User Analysis:
User Personas
Event Organizers
The event organizer is someone who is helping people rally around a cuase, and is interested in publishing the details of rallies and/or protests, contact information for representatives, and other things people can do to contribute. The goal is to maximize participation, so organizers need a tool that will reach the most people. Currently, event organizers use popular channels like social networks that are not designed for activism (most people we spoke to had used Facebook in some capacity for this purpose), or resort to creating single-purpose websites to publicize their efforts, which can be cumbersome and time-consuming, and sometimes poorly designed.
Active Participants (Activists)
Minimal Effort Participants
These are users who care about the issue and want to be heard, but only if it doesn't interfere with their day-to-day activities. If your interface gives them an error, asks for too much information, or requires them to scroll through a page to find what they want, they will close the tab and never look back.
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*\[Potential\] Activists* |
Activists are passionate about the issue; they Activists know about the cause and already want to participate; they simply need something to do (a protest to go to, a representative to call or write to, some code to write, some posters to design, etc.). Not knowing where to start can be discouraging, and if you don't have a lot of free time (as was the case with one individual we interviewed), not knowing where to start or how much time something might take can make a huge difference in what gets done.
Potential Participants
Potential participants don't yet know about the cause, don't yet know enough to know that it affects them personally, or don't know that they can do anything to make a difference. Most of them feel helpless (one person we interviewed said he wasn't likely to call his representative because he would just have to navigate an automated system and his message would likely not make it to the representative) or afraid (one person said he didn't want to participate if he didn't believe he could do so anonymously).
User Characteristics
Event Organizers
Age: ANY
Gender: ANY
Tech-savviness: ANY
Active Participants (Activists)
Age: ANY
Gender: ANY
Tech-savviness: ANY
Potential Participants
Age: ANY
Gender: ANY
Tech-savviness: ANY
, and after that, they need the next thing to do. If you give them a place to start, a good estimate for the time commitment of each task, and the motivation to continue working at every step, these users will be very effective. They are willing to put up with more frustration than the minimal effort crowd, but don't let them get discouraged.
User Characteristics
Minimal Effort Participants
Threshold for giving up: Low
Minimal Effort Participants
Threshold for giving up: High(While this data seems pointless, we have retained it in order to demonstrate the diversity of our user groups)
Task Analysis:
New Tasks:
Look up the representatives for your area, schedule a phone call, and record a voicemail to be sent.
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