We give technology a voice everyone understands.

Better.

We help productize technology. You already know how your technology works, we figure out why your technology is useful in the market place and prove it. CASE STUDIES: Canesta Gestural Entertainment Center » and Artificial Muscle »

We go from concepts to production. We take products from initial concept phase to market ready. We turn ideas into reality. CASE STUDY: Bonnier »

We create interfaces. We figure out how someone will use your product and create the digital and physical touchpoints to make the functionality feel natural. AKA: Intuitive interface. CASE STUDY:Yolink »

We invent concept projects. We spend a lot of time questioning and experimenting with technology to see what it can do. Then we talk about our concepts, to hear what you have to say. CASE STUDIES: Kicker Conference Phone », The Kicker Teapot » and The Kicker Tactile Touchscreen Reader »

We start conversations. Each year we invite designers, technologists, and product developers to a one day conference focused on making better products and tools for people. MORE INFO: Talks from 2011 »

It’s all in the process.

And that’s the real Kicker.

We believe that the best products are ones that are intuitive to control. The fewer actions a user has to remember in order to operate a device, the more natural and comfortable it feels.

Same idea goes for interface. The most powerful technology is useless until there’s a clear way to interface with it. Poorly designed technology gets in the way and complicates tasks. Or worse, frustrates the user. We don’t want that. Ever.

The best interfaces, on the other hand, are the ones we don’t even think about. Door knobs, pockets, the WiiMote. A great interface is logical and makes tasks more efficient. It presents information in a clear way with easy-to-identify controls at crucial decision-making moments. Annterface that make use of physical, visual, tactile and audio touch points is more intuitive to the user, requiring less effort to understand. So, it simply disappears. Poof! The user doesn’t even notice the interface is there.

Our main objective is to understand what makes the most sense to the user, rather than what makes the technology work. Products and tools need to anticipate the needs of the user, in order to be ready to respond in a way the user expects. We start with finding out who the user is, what they’re trying to accomplish, and the logic behind making those decisions. We connect those dots, and teach technology to respond to human logic. Then we create physical, visual, tactile and audio cues to make the technology communicate in a way that makes sense to humans.

To get a better understanding of our process, let’s break it down:

Context.

Understanding context is crucial in creating tools, products and technology that respond in a way that naturally makes sense. Understanding the current issues and workarounds that people have with today’s tools also helps us to determine what types of emerging technologies would be best in a given situation. We learn about the people and places involved. Who will use your product? What are they trying to do? What else is happening around them? We do our research. We ask questions. We follow people around. Because the best-made tools respond to the user in a way that perfectly fits the context of use.

Principles.

We establish Design Principles that dictate the rules of engagement. They define the hallmarks of users’ relationship with your products and provide metrics for success. The Principles outline the solution from the user’s perspective, not the technology’s.

Concept.

Once we know the Principles, we create a shared concept or metaphor to anchor our work. This way, all the different disciplines that come together to create the finished product collaborate toward a common goal. A strong metaphor also gives the user a mental model of how to operate the product. The more simple the mental model, the more intuitive the interface. During this phase, you’ll hear us saying, “It’s like...” or “Imagine this…” and “What if….”

Design.

We design from multiple viewpoints to make the technology speak human.

• Interaction Design:

  Specifically, we determine how your users will interact with your tool or product. We establish the steps, and determine the feedback and controls that best fit the given contexts and tasks. We organize the information in a way that makes sense to humans.

• Sensory Design:

  We design the human touchpoints for the ‘interface’ of your product. We call this the Sensory Language. We use visual, sound, and tactile design to make it clear to your users how to interact with your product.

• Physical Design:

  We iron out how your product will physically manifest. Is it an object? An application? Or a physical space? We create the physical form factors, whether that’s Industrial Design or let’s say, a set of gestures.

Prototype and Validate.

We ensure nothing’s lost in translation from the design concepts to the final product, and from technology to people. We put our prototypes in front of users in context to see what happens. We make sure everything’s working in a way that clearly makes sense to your users.

Refine.

We polish up any blips found through the prototype phase. We then wrap up the project and package it up for delivery. This often includes everything from Style Guides to Engineering Specs, or whatever materials your product needs.

Want in? Just tell us what you need. Or, we'll recommend specific services based on your project's objectives. Contact us »