A research document on buying of Electric vehicles UK

18DSP866 User Experience Design Major Project Olivvia Swaminathan | Student ID: B816746 Date: 21st June 2019 Word count: 4993

Index Introduction

2.0 Methodology

3.0 Findings

1.0 About

2.1 Identifying the system

3.1 Understanding about the issue

1.1 What’s the problem?

2.2 Consumer touchpoints

3.2 Emotions

1.2 Why is it important?

2.3 Sampling

3.3 Motivations & Inspirations

1.3 Original Hunt Statement

2.4 Initial Focus Group

3.4 Touchpoints

2.5 Challenges and it’s impact

3.5 Actions & Suggestions

on the research

3.6 The overall experience

2.6 New Hunt Statement

3.7 What do they look for?

2.7 Research Questions

3.8 What mediums and tools do

2.8 Secondary Research

they use to be aware?

2.8.1 Where was information looked for?

3.9 Views on Payment methods

2.8.2 How was the search structured?

3.10 Car use

2.9 Primary Research

3.11 Car Associations

2.10 Data Analysis Techniques

3.12 Limitations & Challenges

2.10.1 Brainstorm Graphic Organizers 2.10.2 Affinity Diagrams 2.10.3 Cognitive Analysis

4.0 Insights

2.10.4 Experience Maps

4.1 Groundwork

2.11 Themes & their linkages 2.11.1 How did this help the researcher?

2.11.2 The research wall & themes emerged

5.0 Potential Design Directions Critical Evaluation : What is most important from all insights?

6.0 Current Progress Timeline and what’s next

7.0 Moving forward Find out more about?

Next steps to be taken.

8.0 Reflection

9.0 References

4.2 Cognitive Map 4.2.1 What was derived?

4.3 Key Insights 4.4 What was focused & why?

4.5 How Might we?

10.0 Appendices

Traffic scenario in London (Unsplash, 2019)

1.0

About

The ban on petrol and diesel vehicles by 2040 implies that the future of vehicles in UK is electric. With this message being communicated to the public across various channels, simultaneous amendments, provisions and initiatives are being taken by the UK Government to help address the issues of global warming. Despite the efforts and campaigns by various organisations, the uptake and adoption to electric vehicles has been slow and filled with anxiety.

This project will aim to understand the challenges faced by the drivers in UK while taking their decision to shift to an electric vehicle. Various research methods that would be used throughout the study, would help identify gaps within various systems and overcome them through solutions that would help solve problems faced currently.

1.1

What’s the problem?

The global issue A disturbing UN report states that if global warming 1.5°C, drastic environmental action would be needed to avoid the worst, with the transport sector being amongst those that are singled out for urgent measures (Gearing up for change: transport sector feels the heat over emissions, 2018). It also states that the transport sector is the fastest growing contributor to climate emissions and particles that contribute to a range of illnesses such as respiratory conditions, strokes, heart attacks, dementia and diabetes. Hence innovation, legislation and public awareness are the key to ensure that sustainable transport becomes a reality before it’s too late.

As per another report this would require rapid, far-reaching and unprecedented changes in all aspects of the society that includes ways in which we manage our energy, industry, buildings, transport, and cities (Clean Air Strategy 2019, 2019)

UK Statistics Air pollution causes an estimated 40,000 early deaths in the UK every year as per the UN (Gearing up for change: transport sector feels the heat over emissions, 2018).

The British government has been fighting cases over air quality and has plans to ban new petrol and diesel vehicles from 2040 as part of 3 billion pounds clean air strategy (CLEAN AIR STRATEGY 2 3, 2019) which implies that the future of vehicles in the UK is electric. This has been called as the electric car revolution in a recent article online (Sanjana Varghese, 2018). One of the many UN initiatives is the electric mobility programme that works with countries to support a shift from fossil fuels to electric vehicles through support and development of strategies and roadmaps at a national as well regional level (Gearing up for change: transport sector feels the heat over emissions, 2018)

Its impact on health and wellbeing

Car driver, UK (Unsplash, 2019)

As per the clear air strategy report the topmost environmental risk to human health in UK is air pollution and is the fourth greatest after threats like cancer, heart disease and obesity (CLEAN AIR STRATEGY 2 3, 2019). The aim of the strategy is to reduce the exposure of people to toxic pollutants as well as reduce emissions of nitrogen oxides against the 2005 baseline by 55% in 2020 with an increase to 73% by 2030. A focus on the modes of transport should be made as it plays a key role in reducing emissions and meeting the government’s objectives on environment and public health.

