STRATEGIES FOR VISUAL RESEARCH
DOMINIQUE MARSHALL
CONTENTS 3
PROJECT TRIGGERS & GROUP BLOG
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DISCOVER
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DELVE
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DEFINE
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DEVELOP
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DELIVER
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PROJECT TRIGGERS CLIENT: Elected/Political party TARGET AUDIENCE: 5 to 10 year old children MESSAGE: Becoming healthier
GROUP BLOG: POLIKID To keep the necessary research together during the stages of the project, the PBL group I was in along with Ella, Alex, Ben and Kate created a blog called Political Kid: http://polikid.blogspot.com/ This was to be our main portal for sharing information with each other as we couldn’t meet up frequently. Each person would post anything useful that they found, and when we did meet, we would discuss anything that stood out from the posts on the blog. The blog seemed to work quite well during the first two stages, but as the project became more individualistic, it slowly became another abandoned page on the internet! To make it easy to find my own research conducted during the later stages, I created my own blog: http://domsvr.tumblr.com/.
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DISCOVER Discovering the variables of the client, message and target audience. During this stage, the PBL group worked together to find a variety of research methods by looking through books and by using the internet. We then used the ones we thought would be the most useful to find out more about our project triggers. In this beginning stage, we found that using loads of different research methods to find out more about our project triggers wasn’t really necessary, and may have resulted in a lot of information that was more suited for later stages in the process.
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Research methods found
Literature Reviews Surveys Questionnaires Constants & Variables Aims, Goals, Objectives S.W.O.T: Strengths Weaknesses Opportunity Threats Consider All Factors 6 Thinking Men Plus, Minus, Interesting Discourse 6 Thinking Hats User Testing Ethnography Visual Coding Semiotics Cultural Probes Observational Research Demographics Emic Investigations Etic Investigations Internet Searching Visual Audits Observe, Collect, Analyse, Compare, Notice Patterns Peer feedback Internet Searching Visual Deconstructions Prototyping Pre-testing Audience Feedback
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Research methods that were the most useful for discovering more about our project triggers
What
Where
When
Why
How
Who
“I have six honest serving men, They taught me all I knew. Their names are What, and Where and When; and Why and How and Who.” - Rudyard Kipling (1865-1936). These interrogative words were used as a basic means of gathering information. None of these could be answered with a simple ‘yes’ or ‘no’, and would result in factual answers that would help to get the full picture on the subject.
CONSIDER
ALL
FACTORS
An obvious choice, but with regards to our project triggers, Google was to be one of the best methods of research, as a lot of the information we needed to find was mostly available online.
This method involved listing every consideration to do with our triggers that we could think of, instead of just the first few that come to mind. It enabled us to think deeper into the subject matter and think about different avenues that we may not have thought of originally.
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Questions brought up in the PBL group using 6 thinking men
6 THINKING MEN: CLIENT WHO
are the party’s policies aimed at?
WHAT
WHERE
are their main voters located? do they want to target this campaign?
are their policies? are their values and morals? is included in their manifesto? does the party want to achieve?
WHY
HOW
WHEN
will a campaign about health benefit the party? good or bad is their current publicity?
is children’s health an important thing for the party to think about?
do they want to see results?
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6 THINKING MEN: AUDIENCE WHAT
WHERE
WHO
HOW
WHY
WHEN
attracts 5-10 year olds? do they like? are the best ways to engage with them? are they interested in? are they taught already?
do they listen to? are they influenced by? is involved with working with children?
is targeting this audience important? do they like doing what they do?
do they learn? are we targeting them - school? TV? Internet? Supermarket? do they spend most of their time?
have others communicated with this age group? can 5-10 year old be involved in the design process? do they learn? can we understand the lives of this age group? will the message benefit this group?
do they learn?
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6 THINKING MEN: MESSAGE
WHO
is responsible for children’s health? has already done work on children’s health? do we need to talk to? do children listen to when it comes to their health? can help deliver messages & information about health?
WHERE
is health taught? do people exercise? would the campaign be shared?
