01
Understand people
Research and customer insight to clarify the people, context, and real problem before resources are committed.
Need answers quickly? Explore the Research Clarity SprintWhat arewe making?
Misfit Island helps organizations figure out what to make, design the experience, and carry the work through to launch, delivery, or what comes next.
Start a conversationProduct direction Customer insight Experience design Independent practice
Different work.
Same question.
01 / Understand
Who is this for, and what does the work need to do?
02 / Define
What is worth making, improving, or changing?
Good work needs a way in. Not every engagement begins at the same point. The work might need understanding, direction, a designed experience, or help getting it into the world.
02
Find the shape
Product strategy and direction to define what to make, where to focus, and what needs to be true.
03
Design the encounter
Shape ideas, build prototypes, and test digital, physical, and service experiences with the people who will use them.
04
Bring it to life
Plan the launch, create the content, and help produce the experience, working alongside your team where needed.
How engagements work
The method follows the work.
01
Focused research
A clear question, the right people to learn from, and useful customer insights.
02
Strategy project
A defined opportunity, evidence to guide direction, and a plan the team can execute.
03
Design or experience project
A product, service, or brand moment that needs to be shaped and tested.
04
Launch and activation support
Planning, creative development, facilitation, or production depth around a live moment.
05
Independent, embedded, or agency partner
Senior support delivered independently, alongside an internal team, or under an agency partner without unnecessary overhead.
Selected work
A range of questions,
contexts, and formats.
01
Research for a national brand
Ethnographic fieldwork and in-depth interviews gave a brand team a clearer view of customer behavior before major branding decisions.
02
AI capability research and strategy
A market scan and research program helped leadership weigh how a new AI capability should relate to an existing product.
03
Enterprise product and experience work
Research, UX design, and validation for complex systems in technology, agriculture, and institutional access.
04
Quote-First Commerce Redesign
Field research showed that a conventional ecommerce model conflicted with relationship-based pricing and branch workflows, changing the product direction before costly decisions were locked in.
Directly with your team or alongside your agency.
Misfit Island can lead a defined piece of work for your organization, or add research, strategy, design, facilitation, and production depth to an agency or consulting team.
The goal is straightforward: useful work, clear communication, and a delivery that fits the way your team already works.
About the practice
Baxter
I bring together two long careers: cinematography, production, and storytelling; then UX research, product strategy, design, and enterprise work. That range is useful when a project needs both a rigorous understanding of people and the practical craft to shape an experience people can use.
I've worked across technology, agriculture, manufacturing, media, agency partnerships, and live sports. The subject changes; the job is to get close to the people involved, understand the constraints, and make something worth using or showing up for.
More about BaxterStart here
Have something you're trying to create, improve, validate, launch, or bring to life?
A short conversation is a good place to start. We can talk about the work, what you need, and whether Misfit Island is a useful fit.