1.2

Why is it important?

Everyday activities like transport, industrial processes, energy generation, domestic heating and farming have a detrimental effect on the air quality and has a significant effect on public health in the UK. A rise in the cost of health impacts was likely to exceed estimates of ÂŁ8 to 20 billion (Health matters: air pollution - GOV.UK, 2018).

The annual effect of a long-term exposure to man-made air pollution

=

28,000 36,000 Deaths in UK

The UK government has recognised that protecting public health and tackling air pollution requires action and is therefore committed to improving the quality of air in the UK and reduce harmful emissions.

Pollution & smoke (Unsplash, 2019)

1.3

Original Hunt Statement To understand the challenges that people face during their decision of switching to an electric vehicle by gaining deeper insights about their perceptions, knowledge and understanding of the Energy, Grid and other energy demands.

(Unsplash, 2019)

2.0 Experience of an EV vs Petrol & Diesel vehicles

Finances / Future plans / Dependencies / Existing commitmenets

Methodology The entire process was initially aimed to be linear but however due to the nature of information, the internal links and relations between every piece of information, the design process was iterative and user-centered. The process was divided across various stages, and every stage retrieved a unique set of information through secondary and primary research. This broadly involved interactions with users of varied nature over interviews, meetings with stakeholders and a lot of secondary research on different topics related to the system.

The EV buyer

Brands / Advertisements and Media

Role of the Government

2.1

Families / Friends / Influencers and decision makers

Identifying the system Once the initial research was done, different touchpoints and stakeholders in the entire system were identified and mapped. This led to identification of the broad topic areas that needed further detailed research.

Based on these categories, findings were drawn based on the thought processes, decision making, challenges and reviews of the system, general facts about UK and the different consumption patterns of a vehicle by people from from all over the country. This provided a wholistic approach to the topic.

(Unsplash, 2019)

2.2

Consumer touchpoints Every possible source of information in the ecosystem of electric vehicles were mapped depending on their levels of influence on the customer.

External services like taxis Print Magazines Friends Family

Colleagues Television

City / Town Infrastructure

Blogs

Primary User

Campaigns & Events

Auctions Reviews

Websites

Newspaper

Energy Suppliers Salesman of the dealer

Level 01 Forums

Level 02

Level 03

Participant 01 Potential Buyer of Electric car (Planning to buy an EV soon / looking for possible options)

Participant 02 Driver of Hybrid Car (Had previous experience in driving petrol and diesel vehicles mostly)

2.3

Sampling Purposive sampling was the method used. According to (Bryman, 2016) , “the goal of purposive sampling is to sample participants in a strategic way, so that those sampled are relevant to the research questions that are posed.� Within this broad method, the specific type used was theoretical sampling which was used to discover further sub categories to identify their interrelationships related to the area of study.

Participant 03 Potential Buyer of Electric car (Actively looking to buy an Electric vehicle)

Participant 04 Potential Buyer of Hydro car (Knowledge in hydro cell technology and potential buyer of hydro car)

Participant 05 Potential Buyer of Hydro/electric car (Current driver of a petrol vehicle)

Participant 06 Potential Buyer of Electric car (Current driver of a second hand petrol vehicle who could buy a car in future )

Participant 07 New customer of Electric car (Recently bought a car for taxi service)

Ocupation: Software Engineer Demographics: Loughborough

Ocupation: Taxi driver Demographics: Leicester

Ocupation: Professor Demographics: Loughborough

Ocupation: Researcher Demographics: Loughborough

Ocupation: Engineer Demographics: Loughborough

Ocupation: Postgraduate Student Demographics: Loughborough

Ocupation: Professional Demographics: Leicester

2.4

Initial Focus Group The project aimed to study potential users of an electric vehicles that include future buyers like current students & young professionals, current drivers of petrol and diesel vehicles who would eventually have to make the switch and existing drivers of electric vehicles around the UK. Age was no barrier to the recruitment of participants, but all participants resided in various parts of UK. The reasons to choose the above were unique and are as follows:

Potential buyers who are students and young professionals: To understand their views about a vehicle, ownership and future plans.

Current drivers of petrol & diesel: To get insights to car use, its purpose and value in the life of the owner, emotional connections and psychological thoughts regarding their vehicle, study their awareness about technology, brands, government initiatives and benefits as well as get to know their reasons to own what they own.