WHY
would children care about their health? is health still such a major problem?
WHAT
forms of health are there? food do/don’t children like? exercise do/don’t they like? are children taught in schools already about health? campaigns have been done already? stops children exercising/eating healthy? counts as being ‘unhealthy’? approaches will encourage long term healthiness? would raise awareness about health?
HOW
do we define healthy? can we inform children about becoming healthier? can we engage with children about being healthy? can different forms of becoming healthier be combined? can the message be delivered clearly? can learning about becoming healthier be combined with playing?
WHEN
does become healthier become an issue? is a child seen as being unhealthy?
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CONSIDER ALL FACTORS CLIENT
Good publicity Voters Values and morals Policies Manifesto What they have done already What they plan to do in the future
AUDIENCE
Girls Boys Games Playing Characters Stories Friends Parents/Guardians Attitudes Education TV Advertising
MESSAGE Diet Exercise Sports Outdoors Indoors Mental health Social health Bullying Confidence Sleep Socialising
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INTERNET SEARCHING
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MOST IMPORTANT Q’S
1. HOW DO WE DEFINE ‘BECOMING HEALTHIER’? Amount of exercise done; types of food consumed; weight
2. WHAT METHODS CAN WE USE TO COMMUNICATE WITH CHILDREN? Websites, magazines, adverts, packaging, classes, activities
3. WHERE DO CHILDREN LEARN ABOUT HEALTH? School, internet, parents/guardians, TV
4. WHY IS HEALTH IMPORTANT? Obesity and unhealthy lifestyles are becoming a major problem amongst children today and needs to be tackled
5. WHO ARE 5 -10 YEAR OLD’S INFLUENCED BY? Teachers, parents, cartoons, friends
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DELVE
Not defining anything specifically. Digging deeper into what’s been found out already. Finding out facts about the client, audience and message. Looking into research methods that have/haven’t been used yet. To find out more about what children were attracted to and what had been done already, each person in the group chose one of these categories: TV Websites Magazines Books Toys Videos I chose to delve into children’s magazines first, then looked at websites dedicated to children’s health. This was the most group orientated stage in my opinion, as we split the work up between us and brought it all together at the end.
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Research methods that were the most useful for delving into the project triggers
VISUAL AUDITS Images that related to the topic at hand, in this case magazine covers and websites, were collected into several categories, enabling me to easily see any similarities and differences.
VISUAL DECONSTRUCTION This involved taking the images from the visual audits, and explicitly showing where the different elements were placed.
COLOUR PALETTE CONSTRUCTION Linked to the visual deconstruction method, this involved collecting the colours used on the images in the visual audits. This resulted in a large colour palette being made that could be used at a later stage.
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The company Mintel Oxygen conducted a research report into the climate of children’s magazines in April 2010. The full summary can be read here: oxygen.mintel.com Key points from their findings are below:
• Although 82% OF CHILDREN READ COMICS OR MAGAZINES, children themselves are much less likely to actually buy them. AMONG 7-10S, MAGAZINES ARE BEING PURCHASED PRIMARILY BY PARENTS for their children, with only 18% of children buying for themselves.
• Nearly SIX IN TEN KIDS ARE ATTRACTED BY FREE COVERMOUNT GIVEAWAYS that come with comics and magazines, reflecting the growing consumer expectation of getting things for free.
• One in five consumers have bought a children’s magazine for their own children, while a similar proportion have purchased for other people’s children. VITAL TARGETS INCLUDE PART-TIME EMPLOYEES, HIGH-LEVEL INTERNET USERS, CONSUMERS AGED 25-34 AND OF THOSE WITH CHILDREN AGED 5-9.
• The most common reason for buying magazines is as a form of distraction, with 42% OF FAMILIES WHO BUY THEM SAYING THEY DO SO TO KEEP THE KIDS OCCUPIED. This motivation is ahead of the promotion of literacy – only 25% FEEL COMICS AND MAGAZINES ARE THE BEST WAY TO ENCOURAGE KIDS TO READ.
