ModeMapping

ModeMapping is a proprietary research technique developed by Stuart Karten Design (SKD), a Los Angeles based industrial design firm. It is a method of interpreting standard consumer research to uncover areas of unmet needs, leading to the creation of products that respond to a wider scope of user wants.

It can best be understood as a visualization tool that tracks the state of mind of various consumers over time. Designers can then look for patterns by using a colorcoding system of categorizing these states of mind, or “modes,” that describe activity (“work mode” or “play mode”). The color-coded patterns of consumer behavior allow designers to look for shared experiences and then use these observations to suggest innovative new solutions that will appeal to customers. This also creates a topography of sorts of consumer activities as well as how they are thinking and feeling during those activities.^[1]

SKD has used ModeMapping to drive groundbreaking product lines for companies including Johnson Controls and Avery Dennison.^[2] For example, for Johnson Controls, SKD found that the drivers they observed all made quick, frequent transitions from role to role (parent at school, friend meeting peers at a restaurant) throughout the day. Seeing this pattern led the designers to suggest products such as a modular storage system that can easily be loaded into a vehicle and a reminder system (using RFID tags) that would alert drivers when important items (say, kids' sports equipment before a game) wasn’t brought into the car. ^[3]

ModeMapping has been recognized for excellence in research innovation on the international stage, winning a Silver International Design Excellence Award in 2006.^[4]

BusinessWeek also featured ModeMapping as an “innovation tool worth trying now.”^[5]

External links

• SKD web site
• BusinessWeek on ModeMapping
• Stuart Karten Discusses ModeMapping at the Design Research Conference
• IDSA, ID Firms- ModeMapping: SKD’s Proprietary Research Process

References

1. ^ Entrepreneurship and Innovation Today. (September 27, 2007). ModeMapping
2. ^ IDSA- ID Firms. ModeMapping: SKD’s Proprietary Research Process
3. ^ Jana, Reena. Business Week. (September 2007) "More on ModeMapping"
4. ^ 2006 IDEA Winners: Silver. [http://www.idsa.org/idea2006/galleries/idea/idea2006/award_details.asp?ID=71 Time Empowerment Research- Stuart Karten Design]
5. ^ Business Week. (2007) "Innovation Tools and Trends.