Existing drivers of electric vehicles: To understand the real reasons about why they bought the vehicle they own, their views about the costs and benefits of owning an EV, whether there were any impacts the car had on their commitments and expenses. To get insights into their overall behaviour towards the environment, their motivations and inspirations to make the switch. Their process of buying the vehicle and get to know the gaps and their views about what could be improved and why?

Were there any challenges faced, what were the measures taken, were solutions available and how? If not, then how did they solve the issue?

Broadly the objective to choose such a vast group of target audience was to get an overall understanding and awareness levels of people belonging to different positions on this network of electric vehicle buying and selling.

Drivers in the UK (Unsplash, 2019)

2.5

Challenges and it’s impact on the research Identifying potential participants for this project was easier than being able to talk to them in reality. Due to the widespread nature of sampling, availability and recruitment of participants was a challenge throughout due to their schedules, vacations and individual priorities.

Due to the specific nature of sampling, practical availability and recruiting current EV drivers was a particularly a challenge. Hence the scope of current EV drivers was widened to current users of eco-friendly vehicles. This extended the nature of project, since it now would address the broader UN goal of reducing air pollution by ultimately encouraging sales of eco-friendly vehicles, instead od only Electric cars and vans.

Interviews with people who not only are current users of eco-friendly vehicles but also with potential buyers of these vehicles opened more areas and levels of the system in the country.

This also helped understand the multiple levels of awareness of people who would need to make the shift from a fossil fuel vehicle to a sustainable solution.

Multiple observations and analysis were done post all the interviews which led to interesting observations by the researcher which were detailed in the insights section.

2.6

New Hunt Statement To understand the decision-making processes and identify gaps and challenges people face during their decision of switching to an eco-friendly vehicle by gaining deeper insights about their perceptions, knowledge and understanding of the Energy, Grid and other energy demands.

(Unsplash, 2019)

2.7

Research Questions Decision regarding what needs to be asked, in what style and how, evolved throughout the research process. Based on the secondary research, areas that needed more firsthand information were identified and questions pertaining to each of these areas were formed. Following were the basic questions asked before proceeding further.

// What needs to be identified? // Who could provide insights to this? // Does this overlap across all types of target audiences? // In what ways? What kind of questions could be asked?

Are there alternative methods? // How could the interview be classified? // What are the subtopics? // What are the different types of questions typically asked in an interview?

Overall, the interview questions were divided on the introduction to the topic, buying of an EV, awareness, time, travel & distance and more about the interviewee.

The sub questions within these categories were changed and altered depending on who was being interviewed. The details of this could be referred to in the appendices.

Every interview was transcribed using different digital tools like Mindjet MindManager, Otter and word. The key highlights and statements were noted down digitally before proceeding to the next steps.

(Unsplash, 2019)

2.8

Secondary Research Secondary research was spread across every stage of the research process to understand the topics being spoken about, gain deeper knowledge about technology and latest trends. It formed the back bone during the planning stages as well as the analysis stages to be able to create links between what was derived from primary research and identify potential areas for further development.

2.8.1

Where was information looked for?

Sorting to the internet for gaining information across different pieces of information was the key driver of the research process in the initial stages. Articles and research papers written, blogs and social media were the main areas that insights were drawn from. Blogs and community boards were used to get an understanding about the community of EV buyers, the kind of conversations and information that were being searched. Companies and retailers were followed to keep up-to-date with the events, campaigns and initiatives across UK. Social media platforms like Twitter, Quora and Instagram were used on a regular basis to be in touch with latest trends, news and updates on marketing and communications. Brand websites were analysed for the language and messaging to their customers to understand their positioning in the market.

Research documents (Author’s own image, 2019)

2.8.2

How was the search structured?

The entire information needed was classified across different topics to make the research structural. These further expanded to different sub-topics which eventually formed unique themes. Following were the subjects the research was based on:

//

Understanding decisions

//

Challenges and myths

//

Psychology of EV buyers

//

Electric car charging etiquette

//

General facts about car use in UK

//

Exploring preferences towards EV

//

Special Grants

//

Travel time and impacts

//

Demographics of adapters

When was it used?

Secondary research was sorted to after conducting every interview to draw conclusions, emerge new questions and get a better knowledge about what could be asked in the next interaction with the participant.