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VISUAL AUDIT OF GENERAL MAGAZINES AIMED AT CHILDREN
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MAGAZINES AIMED AT PRIMARY BOYS
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MAGAZINES AIMED AT PRIMARY GIRLS
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VISUAL DECONSTRUCTION: MAGAZINES
Grey = page layout Red = masthead Black = cover lines/barcode Blue = cover imagery Green = main shapes
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OVERALL OBSERVATIONS BOYS MAGS
GIRLS MAGS
THEMES
Superheroes, vehicles, animals, gadgets and sport
Beauty, friendship, jewellery, dancing and singing
FREEBIES
Stickers, posters, or tools/ gadgets
Makeup products, jewellery, stickers
STYLE/LAYOUT
Creativity is encouraged through building/putting things together. Covers are very busy
Cover images are mostly of celebrities instead of cartoons. Covers are extremely busy. “They’re all full of princesses, ponies, dolls, makeup, cute fluffy animals, pink things, and Zac Efron!!!”
COLOURS/ SHAPES HEALTH PROMOTED?
Blues, greens, yellows, reds, oranges
Pinks, purples, yellows, light blues. Stars, clouds and hearts
NO!
NO!
OVERALL, MAGAZINES FOR CHILDREN: • • • •
Include free gifts Don’t talk about ‘becoming healthier’ in an outright manner Encourage creativity using various methods Use a mixture of objects, animals and people, however the objects and animals are mostly shown with human qualities • Include puzzles, games, facts, posters • Are very geared towards to complimenting the TV programmes they may be based on If I were to create a magazine as my final outcome, this research would provide a good basis knowledge for what I could use to attract children.
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VISUAL DECONSTRUCTION: HEALTH WEBSITES
Grey = page layout Red = logo Black = text Blue = imagery Green = main shapes
MEND
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MEND - MOVE IT
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CHANGE 4 LIFE
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CHANGE FOR LIFE - FOR KIDS Different Aspects of Change For Life: Play for life Small steps for life Swim for life Bike for life Walk for life Breakfast for life
Ways for children to ‘change their life’ - different options shown on the website
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SMALL STEPS FOR LIFE - PRIMARY SCHOOL CHILDREN
The three main ways that kids can become healthier. When clicked on, each aspect has its own game that children can play through.
Street Steppin’ (Getting Active) - Online game that involves the user making the character run down a street and jump over/duck under obstacles that are in the way. Used to promote what kids love doing - playing!
Fruit Fun (Healthy Living) - Involves the user playing as a superhero character, collecting all the different fruit that shows up on screen.
Match-Maker (Feeling Good Inside) - Involves the user finding ‘friends’ then leading them to the different activities that pop up.
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OVERALL OBSERVATIONS • • • • • • • •
Websites are a lot more text heavy Aimed more at parents/teachers Not as visual and vibrant as children’s magazines Users need to browse through many pages in order to find all of the relevant information that they may want to look at On the Change 4 Life website, it can be quite easy to end up ‘lost’ - information is scattered everywhere on every page Takes awhile to find the downloadable materials that are available Children may not read through all of the information - will most likely play the available games Parents may be too busy to read through the website and pass on the messages to their children
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DEFINE
Finding the specific details for the project triggers. Delving more if necessary. This stage was all about finding the gaps in the research we had already done, and narrowing down the triggers to just the specifics instead of keeping them in their broad state. It meant picking the client, choosing the specific message, and deciding whether to keep the age range the same as the original trigger, or change it somehow. As the project had reach the individual status, the PBL group became more of a backup for discussion purposes if we needed help from each other.
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RESEARCH QUESTION/PROBLEM How can NHS Southwark communicate the Change4Life activities in a way that condenses the information overload, and encourages engagement with the brand?
CLIENT To define my client, I thought about the area I live in and who is currently in power. I found that the Labour Party were currently in power, so decided to make them my primary client, in particular NHS Southwark as they would be more concerned with health than the council would. Finding out that Southwark has the highest rate of child obesity solidified my choice. More information about what Southwark Labour are doing can be found on their WEBSITE
AUDIENCE 5-7 year old’s and their parents
MESSAGE Inspire families to get up and about for at least 60 minutes a day
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DISCOVER
• What attracts 5-10 year old’s? • How can learning be combined with playing? • Where do children learn about health?
