Public sector and not for profit

Royal Mail needs properly labelled mail containers to route mail accurately and efficiently through its network. Royal Mail knew its label designs sometimes confused staff and that a simpler, black-and-white design could save costs. Royal Mail asked new experience to help develop and test a new design.

Royal Mail was using more than 100 different paper stocks just for labelling its mailbags. The system had developed over many years with new features added, typically in response to a particular, local problem routing mail. The result was a morass of different designs with little or no system logic and legacy features that no longer served a purpose.
 

We started by developing prototypes for a simplified system of labels based on mapping the routing processes. We stripped out legacy features and focused on a minimum number of indications that would support key routing decisions.

Although the new system worked in black and white, we created a yellow version as an option for highlighting mechanically sortable mail – the most critical factor in efficient routing.

We then tested dummy labels in a sorting office with postmen and women, and in a lab with administrative staff. This way we benefited from the knowledge of expert users working in a natural setting while also replicating the experience of novices. In the lab we could also quantify and compare performance of the black-and-white and colour designs.
 

The test findings helped us refine the label design and underlined why we should retaining colour to distinguish between manual and mechanically-sortable mail. Perhaps the most interesting finding was that even the most expert of users appreciated a simple design that allowed them to sort more efficiently even when listening to the radio or chatting.

“Working with new experience has exposed us to a rigorous approach combining user research and testing with information design. By working with new experience throughout the user-centred design process we have achieved excellent solutions more quickly and more cost effectively.”
Jane Dillon, Head of Ergonomics, Royal Mail