2.9

Primary Research 07

Total Participants

04

Potential buyers of a new Electric vehicles

02

Existing drivers of Hybrid cars

01

Potential buyers of Hydro cars

The researcher also had some interactions with Auto Trader, who is one of the major stakeholders in this system. An event held in Silverstone circuit which mainly focused on electric vehicles was attended to get some first-hand information from people in the industry, make observations on the kinds of questions asked by visitors who were maybe future buyers as well current drivers.

(Unsplash, 2019)

2.10

Data Analysis Techniques Multiple analysis techniques were used throughout the process to be able to better structure the information retrieved and derive patterns and behaviours.

To begin with, transcription of the interviews was done using digital tools which were physically written later. A research wall was created that led to the affinity maps which expanded with each interview. New themes emerged from the responses, which linked well with the secondary research derivatives.

This formed layers to existing insights which was then used to iterate the research questions.

(Unsplash, 2019)

2.10.1

Brainstorm Graphic Organizers Post the first two interviews, analysis of the type of inputs received was made sense of through this technique of creating a brainstorming web which grew out of the central idea of an EV and its knowledge into emerging key topics for future reference and structure.

Online data analysis tool (Author’s own image, 2019)

2.10.2

Affinity Diagrams This technique was used to make meaningful clusters of observations, insights from primary and secondary research.

Affinity mapping (Author’s own image, 2019)

2.10.3

Cognitive Analysis This technique was used to make meaningful clusters of observations, insights from primary and secondary research.

Why was this used?

This method was used to analyse the cause and effects of current situations, limitations and challenges (that were derived from previous key findings) on the well-being, psychology & health of people to rate the seriousness of the issue and highlight the impact that needs serious consideration.

What was done?

The findings related to driving, infrastructure, exposure and technology advancements in the context of a rural area in UK vs a city were listed down. Mental, physical and psychological impacts were identfied in the form of cause and effect. The effects that had the most numbers of causes leading to it, were ranked the most important. Those were then grouped into mental and physical challenges to be able to plot the bigger impact and approach that should be taken.

Why the rural?

Statistics show that people living in rural areas travelled almost twice as far on average than people living in urban conurbations including London in 2016/17 (2017 National Travel Survey, 2018). Hence key concerns related to rural areas were mapped.

What was achieved?

Key challenges to tackle both mentally and physically were identified out of the many that were listed, which later became the base to the next step of data analysis.

Cognitive maps (Author’s own image, 2019)

2.10.4

Experience Maps This was used to map out two major parallel journeys of potential users to map their individual journeys, identify potential touch points and derive potential opportunities for the development of the project.

Experience Map (Author’s own image, 2019)

2.11.1 How did this help the researcher?

2.11

Themes & their linkages What was done?

The themes under which information was clubbed through affinity mapping were individual areas within the EV revolution system which were deeply inter-connected.

The motivations & inspirations for buyers formed the baseline to what they liked, preferred and hoped to buy in the future. Intrinsic and extrinsic motivations helped the researcher ask questions and dig deeper into various aspects of the participant’s approach towards his personal living and outlook.

Their views about future considerations and payment methods that emerged out of secondary research could be matched and confirmed through primary research, which provided a layer of assurance to the authenticity of research retrieved from secondary research.

The processes explained by every individual confirmed that the decision to buy an EV/eco-friendly vehicle isn’t a linear one, but is a continuous one The research brought out different layers of awareness that people could be analysed on in their overall journey to the eco-friendly lifestyle

2.11.2

The research wall & themes emerged ( Parts of secondary research + primary research )

Understanding

Process of buying

Actions & Suggestions

Views on payment models

Emotions

Brand / Motivations & Inspirations

Limitations & Challenges

Touchpoints

Experience

What do they look for?

Statistics Quotes from participants

Mediums for awareness Marketing Inspirations

Research wall & Affinity maps (Author’s own image, 2019)

Internal & external motivations formed a base to identify marketing’s influence on the user to be inspired to make the shift

Common areas connected every theme with facts and views from people. They had inputs that could be related to different topics.

This category includes behaviour, feelings and practical experiences towards driving and buying a vehicle and their influences on each other

These include what they look for, where they search, which media and through what touchpoints

This has opinions on payment, liabilities and reasons why they believe what they believe

3.0

Findings Each method used during the research stage provided unique information about different spheres and topics of the system of the problem. For better understanding of these findings, the researcher grouped them into different overarching categories.

