How can you incorporate feedback from marginalized communities in your design?

1 Why feedback matters

Feedback is essential for any design project, but especially for those that aim to address complex and systemic challenges. Feedback can help you validate your assumptions, identify gaps and opportunities, improve your solutions, and measure your impact. However, not all feedback is equal. You need to seek feedback from the people who are most affected by the problem and the solution, and who may have different experiences, values, and expectations than you. These are often marginalized communities, such as low-income, racialized, indigenous, disabled, or LGBTQ+ groups, who face multiple barriers and inequalities in accessing resources, services, and opportunities.

2 How to find feedback sources

One of the first steps to incorporating feedback from marginalized communities is to find out who they are and where they are. You can use various methods and tools to map out your stakeholders, such as personas, empathy maps, stakeholder analysis, or power mapping. These can help you understand who has a stake in the problem and the solution, what their needs and interests are, how they are affected by the current situation, and how they can influence or be influenced by your design. You can also use secondary research, such as reports, articles, or podcasts, to learn more about the context and history of the communities you want to engage with.

3 How to reach out and build trust

Once you have identified your feedback sources, you need to reach out to them and invite them to participate in your design process. This can be challenging, as marginalized communities may have low trust in institutions, authorities, or outsiders, or may have experienced trauma, discrimination, or oppression. You need to be respectful, transparent, and authentic in your communication, and show that you value their input and expertise. You can use various channels and platforms to connect with them, such as social media, newsletters, flyers, or referrals. You can also partner with local organizations, leaders, or advocates who have established relationships and credibility with the communities.

4 How to collect and analyze feedback

There are many ways to collect feedback from marginalized communities, depending on your goals, resources, and timeline. You can use qualitative methods, such as interviews, focus groups, surveys, or observation, to gain insights into their experiences, opinions, and preferences. You can also use participatory methods, such as workshops, co-design sessions, or prototyping, to involve them in generating ideas, testing solutions, or providing feedback. You can use various tools and frameworks to analyze the feedback you collect, such as affinity diagrams, journey maps, or SWOT analysis. You should look for patterns, themes, gaps, or contradictions in the feedback, and compare it with your assumptions and hypotheses.

5 How to act on feedback

Collecting feedback is not enough; you also need to act on it and show how it informs your design decisions and actions. You should acknowledge and appreciate the feedback you receive, and communicate how you will use it and what changes you will make based on it. You should also follow up and update the feedback providers on your progress and outcomes, and invite them to continue the feedback loop. You can use various tools and formats to share your feedback results and actions, such as reports, presentations, newsletters, or dashboards. You should also be open to feedback on your feedback process, and seek ways to improve it.

6 How to evaluate feedback impact

The final step to incorporating feedback from marginalized communities is to evaluate the impact of your feedback process and your design solution. You should measure and monitor the effects of your feedback activities and interventions on the communities and the problem you are trying to solve. You should also collect feedback from the communities on how they perceive and experience the impact of your design solution, and whether it meets their needs and expectations. You can use various methods and tools to evaluate the feedback impact, such as indicators, metrics, or stories. You should also share your evaluation results and learnings with the communities and other stakeholders, and celebrate your achievements and challenges.

7 Here’s what else to consider

This is a space to share examples, stories, or insights that don’t fit into any of the previous sections. What else would you like to add?