THE GAP?
DELVE
• Things that children interact with i.e. games, internet, magazines, cartoons etc don’t display healthy messages explicitly; are more about general interests. • Existing healthy living messages (Change4Life) are aimed at parents who choose whether or not to show it to their children • These messages may not be as ‘in your face’ or as vibrant as other mediums that children engage with are
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CONTEXT FOR RESEARCH QUESTION, CLIENT & MESSAGE • • • •
Text heavy websites Parents generally too busy to read through everything Children would play the games over reading the information Unless parents download the information/order the welcome pack and use it, the whole ethos of ‘being active for 60 minutes a day’ won’t be implemented properly • Southwark has highest rate of childhood obesity • 27% of children are classified as ‘obese’ from when they leave primary school and transfer into secondary school • 5-7ys: Need “early prevention of weight problems to avoid the ‘conveyor belt’ effect into adulthood” - (Healthy Weight, Healthy Lives: A Cross-Government Strategy for England)
METHODOLOGY • Deconstruct Change4Life welcome pack/existing downloadable materials • Collect existing indoor/outdoor activity examples • Explore what NHS Southwark is already doing to implement Change4Life within the borough and how these could be improved/shown in new ways • Develop ideas for an outcome that incorporates being healthy messages into a playful environment
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At this point, my thoughts for this project were mostly based around the materials done by Change4Life. All of the necessary information for my brief was there, but it was a case of figuring out how the information could be implemented in a new or improved manner.
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EXPECTED OUTCOMES At this stage the three ideas I had for possible outcomes were: - A pack of activity cards - An activity booklet - A board game
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DEVELOP
Working on ideas and prototypes for final outcome During this stage, the main aim was to work through the methodology I came up with in the define stage, developing my own ideas for outcomes at the same time.
My research question was changed to: How can the Change 4 Life activities be made more accessible, more interactive and more engaging for parents and children?
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Research methods that were the most useful for developing my ideas
VISUAL DECONSTRUCTION During the develop stage, this was done to help me see how the Change4Life materials were laid out.
PROTOTYPING Making rough copies of my idea(s) in order to see if they were workable or not.
USER TESTING Going hand-in-hand with prototyping, this was to help me find out what my target audience thought of my prototypes.
USER FEEDBACK This would help me to improve my prototypes during the final stage later on.
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HOW DO CHANGE4LIFE SHOW THE VARIOUS AVAILABLE ACTIVITIES AND GAMES? headline
DOWNLOADABLE PDF’S
sub-headlines
image
company & partner logos
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headline
activity pack description
image
headline
game description
linked imagery
tips for parents
image
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ACTIVITY CARDS
pack name & quick instructions
image
activity name
image
activity name
image
activity name
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activity name activity description
activity name activity description
activity name activity description
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ACTIVITY CALENDAR logo
activity
aims of activities activity name
image
All of these methods are available from the website, but what I found was that in order to get any of it, you had to trail through the website for awhile. The methods are more aimed at the parents rather than the children, and as there is so much to digest they may not even show it to them once they have downloaded it all.
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CHANGE4LIFE WEBSITE logo
headline
descriptive text
extra links
links to the main ways of changing lives
logo
each link is split into the same categories
descriptive text very text heavy; aimed at parents
image linked to text
extra links
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USER FEEDBACK Thinking about a potential outcome, I decided to get user feedback on the Change4Life website to find if there were any ways it could be improved.
Have a quick roam through the change4life website: http://www.nhs.uk/Change4Life/ List at least 5 things you like about it. List at least 5 you dislike about it. Think about the overall design, the colour scheme, the content, ease of use, images etc. Any other comments about the website in general would be really helpful too. Thanks!