(Unsplash, 2019)

3.1

Understanding about the issue // People are less informed // Long waiting time until the desired car is attainable, is a put off. // The speed in the development of technology is doubting the decision to be made // People find electric car technology confusing // Some people were unaware about the Government grants and change in pricing since October 2018 // There are multiple myths regarding the reuse of battery, the impact of EV on the grid & infrastructure available

(Unsplash, 2019)

Participant 05

“

(The car you own adds a value to your social status)

“

There’s an issue with the Infrastructure and technology to keep up to one another Participant 03

“

“

I know friends have chosen for a bigger car now because of that perception.

3.2

Emotions // Confusion on what type of charger fits with the type of car available // Consumer attitudes are affected by advancements in technology // A feeling of lostness in the complete process // Importance of self-identity/who-am-I/personal world view while making the decision // Brexit speculation is resulting in uncertainty // Experience anxiety if lack of experience driving an EV // Knowldege about the kinds and use of technology proves to be an advantage in selection of the car. Makes them more confident about their choices and decision // Not being able to find the right car could be frustrating

(Unsplash, 2019)

A participant who works in the hydro car industry.

She associates to the emotions of pride, confidence, knowledgeable, authoritative, clarity, power and trust due to her education and knowledge about the technology.

Paticipant 04

“

“

“I exactly know how the fuel cell works!

3.3

Motivations & Inspirations // There are intrinsic and extrinsic factors that motivate buyers to think about what they need and want to and this is used to explain the adoption process of such products by marketers (Why Do People Buy Hybrid Cars?, 2012) // Brands, Media & Film have a good influence on purchase preferences // People might try and signal their social status through conspicuous consumption of green products. This cannot be classified under any specific category, but some participants have experienced and observed this in people around them // External rewards may influence their considerations // Increased visibility of EVs on roads and charging infrastructure would help encourage people to make the switch // The decision is based on: consumer innovativeness, psychological & sociological determinants, and life principles (refer) as per some theory (Unsplash, 2019)

“

(Cherry, 2019)

“

Doing a “good deed” is what I associate towards owning an EV and I feel thats what affects my social status by owning one Participant 01

“

“

Research states that offering external rewards or reinforcements for an already internally rewarding activity could make the activity less intrinsically rewarding

3.4

Touchpoints // A scattered spread of information across multiple platforms // There are multiple players in the market for green home, smart homes, charging infrastructure // Negative press // Projection of EVs by brands is a problem. It’s being projected as a niche // Experience anxiety if lack of experience driving an EV Most users use mobile apps to find out the spread and avail of charge points // Social circle plays a small role in spreading the message, but the ultimate decision still lies in the hands of the buyer // Car brands consider the dealers to be their primary customer, hence they need to market to a wide customer base.

This relationship between the car brand and the dealer has led to a contrived relationship between the auto industry and the user (MacLeod, 2019) // Some are marketing EVs as an “alternative” or “lifestyle choice”

(Unsplash, 2019)

Participant 04

“

“

Influence in social circle?

They will always make a try. But whether they take it permanently is not sure.

3.5

Actions & Suggestions // The approach should be about creating an experience for young drivers with different perspectives; marketing the concept to a new customer base // There needs to be a shift in the focus of marketers from environmental benefits to cost savings & societal benefits // Choices made depend on the information that is being/has been viewed before taking the decision // The incentive program by the Government directly influences the purchasing considerations of people

(Unsplash, 2019)

“

“

There is a need for a constant and comon place of information. There’s a lot of chaos in terms of understanding the differences in the amount of money people pay currently and their future expenses once they have an electric A consultant from EDF Energy

3.6

The overall experience // The position + age + experience influence the overall experience of looking at a vehicle and individual preferences // A failed buying experience // Constant change and postponement in the plans of buying // EV buyers are frustrated with the online experience but are hungry for information and are willing to test drive as opposed to petrol or diesel considerers (Brown, 2018)

(Unsplash, 2019)

“

Participant 05

“

Okay, I can walk away from this vehicle because the range is going to change.

Something has changed In the way the software works. There’s something that has been changed.

In the EV there’s going to be something.

Participant 03

“

“

I want a model three. But the reason I’m not buying now is because I have to book it now and wait for six, eight months, and not sure if Elon Musk will meet his deadlines after that.

