Case Study:
Dog
Fresh
Project Overview
The Problem
Some pet parents want to feed their dogs healthy, human-grade food, but many of the human-grade options cost a lot of money and can consist of ingredients a pet doesn’t like or is allergic to.
My role
UX designer leading the responsive website design from conception to delivery
The goal
The goal is to design an app that will allow users to order pet food online which will allow users with limited time to order customized human-grade pet food, delivered right to their door.
Responsibilities
Conducting research, paper and digital wireframing, low and high-fidelity prototyping, conducting usability studies, accounting for accessibility, iterating on designs and determining information architecture.
The product
DogFresh is an app that allows users who are wanting human grade food to choose the ingredients that best suits their dog.
Project duration
August 2021 - September 2021 2021
Understanding the user
Before i started designing the app, I wanted to gather feedback from potential users. The goal of the survey was to determine the barriers to entry and pain points the potential users could have. Understanding the problems that already exist is a great gateway into the design process. The results of the study allowed me to gather information on a group of potential users that I had not thought of before.
User pain points
Cost
The main pain point was cost, subscription dog food can be expensive. Many of the participants I surveyed said they would switch if the product was less expensive.
Routine
Some users did not want to switch because they did not want to change their set routine.
Autoship fees
Others said their main reservations were the autoship fees associated with getting their order weekly or biweekly.
Persona & problem statement
Sarah is a full time copywriter and mother who needs an app that will send healthy dog food to her doorstep because she does not have time to drive 60 miles to a petstore.
User journey map
I created a user journey map to better understand Sarah’s experience while ordering fresh pet food.
Starting the design
Paper wireframes
My goal was to create enough paper wireframes and organize the best ideas into one concise wireframe.
Digital wireframes
Moving from paper to digital wireframes helped me to understand the user pain points within the design to improve the user experience.
Usability study findings
I created a low fidelity prototype, which you can view here, in order to start user testing. The usability study consisted of 5 participants. Here were the main findings:
1. Account Settings
Users struggled to find the account settings section
2. Buttons
Users struggled to find the customize food button on homepage.
3. home button
Users were confused about how to get back to the homepage.
Refining the design
Mockups
I moved the toolbar from the top to the bottom so it calls out the different sections of the app more clearly.
I deleted the photo behind the call to action button so it was easier to see.
Before usability study
After usability study
Limited use of color in order to make the call to action buttons more visible.
Before usability study
After usability study
Accessibility considerations
1.
I used color combinations that allowed individuals with all different types of color blindness to easily navigate through the app.
2.
I wanted the app to be able to be used with one hand so people with permanent or temporary disabilities affecting their arms could use the app.
Going forward
Takeaways
Impact
One user shared that they liked the idea that they could customize the food their dogs were getting in order to avoid allergies or food their dogs don’t like.
1.
Follow up with a second usability study.
What I learned
I learned that the use of color and button sizes matter while navigating through a design.
2.
Identify any other opportunities for improvement.