Creating Character Profiles following the IDEO method
We, Lucy Rochford and Lorraine McIntyre, want to understand a ladies sporting product (sports
wear).
We referred to the “Learn” category in the IDEO method cards and chose the “Character Profile”
method to create a profile of our target market in order to acquire new insights into our customer
base and get to know exactly what they want to see from our products and promotion
Our procedure was
1. Analyse a selection of sporting websites and their target audiences. This involved a study of the
most popular online sports stores. The most popular sites from google reporting and also a brief
survey from a small selection of friends and colleagues’.
2. We then selected a demographic, tech savvy women between 20 – 40, that we would initially look
to build profiles on from the customers who use the site the most
3. Online social media analysis of our target age groups tracking our demographics participation on
SM and influences. Use of Facebook, pages liked, company’s followed on twitter, general websites
visited daily.
4. Four interviews took place with the people who are in our demographic to get more in depth
understanding – building the character profiles below to bring each of our four target users to life
(additional methods we could use include one to one's, surveys on different aspects and pastimes,
real time monitoring)
Our four characters are outlined below;
Group
Name
Age
Gender
Location
Works
Leisure Time
Hobbies
20-25
Ciara
25
Female
Co Dublin
Dunnes - Assistant buyer for cold drinks
Wekends and 2 hours a night
walking my dog, meeting my friends,
shopping, travelling
Websites frequently visited
Phone
Computer
Main goal for using our product
Facebook, topshop, dailymail
Iphone
Toshiba
encourage more exercise and look well
working out
Lifestyle
Needs
Busy
stylish, practical
Wants
stylish, practical
Thoughts and perceptions about sales messages
Price is key, limited budget, well known
brands can be very expensive
Group
Name
Age
Gender
Location
Works
Leisure Time
Hobbies
Websites frequently visited
Phone
Computer
Main goal for using our product
26-30
Jo
30
Female
Dublin 7
Nurse
2 hrs per day -one day weekends
Running, cycling, football, dancing
Facebook, journal.ie,
iPhone
Dell Notebook
During training -indoor and outdoor, all
seasons
Lifestyle
Needs
Active
Comfortable, warm for winter training,
durable and long lasting
Wants
Fashionable, affordable, flattering
clothes with a recognisable brand
Thoughts and perceptions about sales messages
Influenced by current trends, magazines
and friends
Group
Name
Age
Gender
Location
Works
Leisure Time
Hobbies
Websites frequently visited
Phone
Computer
Main goal for using our product
Lifestyle
Needs
Wants
31-35
Phillipa
35
Female
Dublin 18
Sales manager
1 day at the weekend
Bikram yoga and running
Tripadvisor, daily mail, ryanair
Iphone
Dell Notebook
Marathon training and keep cool in yoga
Very Active
Cooling, comfortable
good quality but practical
Thoughts and perceptions about sales messages
Money is not an issue but prefers to buy
when there are deals etc, uses social
media a lot and deals websites
Group
Name
Age
Gender
Location
Works
Leisure Time
Hobbies
Websites frequently visited
Phone
Computer
Main goal for using our product
Lifestyle
Needs
Wants
Thoughts and perceptions about sales messages
36-40
Noreen
37
Female
Monaghan
Hotel Manager
Varies -5 hrs per week approx
cooking, dining, reading
rte.ie, Facebook, Twitter
Blackberry (work)
IBM Thinkpad
Leisurely walks -downtime
Active but limited on time
Smart, comfortable casual wear
Fashionable, unique clothing
Reads facebook messages, enters
facebook draws frequently -does not
read women's or women's fitness mags
We found the following;
1. The four characters were Facebook users and accessed Facebook primarily via their
smartphone
2. They were not overly influenced by company’s promoting through facebook but they were
influenced by deals advertised on the social media platforms.
3. Participation in these deal websites can increase brand awareness but overkill can cause a
perception of cheapness and low quality.
4. Style and fashion was a common consideration and as important as the style of the clothing.
5. Quality again came through from our interviews and that quality cannot be sacrificed in
order to keep prices below competitors.
6. Our customers want on trend sportswear with good quality.