3.7

What do they look for? // Upfront costs are being looked at, instead of looking up at the overall costs and its impact // Participants look for a vehicle that suits their basic requirement // Looking for the perfect one to buy, wants to make a conscious & informed decision // Preferences for cost over environment

(Unsplash, 2019)

“

Participant 03, potential buyer of an EV

“

Depends on where I’m going, what I’m doing and why I need it (Participant 03, potential buyer of an EV

“

“

I’m looking for the right size, fresh and ready, suitable for a 50 mile radius without being charged up

3.8

What mediums and tools do they use to be aware? // The internet; Websites, YouTube, podcast shows, events are major go-to options during research // Most of the EV drivers use mobile apps to search available stations nearby // Newspaper, news and advertisements

(Unsplash, 2019)

3.9

Views on Payment methods/models // Willingness to try the subscription model, but uncertainty about availability, choice and perks, the feeling to “make it your own” are thoughts expressed // Would consider if good perks and advantages // Only 17% of consumers are open to replace their vehicle with a mobility alternative

(Unsplash, 2019)

Participant 06, potential

buyer of an EV

“

“

A lot of people our age choose to do finance. Pay 100-700 pounds a month only to have a car but not own it.

3.10

Car use // Basic use of every individual is for socialising and work // People living in rural areas made more trips and travelled further than those living in urban areas in 2016/17(National Travel Survey, 2018) // The main difference in travel patterns between urban and rural areas lies in car use, households living in rural areas are also more likely to have access to a car or van than urban residents (National Travel Survey, 2018) // About 76% of England households have access to a car or van // 1/20 travellers are extreme commuter. A person who’s daily travel time is more than 90 min is called an extreme commuter

(Unsplash, 2019)

Participant 05, potential buyer of an EV

“

“

I might want to buy an Audi, BMW, but it doesn’t matter if I don’t have the money.

Can I buy? My decision mostly based on budget

3.11

Car Associations // Key to Freedom // Tool to help socialise and reach places that aren’t easily accessible // Emotions of pleasure, pride and feel good while owning an eco-friendly vehicle // Satisfaction to having made the right choice by the ev owner // An ownership and your travelling home

(Unsplash, 2019)

Participant 04, potential buyer of a hydro car

“

“

The car does help me in socialising.

Therefore it has definitely added a good element to my social life.

3.12

Limitations & Challenges // The three main barriers for people are lack of charging infrastructure, range anxiety and upfront costs // Mental & physical barriers to make the decision // There’s a lack of awareness raising events in rural parts of the country.

Most of the events are based in cities which are well connected. People living in rural areas are the ones who drive mainly as compared to the ones living in cities // Maintenance of a battery is the major concern // Range anxiety: people just worry about the number. But in everyday life, how many people go that many miles in one stretch?

That realisation needs to be made // Infrastructure: 60% have access to off street parking and 40% don’t // Top questions: xx No local public charging no public charging xx Range is the main concern: they don’t have to see the 300 range when you’re doing 30 xx Limiting their range people are doing this (Unsplash, 2019)

// Availability of vehicle within the budget of the buyer that fits all requirements

Participant 03, potential buyer of an EV

“

“

High end Evs that are available start 55000. And the other ones are really low and there’s nothing available in the middle bracket.

4.0

Insights All findings were analysed and certain overlaps & confirmations led to the following insights. Every analysis technique opened up a new layer to the area of concern through linkages, reactions and influences on one another which confirms the seriousness and importance of this problem, both nationally as well as globally.

Insights have been displayed as per the method used.

(Unsplash, 2019)

4.1

Groundwork 01

Initially a groundwork was set in place by the researcher based on secondary research. After interacting and observing participants, the researcher found out that the buying of electric vehicles does not only compromise of government grants but also about many more aspects.

Therefore plotting of awareness levels of participants on a linear scale was not possible.

10

Unaware

Aware

Technology

Impact

What was done?

All participants interviewed were mapped on a scale of 1 to 10 on awareness; 1 being least aware to 10 being fully aware.

Government help

Infrastructure

What was revealed?

Different awareness levels were observed across different aspects related to buying an eco-friendly vehicle

Latest Trends

Types

Self Initiative

(Unsplash, 2019)

Participants

P1

P2

P3

P4

P5

P6

P7

4.2

Cognitive Map

Cause

Cause

Cognitive Mapping (Author’s own image, 2019)

Isolation & non-social behaviour Job Limitations

Reduced Productivity

Limited & expensive travel options

Longer time and Inactive Travel

B Fatigue/ Stress/ Health issues

Slower pace or inability to adapt to rapid change in technilogy

4.2.1 What was derived & inferred?

A Misconceptions & myths

The effects were further grouped into categories.

