what we do › design research

Research helps designers better understand people.

It is essential for meeting the needs of your community and is also valuable for generating and evaluating ideas.

Here are some of the ways we can help you with design research.

What	One-on-one conversations with current or potential library users.
Why	To uncover unexpected desires and potential solutions; to learn more about people’s perceptions of your library.
When	Planning new services or evaluating the effectiveness of current library experiences.
For	Physical and digital services.
After	Documents that will shed new light on your users.

What	Users organize topics into groups that make sense to them.
Why	For input about the organization of a website to inform architecture and navigation.
When	Once the requirements of a website have been determined.
For	Website design and planning.
After	The start of your site’s information architecture.

What	Observe people completing tasks on your library’s website.
Why	Completely essential for improving your website and providing the best possible experience.
When	Often! All the way from the early stages of planning (with prototypes) to post-launch. Also for sites that have been around for any length of time.
For	Physical and digital services.
After	Summarized results, actionable recommendations.

What	Models that describe current and/or potential users.
Why	To increase your library’s relevance by better understanding users’ motivations.
When	Any time you need to know more about your users. Especially in the early planning stages of web and other design projects.
For	Physical and digital services.
After	Descriptions of your most important users that you can keep in mind while designing and planning.

How much?

Since there are so many options and design research is scalable to every situation, contact us to talk about your project and our prices.

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