The Wrinkly Pea
UX Research
Project scope:
Client: The user story - UX Agency &
John Innes Centre - Research Institute
Timeframe: 12 weeks
My Role: UX Researcher
Team: Lilly Addison as Graphic Designer
Methods:
Data analysis
Competitor Research
Generative Research
Focus Groups
Discovery Interviews
Guerrilla testing
Behaviour Survey
Tools:
Figma
Miro
Adobe Illustrator
Adobe Photoshop
Microsoft Word
Teams
Overview:
Use UX Research Methodologies to develop and validate a communication strategy and branding, for a unique pea snack with potential medical benefits.
Profile Skills:
Handling customer and clients: Done with a clear presentation of my rationale, through the communication with the Stakeholders beforehand and the way I answered questions that followed.
Teamwork: I thrive in a team environment. With excellent communication skills, I value being a dedicated team member, who enjoys working closely with others and independently.
Interpreting a brief: A solid example of how I pulled the brief apart to fully understand the problem.
Showing attention to detail: Using in depth research to communicate our findings and recommended improvements.
Client-side marketing and innovation skills.
Took part in a large project proposal, understood it, built on it as a team and moved the thinking forward.
Finding effective and validated user experience solutions.
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Researchers at NRP are developing a specific type of wrinkly pea with high amylose starch that will help people to prevent, manage and potentially even to reverse type 2 diabetes.
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Help understand and define likely consumers for the product.
Prioritise multiple first-draft design/brand routes in line with consumer feedback.
Generate insights and validate assumptions.
Promote successful commercialisation of the product and its supporting science.
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This was a professional experience live brief project, completed during my last semester of my Bachelor of Science in User Experience Design.
Discover - Insights into the problem
Methodologies 01. Data analysis
The User Story provided existing consumer research, which included:
A 500-person survey to compare findings vs assumptions on current designs.
Focus group report
The process
The survey asked consumers’ opinions on their current designs,
product names and product descriptions.
Data analysis and objectives:
Differences age demographic
Consumer behaviour: Lifestyle and buying habits.
Consumer motivations: Snack priorities and buying intentions.
Consumer opinions concerning design preferences, market, TOV,
product names and product description.
Methodologies 02.
Competitor Research + Reviews
Brand development considerations to further develop the brand identity of the product, along with a marketing strategy based on the research, which includes:
Strengths
Weaknesses
Opportunities
Threats
Define - The areas to focus on
Methodologies 03.
Generative Research
Stakeholder Interviews & goals:
Bridge the gap between science and snack
Understand the Pea Market
Understand the impulse buy market
Cost - how much consumers are willing to pay
Demographic differences - the ideal market
Desired flavours
Explore co-branding opportunities
Insights on:
Initial reactions
Consumer behaviour
Packaging preferences
Competitors
Alternative names
Focus Group Objectives
To Discuss/Investigate:
Consumer Behaviour
Consumer Motivations
Branding Preferences
Potential Names
Methodologies 04.
Focus group on current design
Who were they?
The participants chosen were:
Baby Boomer Generation
Generation Z
Majority work full time
One is a student
Generation Z participants are not health conscious.
The Baby boomer generation participants were satisfied with their health, but keen to improve.
Methodologies 05.
Discovery Interviews on current designs
Who were they?
The participants chosen were:
Generation Z participants
Full-time workers
Participants were satisfied with their health but keen to improve.
All are physically active and have identical snack priorities.
Them being TASTE and high in protein.
Methodologies 06.
Consumer Behaviour Survey
The process:
A total of 21 participants
Online survey
Objectives:
Understanding the possible target markets
Understanding impulse buy behaviours
Understand consumer buying habits.
Understand how people find products for the first time - the customer journey.
Snack Prices
Develop -
Potential Solutions
Methodologies 07.
Guerilla testing
Guerilla testing has the added advantage where the consumer can interact with the physical product, and even taste the product.
Overall the illustrative design was liked the most, due to its originality and bold designs.
Methodologies 08.
Packaging exploration
The graphic designer produced an improved second set of designs after a previous focus group, therefore ready to test with users.
Purchase Intent
Likes/dislikes
Uniqueness
Engagement (Image/Affinity)
Shelf Impact - Visual Search Test
Design Implementations from focus groups
Focus group insights and design recommendations for the graphic designer:
Experiment with a portrait orientation of the packaging and logos to communicate a food product.
Experiment with other design processes e.g. Photography. To communicate what the product is.
User needs:
Clear and build nutritional values on the front of the packaging
Users to be able to scan products and know what it is.
Show off the product using images.
Defined target markets
So we have got two clear distinct markets:
The younger and older demographic.
Within both, you have the physically active looking for healthy snacks, and then you have the consumers who are trying to be healthier and are looking for new healthy alternatives.
