Research.
Research that informs strategy and design
We specialise in research that informs the design of products and services. How do people interact with your products and services currently? Where are the opportunities to develop and to extend the engagement with your audience?
Doing Research
We use a variety of different methods which broadly fall under the term 'user-centred-design' and are mostly qualitative. These include :
- Ethnographic Research: Examples include participant observation and artefact collection. Useful techniques for understanding how products and services are consumed and used 'in the wild' and a very productive way to gain insight into a market if the audience and subject matter is well defined.
- Digital Ethnography: Observing, documenting and conversing with participants online. We've found this technique particularly useful in games research where it can be difficult to elicit relevant issues through offline techniques.
- Focus Groups and Depth Interviews: 'Traditional' qualitative research methods generally used to gain an initial understanding of a market or to probe specific issues.
- Accompanied Surfs: We undertake task analysis with users to understand how they behave online and using mobile phones / PDAs. This is especially useful where the task is relatively well defined e.g. purchase and [re]search cycles.
- Written and Visual Diaries: We use diary work quite a lot where the subject is either difficult to access or the behaviour is not confined in space and time. We have our own online diary and SMS diary products which we have developed and use within our research work.
Research is presented back as a web-based resource [password protected, with features such as comments]. Outputs are also offered in both traditional and 'comic book' format and presentations are tailored to suit client's needs. We work hard to engage client audiences [stakeholder teams] in the research - we know that if the audience isn't engaged the research is unlikely to be used.
In addition to undertaking research we also manage a national teen research panel which we use for understanding how younger people consume, create and share media as well as a mixed panel which we manage for accompanied surfs and usability testing purposes.
Who we've worked with
We've worked on projects with national broadcasters, media production companies, travel companies, national museums and major events organisers. We have helped these organisations to understand how their audiences currently consume and behave, and to help design new services that fit with their business and brand strategy. See how we take our research into the design of propositions and services.
James Boardwell, Director and principal researcher holds an MSc and PhD [Bristol] in social science research and is a member of the Market Research Society and the Association of Qualitative Researchers. Prior to Rattle Research, James worked as a research manager at BBC Future Media and as a digital planner.