The Chat Production Tool for www.bbc.co.uk is a content production system that enables chat rooms and live chat events to be set up by many different users accross the geographically distributed BBC New Media division.
The project brief had requirements that were two-fold. One part was to create a system to support the distributed model of production, which was to replace the model of a dedicated team residing in one location, who individually built and run all chat activity on the website. The second was to overhaul the user experience of the chat interface, which was inconsistent and often not user friendly. The brief was open enough that we could determine many of the new features and areas required to enable users to find and engage with the chat proposition.
Although the end result was satisfactory, it was more memorable as one of the first properly user-centric New Media projects undertaken by the BBC.
My Role: User Experience Design Lead
Skills: Design Direction & Facilitation; Interaction Design; Information Architecture; Brand Development; Graphic Design; User Testing and Interviews
Core Team: Anthony Colfelt; Damian Rees; Caroline Smith; Sri Elkins; Tim West; Jo Bellingham; Colin Hunter
URL: http://www.bbc.co.uk/talk/(BBC chat rooms 'open' and 'close' so, you may not be able to participate if you visit when they are 'closed')