Contrary to personas, character profiles are not based on in-depth research. They are therefore cheaper and quicker but at the same time don’t represent profiles that can be
Empathy tools
To explain how a emergency service for lorry drivers works it helps to involve oily hands. The experience can then be addressed in the way the service works. It is important that empathy tools are used for a clear point. Sometimes the effort is not feasible and a short video can
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referenced in detail. They help to have a shared understanding of the clients and to represent them throughout a project in a tangible way. In various stages of a Service Design project they can help as inspiration, criteria in asking “What would Sarah think about this idea? Would that work for John?” etc.
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make the same point to explain the background, insight or solution. As Service Design is about the experience that clients have it helps to have an understanding of special features in this experience in the team and explain them to stake holders.
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To try and test how service ideas and components work in the context of real life. Given that services never exist in isolation the prototyping and testing requires the reassembly of reality to frame the environment and expectation to ensure the service experience is overall similar to the one it would be if the service would exist. Often that means that the service needs to be put into a temporary existence. People that use it should use it naturally and under reality conditions. Sometimes that requires a lot of effort in creating spaces, atmospheres and settings and sometimes all is needed is a phone and an actor that pretends to be the hotline.
Service Design
Help to establish a shared understanding in a team to who the clients of a particular service are. A character profile usually is an image and a short and relevant description of a fictional character. The purpose is to help the team understand and imagine what sort of client that might be and therefore what needs, experience and expectations can be assumed. For a project several profiles help to reference individuals that have a face, a job and an opinion.
To explain and understand special individual needs these tools are used to experience how clients experience the service. They can limit or extend certain senses and features. They are used to find out how elderly feel in wearing weights and glasses that limit vision. This helps the Service Design team to understand and explain the problems and possibilities that a service concept is linking in.
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Appendix
Charactter profiles
The camera journals are very rich and tangible material to explain the way clients think and can be used as inspiration for the idea development. Modern camera phones can be used to
take images and to leave voice messages with an explanation. The clients can be prompted by SMS to take an image of anything next to them that reminds them of flexibility for example. Camera journal are a very simple way of connecting with real clients and to generate rich qualitative material and relevant insights in their life, goals and needs. The journal and the images are a very valuable tool to share and explain the findings and later on ideas and concepts.
Experience prototyping
Camera journal
Clients are given a simple camera and a journal and asked to document a day, a procedure or their view. It can be part of a probes pack or used as separate method. The images combined with the notes give insights in the way clients see and think. The journal underpins the images with explanations that explain their motivations, goals and expectations. Camera journals can be used to document a theatre booking, to document good service experiences etc.