Physical effects

Frustration/ Restlesness

Mental blocks & Perceived hurdles

Waste of time

Mental effects

A

Key route of the issue to be tackled

B

With this being the focus in communication

Confusion & feeling of being lost

Feeling of being handicapped

Unhealthy Lifestyle

4.3

Key insights // The decision of buying a car is a cautious one // Uncertainty about the technology, its efficiency and its fit into people’s demands is what are the major barriers to the adoption // There’s a scope to make information available easily to the masses // Recommendations, help, and basic knowledge of the technology needs to be provided // Measures to reduce uncertainty and provide assurance needs to be taken // Events regarding awareness need to be conducted in rural parts of the country // Marketing of the eco-friendly vehicles needs to be re-looked and marketed appropriately // Social + Financial + Environmental benefits need to be fully understood by the people // Overall awareness about individual expenses, impacts and carbon footprint needs to increase in order to ease the process of information download and education to users // People are unaware what suits best to their needs and budget // More education is needed to get people on board towards the eco lifestyle // Visibility and media presence needs to increase in order to direct thoughts and influence // Overlap in the responses of participants signified a common pattern in the behaviour of people who are future buyers of an EV

(Unsplash, 2019)

4.4

What was focused & why?

Global issues like education & awareness, emotional challenges like perceived barriers and difficulty in understanding, community building and lifestyle choices were insights that were focused to be transformed into opportunities.

The reason why these were chosen was to create a solution that would not only encourage people to opt for an eco-friendly option, but also be able to solve a wider global need of a healthy & sustainable lifestyle.

4.5

How Might We? // Provide assurance to buyers about their decision? // Educate consumers about technology advancements and what fits best as per their personal demands? // Educate potential consumers about government grants on a timely basis? // Connect people within the community to encourage build a healthy ecosystem and environment?

Keywords used // Lack of education // Inappropriate sales pitch & marketing jargons // Chaotic understanding and feeling of lostness // Unaware audience // Understanding of overall benefits // Less visibiility of EV and infrastructure // Community building // Energy needs and usage // Inability and challenges to adapt to changing technology

// Encourage young adults to think and consider an eco-friendly option as their future buy? // Motivate people to be more conscious about their energy needs and usage? // Help dealers to target real consumer needs leading to better sales of eco-friendly vehicles? // Shift the mindset of consumers from environmental benefits to other important benefits of buying an eco friendly car? // Educate consumers about the grid, energy flow and their individual contributions to a greener lifestyle? // Encourage corporate organisations to plan ideas which would help support buying of ecofriendly cars to their employees (as a part of their CSR activity; Win-win situation)

// Unhealthy lifestyle

// Use energy providers to help raise awareness about personal behavior and energy usage?

// Upfront costs over real costs

// Enhance conversation and communication between consumers and retailers?

// Perceived & Mental hurdles

(Unsplash, 2019)

5.0

Potential Design Directions

Critical Evaluation Chaos, uncertainty and a communication gap between manufacturers and real consumer, brand communications and marketing of the vehicle were the major issues that were forming mental and physical barriers to the adoption of electric vehicles.

Wider issues of impacts on health & social life due to long travel times, exposure to pollution and other serious effects of driving in UK (CLEAN AIR STRATEGY 2 3, 2019) need to be addressed.

Possible approaches to a solution were identified through analysis techniques and tools like affinity maps, cognitive maps and how might we statements.

Finally, brands, organisations and ongoing research have expressed a need to increase education and knowledge of personal energy consumption and the grid through community building to the citizens in the UK.

6.0

Current Progress Sufficient amount of primary & secondary research conducted helped identify pain points and existing journeys of potential buyers of eco-friendly vehicles. Currently, the how might we statements are to be evaluated and more potential or supporting statements need to be created to build meaningful design directions for the next stage in the double-diamond process.

Note: Project timeline could be referred to in the appendices.

Completed

Next stage

7.0

Moving Forward The next steps in the analysis and synthesis stage will be to use the insight matrix and identify strong & relevant design directions. Experience maps will be detailed further to create personas and identify potential opportunities to address consumer needs. These would then help define a UX vision statement to progress into the next stage in the design process.

Experience Map (Author’s own image, 2019)

8.0

Reflection I began this project to challenge myself as a designer to work in a field that is completely unknown to me. My journey throughout the project has been eventful & challenging in which, me getting to know the electric car and its complete system is still ongoing.

