Challenge

In a highly competitive children’s thermometer category, with new and diverse technologies continually expanding the field of play, Microlife sought to better understand the needs and concerns of parents, identify high priority attributes, and create kid friendly product solutions ideal for family use.

Methodology

Working collaboratively with target parents and client stakeholders, our innovation team utilized consumer sessions to empathically surface emotional and functional concerns and wishes. Roleplaying and forced association exercises, among others, inspired the creation of desired attributes and features visualized with live sketching for immediate directional validation and iterative refinement.

Insights

“When they’re sick my kids are cranky and they don’t want to cooperate.”

“Thermometers look serious and can be intimidating.”

“I worry that germs will spread (when shared) and then everyone gets sick!”

“Thermometers are hard to clean…but they need to be sanitary.”

Impact

Licensed by American Red Cross this unique category entry with detachable, washable tips successfully delivered on mitigating the widely held concern about cross-contamination and recontamination through transferring germs from “sick child to well child”. A distinctive and unintimidating soft and friendly design aesthetic was applied to alleviate the stress and tension often experienced between parent and child at temperature taking time.