PODKST
UX Researcher
During the User-Centered Research & Evaluation course of my HCI Master’s program, my team conducted research to reimagine how people could enjoy the a fine arts experience during the height of the pandemic. PodKST is a community-based podcast that highlights and tells stories of under-represented voices in the community and, through community insight and user co-creation, builds a tangible expression of the greater Kelly Strayhorn Theater community.
Client
Kelly Strayhorn Theater (via Carnegie Mellon University)
Team
Cam Davison • Connie Ye • Linda Lin • Thuy-Vy Nguyen
Duration
Fall 2020
Project Background & Goals
The Kelly Strayhorn Theater, centered in East Liberty (a neighborhood in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania), serves as a beacon of diversity and inclusion. Community is central to the mission of the Kelly Strayhorn Theater - it allows them to connect with their audience and serves as a primary touchpoint for their artists.
With the conditions of the pandemic, however, that connection had been lost. Since the onset of lockdowns, the Kelly Strayhorn Theater had to move all of their programming online which led to a decrease in the size of their audience and engagement. This led our team to question how we might improve the community connection for the Kelly Strayhorn Theater, despite the conditions and barriers put in place by the pandemic.
With the conditions of the pandemic, however, that connection had been lost. Since the onset of lockdowns, the Kelly Strayhorn Theater had to move all of their programming online which led to a decrease in the size of their audience and engagement. This led our team to question how we might improve the community connection for the Kelly Strayhorn Theater, despite the conditions and barriers put in place by the pandemic.
Generative Research Goals
- Understand what makes the Kelly Strayhorn Theater unique and how their programming encompasses the values of their community.
- Learn what does (and doesn't) work when creating virtual/remote fine arts experiences.
- Experiment with ideas outside of the purely digital world.
Design Research Goals
- Tie interactions within experience to the core community values of the Kelly Strayhorn Theater.
- Increase engagement and participation through user co-creation.
- Let physical context guide content and promote motivation for user to engage with the experience.
Research Methods
Think-Aloud Testing
- At the earliest stage of our research process, we conducted think aloud testing using existing digital entertainment software.
- Specifically, we used Facebook Live to test users and see how they interacted with content being live-streamed online.
- As a team, we created a research protocol and conducted our research with a focus on discovering the aspects of online programming that were most attractive to users and find which aspects would be most pivotal in their engagement with digital content.
- From this research, however, we found that people were tired from digital content and were looking for experiences beyond the computer.
Contextual Inquiry
- After conducting our think aloud testing, the team was set on a non-digital solution to the problem.
- This led me to the idea of a walking tour - similar to one you might find in a large city or tourist area. For our contextual inquiry protocol, we thought critically about the Kelly Strayhorn Theater and the connection they share with the community.
- For our testing, we walked participants through East Liberty via Google Street View. From this testing, we found that people had a desire to learn more about East Liberty and the history of the Kelly Strayhorn Theater.
Speed Dating
- After some affinity diagramming, the next step for our team was to create storyboards to test out ideas with users. As a team, we created 15 storyboards that covered five primary ideas.
- Then, amongst those five ideas, we designed our storyboards with varying degrees of perceived risk - that is, perceived risk of engaging with various social activities in light of the ongoing pandemic.
- After conducting our storyboard testing, it was clear that people wanted to get outside and, more specifically, engage with Kelly Strayhorn Theater content via podcast.
Experience Prototyping
- From our storyboarding and speed dating, our team had a clear direction - we wanted to create a podcast around the Kelly Strayhorn Theater that would serve to connect them with their community and foster more relationships in said community.
- To accomplish this, we designed three podcast experiences: One taking place in East Liberty, one taking place in a users’ own neighborhood, and one taking place in users’ homes.
- We had users test these experiences and we found that there was (1) great interest in the concept and (2) general interest in the idea of having a Kelly Strayhorn centric podcast experience to supplement their other production.
Solution & Rationale for Further Development
After we conducted tests around our prototype we landed on PodKST: a community cast that highlights and tells stories of under-represented voices in the community and through community insight and user co-creation, builds a tangible expression of the greater KST community, together.
We recommended this experience to the Kelly Strayhorn Theater on the following tenets:
We recommended this experience to the Kelly Strayhorn Theater on the following tenets:
Accessibility
- Podcasts are an accessible technology and PodKST could be developed across all Android and iOS devices.
- Content can be specifically designed and curated to promote accessibility for new audiences.
Scalability
- Podcast platform opens the door to a potentially broader audience than the, already existing, Kelly Strayhorn community.
- PodKST is safe during the pandemic and can be integrated with in-person programming, once it returns.
Flexibility
- Framework for infinite programs and interactions with community around the Kelly Strayhorn Theater, Pittsburgh, and the greater fine arts community.
- Offers the chance to test and learn about the Kelly Strayhorn audience through the platform.
What I learned
- This project, more than anything, taught me the importance of collaboration when designing and creating protocols for user research studies. As one of my first entrances to UX research, there was a lot of trial and error that made for a fast learning environment with my teammates.
- As someone who has been listening to podcasts and been a member of podcast communities since middle school, this project granted me the opportunity to combine my existing knowledge and adapt that to a novel experience in a new entertainment domain.
- Our team placed great focus on keeping the Kelly Strayhorn and East Liberty community central to our solution. This taught me a great deal about brainstorming and coming up with novel ideas, all while staying central to a single theme.
For more details about this project, please reach out directly to zachvancleef.ux@gmail.com