-home monitoring/security system. Due to the invasive nature of the product and the influx of “similar” products on the market, I recommended we host focus groups to gauge interest and hone in on a target demographic before spending the time and resources needed to execute a longitudinal study.
Following the focus groups, I contracted a local agency to help recruit participants and facilitate the in house visits. Additionally, I decided it would be best to do 4 home visits and 6 diary entries over a 4 week span.
Home video monitoring system with unique AI capabilities.
Details about the product functionality and features will not be included due to confidentiality
Prior to beginning the research, I was asked to help improve the mobile app UI design and the Quick Start User Installation Guide. These topics will not be covered in the case study.
This pilot demanded high-engagement of a personal nature. Over three weeks, participants used the system and gave feedback through three in-home interviews and six ongoing online diaries delivered via email every 2 - 3 days.
We recruited 10 participants from around the Portland metropolitan area based on the following criteria:
Criteria was based on learnings from Pre Study Focus Group
Understand home environments and determine which heavy-traffic locations work for equipment
Assess lighting, locate routers, and determine installation needs (extension cords, etc.)
Install and set up equipment; enroll user(s); demonstrate how to use the system
Interview about attitudes toward monitoring technology, form factor, and usage expectations (handout survey)
Incorporate user feedback and additional insights & ideas into the design
Apply visual design/ animations
Finalize the prototype
Delete footage and uninstall equipment
Interview about overall usage, value, pain points, additional features, and purchasing
Scheduling and logistics were key components of managing the various moving parts to this project.
Equipment - each home needed multiple cameras, a full desktop PC setup, in addition to other assistive technology devices.
Personnel - Intel engineering team, Intel researcher, Particle researchers, a contingent worker technician, and participants schedules all needed to be coordinated for 10 families across 8 weeks.
Project - general project management duties such as checklist activities for creating new software at our enterprise level company fell within my scope of responsibility.
Due to the private nature of this work, many of the details cannot be shared.
We were able to determine:
Feedback gathered, empowered company to make a more informed product. Subsequently, we were able to:
The coolest part about this project was seeing the surprising interpersonal usages that no one expected to emerge.
Onboarding users and training the system was a key component of the user experience. This required the use of an android application also built by the team.
In addition to the research, the team asked me to improve the user flow and usability this included:
The underlying charter of this product team was to create products for the desktop computing experience.
Through this pilot we were able to determine that although users liked the product and would purchase the system, 80% were NOT motivated to buy a desktop computer.
This key data point along with a few others points of feedback allowed leadership to make an informed decision not to further fund and pursue this product.
