Design Services

User Experience Design
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WeAreAka is the creative design practice owned by farncombe. We offer a versatile user experience design service focused on user interfaces within the digital media sector.

Our reputation has grown with our client base and we are the look-and-feel behind a number of branded digital television operators. Projects are planned and documented with WeAreAka’s proven process methodology.

We combine the skills and knowledge that challenge user interface design today with a user-centred approach which factors in cultural references, providing user experience expertise in functional design optimised for international companies with multi-cultural solutions.

We have related expertise in hardware and software design, allowing us to innovate and reinforce brands.

WeAreAka offers a comprehensive range of design services that can be tailor-made to suit your needs.

Core competencies include:

User interface evaluation
Evaluations provide professional feedback on your current functioning Graphical User Interface.

Usability evaluation
Usability methods include ethnographic and user interface study to establish where improvements can be made to improve the customer experience.

Information architecture
Information Architecture is the science behind the organisation of information through a system. This can be adjusted, usually through a content management system, to optimise the display of content and improve the customer experience.

Workshops
Workshops are created to address and formulate requirements around the users of services. Discussion of competitors or strategic positioning, aspects of usability, marketing and creative ideas will form the basis of the requirements.

User-centred design
User-centred design focuses on human profiles to optimise how users are likely to use a product, but also to test the design validity. Learn how to understand your users better and design products that are effective, efficient and satisfying to use.

Functional features
The functional design takes into account application performance and technical architecture and hardware solutions. We understand the technical capabilities of devices, anticipating how they can enrich the TV experience, passing beyond linear channels to offer content-rich services. Features such as Video-on-Demand, home-networking, targeted promotions and play-lists are some of the functions which can be applied.

Brand integration
A brand identifies a specific product, service or business. It establishes identity and ownership, creates unity, and provides a definitive set of values. It is therefore important to present and enhance brand values through the design of the user interface.

Interaction design
The interaction design sets out the animation and style of screen transitions and brand integration. The design can be expressed in a variety of ways, ranging from drawn paper layouts, through to wireframes, and on to polished and navigable screens in a prototype.

High-level concept design
Based on the requirements, a high-level concept design represents the formulation of a number of solutions. These are expressed as wireframes and form a drawn structural representation of screen navigation. They show the functional steps of the system that can later be used in prototypes to demonstrate navigation.

Visualisation
Following on from the conceptual design, the visualisation phase quickly illustrates a wide range of ideas to explore and evaluate, in the form of static screens created in 2D and 3D graphic styles. The visual design completes and validates the business and brand requirements.

Prototyping
A prototype is useful to validate the ‘look-and-feel’, the motion elements within the navigation and detailed behaviour throughout a user-journey. Wireframes and static screens can be brought to life as an interactive presentation. Prototypes can be set up for focus group testing to get valuable feedback from users early in the project. (Note that such prototypes are not integrated into networks or platforms)

Functional design
The Functional Design Specification is originated from a list of requirements that can be used for development, testing and marketing. The function design sets out the functionalities in a pre-development phase. The benefits of having a functional design document before starting development are numerous. Time, resources and – most importantly – costs are all saved when everyone involved in designing, developing, testing and approving an application have signed off on a document containing an organised list of all design and functional requirements.

Planning
Schedules and milestones as set out in the scope of work. Change-control management will impact the functional documentation throughout the development cycle.

Development support
Throughout the development cycle support will be given to clarify and assist in functional specification modifications.

Integration testing
When the application is functionally complete it is necessary to sanity-check and verify it in a test environment.

Focus groups
User testing and focus groups can be arranged using local resources to get insight and feedback into new products and features. A working model or prototype of the user interface and remote control should be prepared along with a customer questionnaire.