My abilities as a UX researcher have been challenged. Recruiting participants, communication & decision making from understanding what questions would help me bring out real emotions of my participants were things that evolved throughout.

The approach took turns based on the different information and feedback recieved at every stage and interactions with participants, tutor meetings and the internet!

Use of social media to find, reach out and recruit participants was done, but didnt seem to be of much use. Word of mouth and discussions with batchmates helped me find possible participants.

I tried experimenting with new tools like creative thinking cards, cognitive maps to analyse my data and have also read about a few more that could be implemented in my next stage of the project.

I was fortunate to be able to make it to the Fully Charged show at Silverstone circuit, UK which opened up a whole new dimension to my project. The need for an electric vehicle was elevated to the real need for sustainable living and a better lifestyle! Technology and its impact on our lives was really witnessed amongst the thousands of real buyers, users and pioneers in the electric revolution.

Knowledge from previous modules like identifying user behaviour, reasons and thought processes behind those, keeping a wholistic and systemic approach and aiming to solve a wider issue were tried and held on to throughout my research stages. Literature, blogs, research papers, social media and videos helped me understand the need better.

My analysis levels have been polished. Shifting from statistical information to studying the real user helped me approach the topic with a user centric way.

In the future, I could try and use more creative methods outside of interviews to interact with users, especially when the target group is so diverse. Also, maybe a survey in the starting would be helpful to get a wider hold on the topic in the beginning.

But overall, through this project I feel more confident about my interests as a UX designer.

My belief in a strong process has been strengthened and challenged at every stage. I am looking forward to pushing my limits outside of my comfort zone in this next stage of my major project too!

Research process (Author’s own image, 2019)

9.0

References Bryman, A. (2016). Social research methods. In A. Bryman, Social research methods (pp. 408410). Oxford: Oxford University Press.

2017 National Travel Survey (2018). Available at: https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/729521/national-travel-survey-2017. pdf (Accessed: 20 June 2019).

Brown, S. (2018) U.K. car buyers are ready to drive electric, yet are failed by the buying experience | driveEV, DriveEV. Available at: https://driveev.net/2018/04/05/u-k-car-buyers-are-readyto-drive-electric-yet-are-failed-by-the-buying-experience/#.XQazvBZKjIV (Accessed: 16 June 2019).

Cherry, K. (2019) What Does Intrinsic Motivation Mean?, verywell mind. Available at: https:// www.verywellmind.com/what-is-intrinsic-motivation-2795385 (Accessed: 19 June 2019).

CLEAN AIR STRATEGY 2 3 (2019). Available at: https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/770715/clean-air-strategy-2019.pdf.

Clean Air Strategy 2019 (2019) Department for environment food & rural affairs. Available at: https://www.unenvironment.org/news-and-stories/press-release/rapid-and-unprecedented-action-required-stay-within-15oc-says-uns (Accessed: 13 June 2019).

Gearing up for change: transport sector feels the heat over emissions (no date). Available at: https://www.unenvironment.org/news-and-stories/story/gearing-change-transport-sectorfeels-heat-over-emissions (Accessed: 13 June 2019).

Health matters: air pollution - GOV.UK (2018) Public health England. Available at: https://www. gov.uk/government/publications/health-matters-air-pollution/health-matters-air-pollution (Accessed: 13 June 2019).

MacLeod, A. (2019) Make Cars Fit into Consumers’ Lives, not Vice Versa. Available at: https://www.wardsauto.com/industry-voices/make-cars-fit-consumers-lives-not-vice-versa (Accessed: 17 June 2019).

National Travel Survey (2018) ‘2017 National Travel Survey’, (July), p. 1. Available at: https:// assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/ file/729521/national-travel-survey-2017.pdf.

Sanjana Varghese (2018) The UK has a cunning plan to prep for the electric car revolution | WIRED UK. Available at: https://www.wired.co.uk/article/electric-cars-uk-worlds-biggest-trial (Accessed: 1 March 2019).

Why Do People Buy Hybrid Cars? (2012) ResearchGate. Available at: https://www.researchgate.net/publication/228073181_Why_Do_People_Buy_Hybrid_Cars (Accessed: 19 June 2019).

Unsplash.com. (2019). Beautiful Free Images & Pictures | Unsplash. [online] Available at: https://unsplash.com/ [Accessed 21 Jun. 2019].

10.0

Appendices Submitted as a seperate document