Product & Experience Design for Consumer Audio Brand

Product & Experience Design for Consumer Audio Brand

Bang & Olufsen Innovates A Concept for Socially Distanced Music Sharing to Connect People Amidst Pandemic

Client

Bang & Olufsen (B&O) is a high-end luxury consumer electronics company that designs and manufactures various products. Inspired by COVID, they have an idea to make a product that brings people together while considering their environment and social distancing restrictions. B&O wants the product to allow users to share their music and its audio experience.

Problem

With the assumption that music consumption would increase during the pandemic, Bang & Olufsen aimed to turn a seemingly unfortunate situation into an opportunity to reduce the feeling of isolation caused by the pandemic. In doing so, they hoped to expand their brand and product line.

User & Audience

This product aimed to attract new customers to Bang & Olufsen while enticing existing customers. User personas were created to understand Bang & Olufsen's existing audience so that the product could be tailored to them, with the hope of attracting new like-minded customers.

Scope & Constraints

The project's scope entailed designing and introducing a new product that could be incorporated into the client's product line and mobile app. The product needed to meet functional requirements and be suitable for various environments and social settings, while also considering and adapting to limitations during and after Covid.

Role & Responsibilities

As the only designer on the project, I was responsible for every aspect of the design process. Alongside collaborating with the stakeholders to form the product, my responsibilities included conducting research, iterative ideation, creating wireframes and sketches, and developing prototypes.

Integrating Social Enterprise Thinking to Drive Clever Solution for Bang & Olufsen

Social enterprise thinking involves balancing financial benefits with social goals and prioritizing people's interests. This methodology was employed to develop a solution for Bang & Olufsen, as it is inherently human-focused and the project had a significant social component. Given the substantial requirement for functionality, the human-centered design approach was used as a framework for each step of the design thinking process, effectively completing the project using social enterprise thinking.

Decision Matrix
Was Used to Select the Ultimate Solution for Client and User Needs

To choose the best solution that would satisfy both the client's requirements and the users' needs, a decision-making exercise was utilized. A decision matrix with weighted criteria was created and scored to identify the final solution. This process led to the selection of the ultimate solution.

To start creating the decision matrix, we listed the criteria relevant to the problem statement and rated them based on their relevance. This helped us identify the top 5 criteria to include in the decision matrix. Then, we assigned weights to each criterion by ranking the top 5 criteria based on their relevance, with 5 being the most relevant.

Using the criteria in the matrix, the solutions were evaluated and scored on a scale of 1 to 5 for each criterion. After scoring each solution, the score was multiplied by the weight of the criterion. The total score for each solution was then calculated by adding the weighted scores.

The final solution is a multifunctional product designed for both in-home and outdoor use. It features playlist collaboration, offline music storage, smart home compatibility, auxiliary Bluetooth connectors, wireless charging, wireless and wired audio outputs, music streaming, and the ability to connect to multiple Bluetooth devices.

To start creating the decision matrix, we listed the criteria relevant to the problem statement and rated them based on their relevance. This helped us identify the top 5 criteria to include in the decision matrix. Then, we assigned weights to each criterion by ranking the top 5 criteria based on their relevance, with 5 being the most relevant.

Using the criteria in the matrix, the solutions were evaluated and scored on a scale of 1 to 5 for each criterion. After scoring each solution, the score was multiplied by the weight of the criterion. The total score for each solution was then calculated by adding the weighted scores.

The final solution is a multifunctional product designed for both in-home and outdoor use. It features playlist collaboration, offline music storage, smart home compatibility, auxiliary Bluetooth connectors, wireless charging, wireless and wired audio outputs, music streaming, and the ability to connect to multiple Bluetooth devices.

Brand Research
Uncovers Design Language for Seamless Product Integration

This research aimed to identify the client's design language, ensuring that the product aligns seamlessly with their speaker product line.

The research into the speaker product line revealed three key characteristics of the client's speaker design: a flat base, a rounded geometric shape, and the incorporation of two distinct materials or textures to enhance the product's appearance.

The research into the speaker product line revealed three key characteristics of the client's speaker design: a flat base, a rounded geometric shape, and the incorporation of two distinct materials or textures to enhance the product's appearance.

Flat Base

Flat Base

Flat Base

Round Geometric Form

Round Geometric Form

Round Geometric Form

Two Materials

Two Materials

Two Materials

Flat Base

Flat Base

Flat Base

Round Geometric Form

Round Geometric Form

Round Geometric Form

Two Materials

Two Materials

Two Materials

Flat Base

Flat Base

Flat Base

Round Geometric Form

Round Geometric Form

Round Geometric Form

Two Materials

Two Materials

Two Materials

Speaker Ideation
Utilized Hand Sketching and Affinitization for Form and Function Alignment

Hand sketching was employed to ideate and visualize the function and form of the speaker. This process included rounds of ideation, followed by affinitization, and a second round of ideation to refine designs that aligned with the findings from brand research and the decision on the final product solution.

Round one focused on each design language criterion individually, sketching one-dimensional ideas that displayed each criterion while considering the others. This process was repeated for each criterion, resulting in various sketches with varying forms.

Affinitization was conducted to identify which sketches best aligned with the brand's design language and the product's functional requirements. To achieve this, sketches were grouped and labeled as one, two, or three, with each number representing a group that could form a product with a distinct shape while meeting functional criteria.

Round two of sketching involved taking the group of sketches labeled with the same number and creating simple two-point perspective sketches that combined aspects of each sketch. This approach ensured that every component of the design language and the product's function were met. This resulted in selecting group one because it best represented the brand's design language.

Round one focused on each design language criterion individually, sketching one-dimensional ideas that displayed each criterion while considering the others. This process was repeated for each criterion, resulting in various sketches with varying forms.

Affinitization was conducted to identify which sketches best aligned with the brand's design language and the product's functional requirements. To achieve this, sketches were grouped and labeled as one, two, or three, with each number representing a group that could form a product with a distinct shape while meeting functional criteria.

Round two of sketching involved taking the group of sketches labeled with the same number and creating simple two-point perspective sketches that combined aspects of each sketch. This approach ensured that every component of the design language and the product's function were met. This resulted in selecting group one because it best represented the brand's design language.

Solution Meets Client Expectations, Receives Positive Feedback, and is deemed viable for Launch

In the end, the project successfully met the client's expectations, who were pleased with the solution and provided positive feedback. Although they had some technical concerns about the features, they were confident in their ability to resolve them. Overall, the client felt that the solution had strong potential as a viable product for launch.

This project deepened my appreciation for the time and effort involved in creating high-end products. It proved to be a valuable addition to the Bang & Olufsen product line, with strong potential for market success.