ESB Overheard Wire
How to better communicate the ESB's sustainability credentials? One response which was borne out of that questioning was the Overheard Wire- a new standalone digital space that pulled together all of the ESB's activities across different business units, into one place
Skills:
New product conceptualisation, UX+UI, Branding
Crafted with:
Figma, Unsplash, Mockup Plugin
Preview:
Date:
2021
When thinking of how Ireland transitions to a decarbonised society, the ESB doesn't necessarily spring to mind
This was the challenge we were presented with, as part of my Postgrad Diploma in Design Thinking for Sustainability. What became quite clear early on in the research project (working directly with the ESB) was that their sustainability credentials, their role in the transition, was largely being overlooked. To emphasise this point, their sustainability report wasn't at all reaching the numbers they would've liked it to. So the opportunity presented to us was how to better communicate their sustainability message, and reach a new audience in the process.
The image above illustrates research I did into all the ways in which ESB interacts with the wider world- from apprenticeships to community funds to Darkness into Light. The research showed the abundance of ways in which people can interact with the ESB (and better understand their role in helping to decarbonise our society). At the time there was no one single place where all of these disparate initiatives, opportunities or events could be viewed and engaged with. Furthermore, there was nowhere that had categorised all these disparate elements to allow for discoverability, browsing, or specific searching.
Aside from the intra-team discussions, we conducted qualitative interviews and 100+ quantitative surveys, seeking to understand stakeholders’ views & experiences of the ESB and the wider decarbonisation space. Ultimately we also delivered concepts for an online role-playing game, and a concept for a physical endurance race encompassing ESB landmarks. The challenges lay first in finding all of the ways that ESB (and its affiliated organisations) reached the public. Once documented, these elements all had to be categorised. The challenge then became how to visually display all these distinct elements
A bespoke one-stop shop, a window into all of the ESB-related activities through which people can interact
The Overheard Wire offers an opportunity for the ESB to show the public and interested stakeholders the vital work they're doing. The novel digital space provides a home to discover & learn about numerous different initiatives. The interactive calendar feature allows for a simple & engaging way to easily see and plan for a given event. The name was a play on words inspired by ESB's legacy in providing electricity via overhead wires, combined with a twist of 'overheard', as the product helps keep you up-to-date with relevant information.