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How we built

For the past three years
Atomico (atomico.com) has
compiled The State of European Tech
(stateofeuropeantech.com), an annual
report that shines a light on what’s
happening in Europe’s burgeoning tech
ecosystem. For the latest and most
comprehensive edition, surveying
over 3,500 people and teaming up with
data partners including LinkedIn,
Stack Overflow and The London Stock
Exchange, Atomico decided that it
wanted to give its readers a way to
properly explore the data other than a
traditional annual report format. Enter
the team at Studio Lovelock (www.
studiolovelock.com).

How is this year’s report different to
previous years?
JL: Beyond being the biggest and deepest
look into Europe’s tech scene yet, this is
also the first time the report has been
primarily presented online. You can still
download a full PDF of the report from
the site but the best way to view and
interact with the data is via the website.
Users can manipulate charts and graphs,
refine results and download custom-
made charts and reports. Accompanying
the hard data are insights and thoughts
from data partners and interviewees
to support and share insight on key
findings, which helps bring a human
element to the information.

What was the brief?
JL: The brief was to adapt the standard
annual report and bring it online with
the aim of providing flexible data for

the users to manipulate and explore in a

deeper way than is possible [with] a PDF

or physical report. We were also tasked

with making the data visually appealing

whilst also not getting in the way of the

report’s main purpose, which is showing

clear data.

How did Studio Lovelock become

involved in the project?

JL: A mutual friend of ours invited

us to submit a proposal based on the

aforementioned brief from Atomico.

Within our proposal we tried to articulate

our eagerness and our ideas around the

possibilities of the project. I believe our

ideas around project potential are what

got us in the door and then once we were

in, our eagerness and excitement maybe

sealed the job.

Tell us a bit about your UX process

JL: The report is written in a linear

narrative form with a beginning and an

end. We wanted to retain that structure

whilst still enabling the user to engage

at different levels depending on whether

they were after a general overview of

the findings, interested only in certain

sections or wanted to read the full report.

Given the quantity of data there needed

to be a simple structure that the user

could grasp quickly and consequently

move around the report without too

much effort, whether that be browsing

or seeking out specific information. Also

from a content creation perspective,

we wanted to be able to give clear

instructions as to what [it was] we needed

from Atomico.

MATT COLLINS

Matt is a web developer and

technical lead who has amassed

years of experience

w: mcollins.co.uk

JOE LOVELOCK

Joe is creative director at Studio

Lovelock and was responsible for

the site’s UX and visual design

w: studiolovelock.com

MIKE ALLANSON

Mike is a freelance developer

able to build sites and the servers

they live on from top to bottom

w: madebycomrades.com

TIMELINE

How Studio Lovelock

approached the project

AUGUST 2017

An initial meeting to explain our

approach and convince Atomico we can

bring something special to the project.

AUGUST 2017

A workshop to explore the brief in depth

and ensure we understand what the

client wants to achieve with the project.

AUGUST 2017

Explore how we can translate the values

into a visual aesthetic and manage to

bring the content to life in a clear and

engaging manner.

SEPTEMBER 2017

Define key user journeys and how we

structure the content in a logical and

intuitive way across all devices.

SEPTEMBER 2017

Deconstruct the content and data

requirements and translate into a

flexible system so the client can

populate the site efficiently.

OCTOBER 2017

A loop of populating the site with real

content and tweaking both the CMS and

frontend to accommodate edge cases

and polish the design.

NOVEMBER 2017

A coordinated effort from the team to

get 60+ articles containing over 250

graphs up onto the site.

NOVEMBER 2017

Thorough bug testing and final design

polish in time for a co-ordinated press

launch across the European business

media and on stage at Slush 2017.

DECEMBER 2017

Tracking the data to get an insight into

who is using the site and in what way.