Cross-channel Ecosystems Strategy
Andrea @Resmini
UXSTRAT 2016 Amsterdam
information is all over the place
digitization has blurred the distinction
between products and services
people freely connect competing products
and services in emergent choreographies
the idea we can design a perfectly bounded artifact
and simply drop it inside a dynamic environment has
become an increasingly difficult proposition
still, the way we frame and design services
is the way we frame and design products
N.Fein, Cocktail bar and restaurant at Hunts Point Market, the Bronx, NYC Black & White (http://www.nycbw.com/page/5/)
cross-channel ecosystem design
introduces an actor-driven approach
a systemic approach
a shift from the idea of product
and service to that of experience
an experience is anything an actor considers
connected to achieving a desired future state
an experience is a complex construct
it is not company-controlled
it is not company-bounded
it is not product- or service-bounded either
“I made some coffee, filled my mug, grabbed a
Stephenson novel a friend gave me, went out on the
porch, sat on the couch, read for an hour”
“I went through my spreadsheet, collected all the
receipts and invoices, logged in, checked what was
there, added expenses, and filed my taxes”
we are sense-makers and we want stories
we describe experiences as lines or paths
“my husband called the doctor for info, I visited the
website, fixed an appointment, booked a cab for the
day, got a reminder a day before, and had my tests”
DOCTOR CABAPPOINTMENTWEBSITE REMINDER TESTS
lots of streamlining here: this is a complex experience.
Let’s add a little more detail
DOCTOR
PHONE
HUSBAND
APPOINTMENTWEBSITE REMINDER TESTSCAB
PHONE
CABSMSMAIL
TABLET MAIL
better, but still not showing some of the opportunities
or distractions we discarded along the way
DOCTOR
PHONE
HUSBAND
APPOINTMENTWEBSITE REMINDER TESTSCAB
PHONE
CABSMSMAIL
TABLET MAIL
WEBSITE NURSE
BUS
TICKET
what we have here is the initial description of the
blended space of a cross-channel ecosystem in which
this experience takes place
cross-channel ecosystems are semantic constructs
that straddle digital and physical spaces, locations,
devices, people, and contexts
cross-channel ecosystems identify a space of
opportunity for intervention more than a finite
artifact that can or should be fully managed
ecosystems are anything but linear
“I wanted to go to the movies, so I checked IMDB,
DM’ed a friend, no Netflix, tried to book dinner,
skated all the way, got tickets, enjoyed 3D kaijus”
IMDB
WHATSAPP
IMDB
WHATSAPP
IMDB
WHATSAPP
IMDB
YELP
WHATSAPP
SKATES
IMDB
YELP
WHATSAPP
SKATES
BOX OFFICE
IMDB
YELP
WHATSAPP
SKATES
BOX OFFICE
IMDB
MOVIE
YELP
WHATSAPP
SKATES
BOX OFFICE
IMDB
MOVIE
NETFLIX
BUS
YELP
RESTAURANT
SMSWEBSITE
fancy, but hardly representative of the many possible
individual paths everyone else might decide to take
clarity only comes through compounding many
individual paths into a larger, common map
WHATSAPP
SKATES
BOX OFFICE
IMDB
MOVIE
NETFLIX
BUS
YELP
RESTAURANT
SMSWEBSITE
FRIEND’S
HOME
BUS
WHATSAPP
BOX OFFICE
MOVIE
NETFLIX
BUS
YELP
RESTAURANT
SMS
FRIEND’S
HOME
BUS
DINNER
PS4
BOARD
GAMES
PHONE
PIZZA
PLACE
WHATSAPP
SKATES
BOX OFFICE
IMDB
MOVIE
NETFLIX
BUS
YELP
RESTAURANT
SMSWEBSITE
FRIEND’S
HOME
BUS
DINNER
PS4
BOARD
GAMES
PHONE
PIZZA
PLACE
WHATSAPP
SKATES
BOX OFFICE
IMDB
MOVIE
YELP
WHATSAPP
BOX OFFICE
IMDB
MOVIE
BUS
SMSWEBSITE
mapping an ecosystem involves identifying a
number of primary elements and their relationships
actors, tasks, channels, touchpoints, and seams
an actor is any agent in the ecosystem
trying to achieve a future desired state
a task is any activity an actor
performs towards that state
a channel is a pervasive,
ecosystem-wide information layer
a touchpoint is an individual
point of interaction in a channel
touchpoints are vessels for information
touchpoints are medium-specific, but the
information they convey is medium-aspecific
channel
touchpoint
channels are an abstract design construct
they might reflect the formal sectioning of an
enterprise architecture model, be the result of content
analysis, or emerge from the project’s own goals
WHATSAPP
SKATES
BOX OFFICE
IMDB
MOVIE
NETFLIX
BUS
YELP
RESTAURANT
SMSWEBSITE
FRIEND’S
HOME
BUS
DINNER
PS4
BOARD
GAMES
PHONE
PIZZA
PLACE
WHATSAPP
SKATES
BOX OFFICE
IMDB
MOVIE
YELP
WHATSAPP
BOX OFFICE
IMDB
MOVIE
BUS
SMSWEBSITE
movie social transport food
3
touchpoints belonging to more than one
channel act as a seam between these
a seam is a threshold connecting touchpoints
on the same or on different channels
while experiences should be “seamless”,
sometimes seams should be visible or perceptible
for example, when moving from
a secure to an unsecure connection
also, elements in an ecosystem are polymorphous
an actor could also be a touchpoint
this mapping is the beginning of
a cross-channel design process
MAPPING TELLING DESIGNING MAKING
the four stages of a cross-channel experience design process
pragmatically, the starting point is the formulation
of an individual, social, or organizational pain
COMMUTING IN KARLSTAD
“are we meeting commuters needs?”
conceptually, it’s the actors’ experience
THe Office of the Future
THE OFFICE OF THE FUTURE
“what is and where is your workplace?”
