Our Thoughts

Design thinking is a non-linear, iterative process that teams use to understand users, challenge assumptions, redefine problems, and create innovative solutions to prototype and test. There are five phases of the design thinking methodology: Empathize, Define, Ideate, Prototype, and Test. Here’s our version of this:

Understanding

Before we design, we work to understand context and establish empathy. We want to understand our clients — their personality, goals, audiences, competitors, obstacles. How do we cultivate understanding?

• Surveys — Collections of thoughtful questions designed to offer insight
• Unfocus Groups — Group conversations in casual settings designed to collect information via targeted questions/prompts
• Discovery — Thorough background research and lots of listening.

Creating

We design with objectives — ideating solutions to problems and strategic paths forward. We chart a course, prototype new ideas that will move us forward, and revise them as we learn along the way. Our solutions end up aligning with a client’s personality, audiences, and goals. For us, creating looks like…

• Starting with “the pencil” — We like to work problems out organically, choosing not to let our tools define the parameters of the solution(s).
• Rapid prototyping — V1 is always going to be messy, but it’s a starting point. Holding (or clicking through) a complete model of something allows you to see how it can be improved — over and over again.

Evolving

Design is always in a state of evolution — build, launch, evaluate, prototype, build again.

Our best partnerships recognize the benefits of evolving design, and they welcome our role in the continual maturation and growth of their brand. We evolve (and let our designs evolve) through…

• Testing — You know, testing.
• Revisions
• More testing
• More revisions
• (You might call this iterative prototyping.)

Working within this framework, we are able to design meaningful experiences and build authentic brands to which people are naturally drawn.