Developing a new product direction for Spot

Spot began as an AI-powered, deeply researched tool for anonymously reporting harassment and discrimination. As a principal content designer at the All Turtles startup studio, I occasionally supported the tiny team with the early product and brand development.

Through sales conversations, the team learned that they needed to offer a more holistic tool. Reporting was just a small part of the process HR leaders needed to address. That’s when I embedded as a full member of the team.

The team

CONTRIBUTORS

Dr. Daniel Nicolae, Cofounder (product)

Dylan Marriott, Cofounder (engineering)

Micah Rivera, Design

REVIEWERS

Dr. Jessica Collier, CEO (content)

Dr. Julia Shaw, Cofounder & Psychologist

Susan Farrell, UX Researcher

ADVISORS

Matthew Yazzie, HR Consultant

Colleen McGarry, Head of People, All Turtles

Defining product requirements

These are the basic requirements we developed as a team, to guide our product development and ensure a high quality product that stands out from the competition.

  • Compliant

  • Scalable and cost-effective content

  • Browser-based, mobile first

  • Multiple sessions + device transfer allowed

  • 2 hours worth of content (based on estimated reading time)

Setting the tone

This training needed to work for such a variety of people and roles, across different industries and all across the country. So, what can we know about our audience?

First of all, let’s assume they are busy. No one ever said, “I can’t wait to do my harassment and discrimination training, because I just have an extra two hours to spare right now.”

And in contrast to a lot of existing trainings, let’s hold our audience in high regard. Let’s assume they are intelligent and that they want to do the right thing. Our training can help them make better decisions in nuanced situations.

Audience characteristics

What can we assume about our audience?

  • Busy

  • Intelligent

  • Well-meaning

Sounds like…

A friend telling a story they find interesting and want your perspective on.

“Hey, listen to this. Here’s what happened. What would you do?”

Emotions

What might people be feeling as they encounter this training?

  • Overwhelmed

  • Resistant

  • Triggered

  • Curious

Characteristics to avoid

Common missteps for content in this space

  • Patronizing

  • Salacious

Voice & tone

What sort of voice will help us best meet our audience where they are?

  • Storyteller

  • Straightforward but engaging

  • Informative but not opinionated

  • Calm, curious

Content direction

  • Nuanced stories that are not obvious or egregious.

  • Anyone who is not already a subject matter expert can learn something new from this.

Following an iterative process

These are the steps I followed over the course of about 6 weeks.

  • Consult with HR advisors

  • Read existing research the team had gathered and conducted

  • Define audience

  • Gather “inspiration” (real life scenarios from broader team)

  • Write

  • Gather feedback from team

  • Revise

  • Test internally

  • Hand off with guidelines to additional writers

Writing took place in a google doc, using tables to organize the content, anticipate the amount of space on a mobile screen, and provide some metadata.

Impact

This project was completed in 2019, and much of the original content remains intact. The training product continues to generate a significant portion of revenue for the company.