USABILITY: • Easy to navigate through and read • Displays all the relevant information parents need AESTHETIC/DESIGN: • Layout suits the purpose • Illustrations are fun and friendly • Simple colours used - yellow background is quite overpowering though • The fun and uniqueness in the adverts could be conveyed more on the website
Even though it was a good idea for an outcome, I didn’t really feel that making a website was something I wanted to continue with. I wanted to create something more tactile that users could have away from the computer screen.
CONTENT: • Information is spread out nicely • Some pages are very text heavy • The local area search link is really useful • Moving illustrations could be incorporated into the design more • Not all the pages need excessive text could be shown in a more minimized way - videos, animations
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CHOSEN PROTOTYPE
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WHAT IS IT? Exercise/Activity and information cards. All of the information shown has been taken from the Change4Life downloadable pdfs and website.
WHO IS IT FOR?
Children aged 5-7 and their parents/guardians
WHAT IS THE MESSAGE? Get children active for 60 minutes a day.
HOW/WHEN/WHERE WOULD IT BE USED? Families play with these for an hour a day, either through mini sessions (ten minutes each) or for a whole hour. Kids draw them from a hat/bowl and do the shown activity, then move on to the next card.
WHY THIS PROTOTYPE?
This existing method combines playing with exercise in a really simple way. It condenses the information on the website and downloadable pdfs, as well gets families away from the computer/tv screens!
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USER TESTING MUMSNET FORUM Recommended by Ella, I started a thread on the MUMSNET FORUM to see if any mums were willing to test my prototype. If they were willing to participate, I replied with the prototype activity cards, instructions for use, and a link to a survey they had to complete once they had finished playing with the cards.
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USER FEEDBACK
One of the mothers that replied on the Mumsnet forum got back to me pretty quickly with the results from her testing the prototype with her daughter. These are the survey answers I was sent back.
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USER FEEDBACK HELEN (MUM) & OLIVIA (CHILD) • Olivia suffers from Autism, so the cards worked great as she uses visual material already • The cards were successful in fulfilling their purpose • Cards could be made larger. • The timings for the activities and exercises could be a bit longer than already suggested, e.g. 30 seconds or a minute instead of 5 or 10 seconds
HOLLY (MUM) & LEXIE (CHILD) (Holly was another mum I was able to get feedback from, however she sent her thoughts to me by email instead of answering the survey.) • The design of the cards will appeal to children - simple, colourful, clear layout • The instructions were very easy to follow • The range of activities available would keep children entertained for a while • The cards fulfil their purpose very well - give users options for indoor and outdoor play • Overall they’re an excellent way to get children to exercise and have fun at the same time
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THINGS I NEEDED TO IMPROVE ON: - The size of the cards - The timings shown for each exercise activity - Split the cards into different categories - indoor/outdoor - Include more exercises and activities - Include blank cards in the pack - parents/children can write their own activities or exercises on them - Reward cards? (blank cards that the children or parents can write different rewards on)
THINGS TO DO: - Develop final pack of cards using generated feedback - Consider where/how they will be made available (printed versions, online downloads) - Continue getting feedback from current respondents about the developed cards - Try and get new feedback from other parents
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DELIVER
Final outcomes and user feedback. The prototypes from the Develop stage were worked on further, using the feedback generated from the parents as a guide. User feedback was important in this stage, but as I was communicating with parents through email, it turned out to be quite difficult to get any useful feedback again in time. Gut reaction became an important research method because of this.
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FINAL RESEARCH QUESTION How can the Change 4 Life activities be made more accessible, more interactive and more engaging for 5-7 year olds & their parents?
FINAL MESSAGE/AIM To encourage 5-7 year olds and their parents to be up and about for at least 60 minutes a day
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CHOSEN OUTCOME ACTIVITY CARDS Categorized & colour coordinated: Instructions = Pink Information = Yellow Indoor = Blue Outdoor = Green Exercise = Orange
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Each category had the same number of cards, with the Change4Life typefaces and characters being used. (These were downloadable once I had signed up as a supporter on their website.) I also included a blank card in each category, which gave parents/children the chance to write their own activities on.
