I am an industrial designer, who dabbles in the one-off weekend illustration. Projectkish- an inspiring initiative working towards simplifying legal terms for the Indian masses, invited me to collaborate with them on a communication design test-drive. My contribution was a 3-day design sprint to visually communicate an insurance policy document. The result would then be tested with a group of research participants to receive their feedback.
I began my process by reading the document a couple of times and highlighting important words. I then skimmed the internet for more information on the policy, to better understand it myself.
I tried to strip the information down to a basic level and design as if I was explaining it to an alien. I drew inspiration from IKEA assembly instruction manuals for their ability to traverse language barriers through simple line-drawing sketches.
I did not want to start with assumptions about the literacy level of the research group. However, I opined that creating a visual document with minimal text aids could not only create a base for us to elaborate on later, but also be a personal challenge for me ☺
I created a reference key with 3 main symbols:
A Rupee note to symbolize money
A calendar to denote number of years
The Sun to depict number of days
Further, all numerical values (for money or time) were represented with hand gestures.
The final document I created would require an initial explanation to introduce the key and the flow of information. I assume one or two walkthroughs would suffice to get an overview of it. I imagine users could annotate around the sketches to help them remember in the future. A possible way to test a user’s grasp of the document could be to ask them to explain it to someone else once they have a clear understanding of it.
This exercise challenged me to break down a fairly complex idea to its essentials. It was as much a learning experience for me as it may be for the people it was intended to cater to. This was an exciting way for me to wet my feet in a very meaningful project and do my bit.
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