A Paris Food Guide
Role: UI/UX Designer (student project)
Tools: Pen & paper, Balsamiq, POP by Marvel, Sketch, Photoshop,
InVision.
Duration: 3 weeks
Platform: Mobile App (iOS)
Overview
Millennials care about exploring the food scene when visiting Paris. They are inspired by social media, and food is an important aspect of their traveling experience. Having too many restaurant options can be overwhelming, so the goal is to create an app that provides a curated list of hip, high rated restaurants. It can work as a navigation tool, and as a planning tool for millennial tourists.
The problem
Millennial tourists find it difficult to find places to eat in Paris. This is not because of limited options, but instead because of the overwhelming number of restaurants in the city. Young tourists want to eat at hip, high rated restaurants. They need an easy way to access a list of restaurants that meet this criteria, and are near them at any given point while exploring the city.
Research
To learn about the interests of millennials visiting Paris, I created two short surveys. One of the surveys was answered by five people living in Paris. These are people with large number of followers on social media, and that constantly receive request for recommendations. The other survey was answered by ten millennials who travel at least once a year. After collecting the responses, I organized them on an affinity diagram to look for patterns. The responses are summarized below.
From millenial tourists
• Social media influences the restaurants they want to visit.
• Most of their food decisions happen on the go.
• Want to eat at hip, high rated restaurants.
• Food is an important part of their travel experience.
From people living in Paris
• Most popular request is for food recommendations.
• Request for recommendations at least once a week
• Best way to explore the city is by walking.
• Young people reach out the most for recommendations.
Competitor Analysis
There are many apps that focus on food, so I wanted to learn about how their approach to exploring the food scene in the city. I wanted to learn how similar or different they are, and what I can do better to help the users achieve their goals.
Determining user's goals and needs and highlighting their pain points.
To empathize with potential users, I created two personas based on research. They encompass the characteristics of potential users, and are representative of the users' goals and pain points. Personas are relevant throughout the design process, for they help to represent the target user group, and ultimately create a better experience for them.
Jasmine - Persona
Mateo - Persona
In order to learn more about the potential pain points and opportunities, I worked on two user journeys. One represents the experience without the app, and highlights the pain points encountered. The other user journey aims to present the experience after addressing the pain points discovered. The user journeys help me identify the opportunities, and make the necessary design decisions, to address the users' needs.
As - Is user journey map
To - Be user journey map
Digest the information and prioritize features
The list of features was too long for a proof of concept app, so I prioritized them based on effort and impact. The features in the low effort and high impact quadrant are the main focus of the application. I also decided to explore a possible revenue stream, so I added a potential in app purchase option for food guides. Feature prioritization makes it easier to organize information and to focus on the most relevant features.
Prioritization grid
User flow + Wireframes
After prioritizing the features, and because I needed a quick way visualize and test the concept, I created a basic user flow and low fidelity wireframes. I will use the wireframes to test the concept, and to learn more about the users' expectations.
Wireframes
Learn and make improvements
I conducted usability tests using POP by Marvel app. Five people volunteered, and I recorded their reactions and the points of confusion that they encountered. The participants had the freedom to explore the app, and shared any thoughts they had. The pain points encountered had to do with language, and map features. All of the users were able to complete the tasks of searching for a restaurant and completing the reservation process. User testing provided the information needed to make changes in order to ensure a better user experience.
A esthetically pleasing app that solves a problem
An app that makes it easier for millennials to explore the food scene in Paris. After user testing, I made changes necessary and addressed the pain points. The app makes it easier for more millennials to access an organized and curated list of restaurants in the city. They can search by estimated walking distance, or by restaurant name. They can make a reservation, add it to their itinerary and share it. Users also have the option of purchasing guides by their favorite influencers.
The next activity was to put together a style guide. This was in order to organize and have easy access to the styling information. It is a great resource especially when moving into the development phase. The style guide makes it easier to share information about the different UI elements and their characteristics; It can also be helpful to ensure their proper implementation.
Style guide
The high fidelity mockups helped me illustrate the arrangement and cohesiveness of the different styling elements. They help to convey a better and more realistic idea of the final product, and can aid communication between clients, designers, and developers.
High fidelity mockups
To enhance the interaction and provide a feel for more realistic functionality, I used InVision to create a prototype. It encompasses the look and feel of the product. The prototype helps to illustrate the visual elements, and demonstrates the functionality as if the app was live.
Ptorotype
Lessons
This project gave me the opportunity to learn more about iOS and the Human Interface Guidelines. It was also a great opportunity to learn about Google Maps Platform, and how its services can be integrated in apps such as this one.