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WHERE WOULD THESE BE AVAILABLE?
I adapted the Change4Life activity card page to go alongside the cards I created. Parents would be able to download the cards from here and print them at home.
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SECOND OUTCOME IPHONE APPLICATION
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Orange
12:34 PM
indoor activity cards
e Orang
PM 12:34
shake to pick a card
Orange
12:34 PM
For parents that have an iPhone, they would be able to download a Change4Life Activity Card app, which would give them access to the cards available, like if they downloaded them usign a computer. Using the iPhone technology, they can pick a different card by simply shaking the iPhone.
talent show! Perform a well-known song or dance, or better still make one up! Or you could choose one of your favourite TV programmes and create your own episode. (Your versions are often better than the real thing!)
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USER FEEDBACK 2 HOLLY (MUM) & LEXIE (CHILD) FEEDBACK ABOUT THE ACTIVITY CARDS: •
• • •
•
“I like how the new set of cards have a colour scheme that collects each of the different types of activity together, I also like how a child can add their own activity for each set of cards, I believe this will encourage children to think about and enjoy exercise more for themselves. The pictures are still bright and informative and the instructions are written in a way which children would find easy to understand. The cards vary in different time to complete and therefore could be used for short bursts of exercise or used to play a longer game. I think instructional cards are now better set out; these now have interesting headlines and clever plays on the “change for life” logo. They have less information on each card making it seem as though there is less to read. The instructional and informational cards are now also set apart by different colour backgrounds making it clear which is which.
Overall, I think the improvements to the activity and instructional cards make them easier for children and adults to use and understand, I think they are a great way to get children to exercise and understand why it is important to stay healthy. I can imagine many ways how these cards can be used and enjoyed, and would definitely use them with my little girl.” FEEDBACK ABOUT THE IPHONE APPLICATION: • • •
“I think the Iphone app is a really good way for parents to get involved with their childrens’ exercise. It follows the same colour schemes and layouts as the actual pack of activity cards and has the “Change for Life” logo which is instantly recognizable. Using the shake technology to select a random card is a good way to electronically play activity games. It is also a way to encourage exercise through electronics instead of sitting down playing a video game. I think children will enjoy using this app with their parents and will realize its task of helping children to enjoy exercise.”
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SECOND THOUGHTS.... Despite improving the prototype cards and getting good feedback from Holly, I felt that the activity cards still needed more work. I wasn’t completely happy with the way they looked, or the fact that I had not really changed much about how the original Change4Life cards were. Action was needed, so I set about making cards that were different in their layout and colour scheme.
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DEVELOPMENT OF NEW CARDS LOGO Instead of continuing to use the Change4Life logo, I set about creating my own. A number of different typefaces were trailed, and eventually I settled on the layout at the bottom of this page. I decided to also use the Change4Life characters on this logo, so that it still linked to the program in some way.
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LAYOUT A variety of layouts were tried out with the main change from the first pack of cards being that these were to be landscape rather than portrait.
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FINAL CARD PACK
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FINAL THOUGHTS In comparison to the first pack of cards I produced, these ended being significantly different. The whole layout underwent a complete overhaul - different typefaces were used, orientation was now landscape instead of portrait, and the colour of the characters matched the category they were in. I wasn’t able to get any user feedback on this pack, but overall I think they are an improvement on what I already had. They still manage to fulfil my brief of creating something tactile that would get children and their parents active for at least 60 minutes a day. The information is easy to digest, users would still be able to write their own suggestions, and they would still be available to download from the website.
My final outcome could still be improved further; to make it my own health campaign completely, I would’ve needed to draw my own characters instead of still using the Change4Life ones. I would also consider making the size of them even bigger than they are, which in turn would make the text and images bigger and easier to see. Overall, I think this project could’ve turned out better than it did. The PBL group worked, but only really during the first few stages where we were doing similar things. Our project triggers ended being very typical too, however it meant that a lot of research was readily available to look through. If I were to go through this project again, I would consider getting more feedback about my prototypes and doing more trial and error stages in order to create something with a more ‘wow’ factor.
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