HIGHER EDUCATION
“let’s make our courses better”
“what is a higher education course?”
interventions within an ecosystem broker between
the different instances presented by the ecosystem
itself, the actors, and the designers’ own vision
JOHANNESBURG ART GALLERY
1
ORGANIZATIONAL
PAIN OR NEED
2
ROUGH MAP OF
THE ECOSYSTEM
3
IDENTIFY ACTORS
4
IDENTIFY GOALS
5
MAP PATHS
6
MAP ECOSYSTEM
7
REFINED MAP OF
THE ECOSYSTEM
GOAL #1
GOAL #N
PATH #1
PATH #N
8
START OF TELLING
ECOSYSTEM #1
ECOSYSTEM #N
mapping stage
“how do we make the gallery relevant
to the city of Johannesburg?”
the scarcity of resources
was a primary constraint
the gallery’s dysfunctional
surroundings a secondary one
http://www.theheritageportal.co.za/
“how do we attract tourists and residents
and establish a safe environment for them?”
1
ORGANIZATIONAL
PAIN OR NEED
2
ROUGH MAP OF
THE ECOSYSTEM
3
IDENTIFY ACTORS
4
IDENTIFY GOALS
5
MAP PATHS
6
MAP ECOSYSTEM
7
REFINED MAP OF
THE ECOSYSTEM
GOAL #1
GOAL #N
PATH #1
PATH #N
8
START OF TELLING
ECOSYSTEM #1
ECOSYSTEM #N
mapping stage
“how can art touch the lives of the
destitute crowds in and around Joubert Park?”
“how can we break out of isolation
and tear down the barriers?”
1
ORGANIZATIONAL
PAIN OR NEED
2
ROUGH MAP OF
THE ECOSYSTEM
3
IDENTIFY ACTORS
4
IDENTIFY GOALS
5
MAP PATHS
6
MAP ECOSYSTEM
7
REFINED MAP OF
THE ECOSYSTEM
GOAL #1
GOAL #N
PATH #1
PATH #N
8
START OF TELLING
ECOSYSTEM #1
ECOSYSTEM #N
mapping stage
1
ORGANIZATIONAL
PAIN OR NEED
2
ROUGH MAP OF
THE ECOSYSTEM
3
IDENTIFY ACTORS
4
IDENTIFY GOALS
5
MAP PATHS
6
MAP ECOSYSTEM
7
REFINED MAP OF
THE ECOSYSTEM
GOAL #1
GOAL #N
PATH #1
PATH #N
8
START OF TELLING
ECOSYSTEM #1
ECOSYSTEM #N
mapping stage
JAG
AFRICAN
ART
JAG’S
FACEBOOK
EUROPEAN
ART
BOOKSHOP
BOOKS
TAXIS
CITY
MAPS
STAFF
INTL
VISITORS
1
ORGANIZATIONAL
PAIN OR NEED
2
ROUGH MAP OF
THE ECOSYSTEM
3
IDENTIFY ACTORS
4
IDENTIFY GOALS
5
MAP PATHS
6
MAP ECOSYSTEM
7
REFINED MAP OF
THE ECOSYSTEM
GOAL #1
GOAL #N
PATH #1
PATH #N
8
START OF TELLING
ECOSYSTEM #1
ECOSYSTEM #N
mapping stage
JAG
JOUBERT
PARK
NEWSLETTER
AFRICAN
ART
DIRECTOR’S
FACEBOOK
JAG’S
FACEBOOK
EUROPEAN
ART
WEBSITE
CAFETERIA
BOOKSHOP
PUBLIC
TRANSPORT
TWITTER
FRIENDS
OF JAG
BOOKS
SIGNAGE
TAXIS
EVENTS
EXHIBITS
JOBURG
WEBSITE
STUDENTS
HAWKERS
CITY
MAPS
MAPS
STAFF
DIRECTOR
INTL
VISITORS
VISITORS
PARKING
environmental information
social
unofficial jag
official jag
joburg PARKING MAPS
JOBURG
WEBSITE
SIGNAGE
NEWSLETTER
JAG’S
FACEBOOK
WEBSITE BOOKSHOP EVENTS EXHIBITS
DIRECTOR’S
FACEBOOK
TWITTER
DIRECTOR’S
FACEBOOK
JAG’S
FACEBOOK
CAFETERIABOOKSHOP TWITTER EVENTSSTUDENTS HAWKERS
JOUBERT
PARK
PUBLIC
TRANSPORT
SIGNAGE MAPS CITY
MAPS
CITY
MAPS
this process was condensed into 3 broad
approaches and 3 proposed lines of intervention
spatialize JAG's presence
(placemaking)
for example, organize open house events when
artists are available for showing around visitors
personalize JAG's presence
(people)
connect JAG's presence
(outreach)
for example, organize art-based social events in
Joubert Park or bring Joubert Park inside JAG
create flyers in the style of the traditional witch-
doctor flyers to virally distribute news
to the relevant crowds
thank you
@esmini - andrea.resmini@ju.se

Cross-channel ecosystems strategy