1. service prototyping
9 August Service Design Summer at Central Saint Martin, Ohyoon Kwon

2. The people I worked with

3. Most homeless people in London
own a mobile phone

4. For us it is everyday media, but for some it’s
uncomfortable and unusual.

5. Service
providers
Other homeless/ ex-
homeless people
Outside
world
This is social media in a ‘homeless’ context

6. Users have a variety of complex problems. Varying accommodation
status and levels of habituation

7. A quest through an unknownforest.

9. 3 iterations, 10 weeks, 36 people

10. 1. Discovery of limitations (2 weeks)
• Used web-based SMS tool
• Participants could send/ receive text for free
• Participants: 7 from the Shelter 4 from the
streets
• Only 4 people used the service
• Managed to get feedback from 2 participants
•Discovered limitations to run a pilot service
•Mobile phone have to have a little credit to send a free message
•Getting feedback from participants on the streets is very difficult
• Theoretically a good solution but in reality development
intensive, expensive and time consuming.
• It made us look for any other technical alternative

11. 2. Co-creation (4 weeks)
• Change technical platform to Twitter
• Participants got support to be able to send
messages (got a pre-paid SIM, unlimited SMS)
• Participants: 5 from the Shelter
• 1 person stop using the service after 2 weeks
• 3 participants became core-users
• Developed 3-steps of engagement
• Sign up – select information - participation
• Co-created with the core-users

12. 3. Implementation (6 weeks)
• Implement homeless SMS service at an
existing service provider
•Participants signed up to Twitter by web
• Participants got incentive of a lunch
voucher (£2)
• Participants: 20 from The Connection
(homeless day centre)
• 3 person stop using the service
• 1 person lost his phone
• Got feedback from 14 participants
• Discovered different types of user behavior patterns
• Users need education of using the tool
• 6 weeks are not sufficient to implement service to a big organization

13. To wrap up…

14. 1.Communicating an abstract
concept is difficult, but
DON’T GIVE UP
“You guys will fail”
- 13 April, Ben Richardson, Activity worker at The Connection

15. 2. Do not take ANYTHING
for granted
We know many don‟t have credit in their
phone, but cannot imagine that how mobile
company set a restriction on sending
message to zero credit status.

16. 3. Fail fast and LEARN
QUICKLY

17. 4. CORE USERS are
essential to the project
Core users feel ownership on the project,
expect higher engagements such as
workshop, consultation and
recommendation.

18. 5. Be RESPONSIBLE
because it is real to
participants
„How come there‟s not any smsmsgs; not even
weather forecast?‟
- @Twinbiecs

19. 6. Protect the relationship
with participants