Role: Concept, Research, Branding, Visuals, Prototypes, Testing, Mockups
Duration: Jan - Feb 2023
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The problem
Students always face difficulties when looking for a flat, especially if foreign.
Many flats are owned by elderly which don’t rely much on technology and want to have simple lives.
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The goal
Building a website that helps students find accommodation and landlords to rent stress-free.
Target audience
Name: Rita
Age: 75
Occupation: Retired
Rita is retired and needs to rent her flats hassle free. She doesn’t know how to manage them and is not good with technology.
Name: Michaela
Age: 19
Occupation: Student
Michaela is a foreign uni student who needs an easy and reliable way to find a flat.
User research: pain points
Generally, the pain points are around the knowledge of the users. Both of them need simple steps and language to complete the tasks.
Ideation phase
Before sketching the wireframes, I find it useful to list all the features that will go on the page.
Sitemap
The sitemap helped clear out the structure and flow of the website.
Low fidelity prototypes
The main focus was to create a flow to see if the user was able to understand the personalisation part and complete the task easily.
Usability study
One round testing on the low fidelity prototype with users from both age ranges.
Findings
Feedback are mostly focussed on the accessibility for the older target audience. Simpler message and copy work for both targets.
The need for a more appealing layout is mostly to attract the younger one, finding a balance between friendly and trustworthy.
Restyle
Brighter colours and shorter copy, to make the website easier to use and more appealing to the younger target.
Responsive website
The website was thought for both mobile and desktop. Some elements change from one device to the other.
Style guide
Accessibility
The website tries to include as many people as possible. Readability and easy language was essential.
Challenge 1: the method
Designing top down (desktop first) was a challenge. I kept changing elements from mobile to desktop and the other way round, making it difficult to keep up with the design in both the devices together.
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It's better to make sure the design is in a good place before adding another device!
Challenge 2: the visual language
Different targets might have similar pain points and needs, but different tastes.
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Trying to make everyone happy is not easy, but little tests can see if there's room to compromise. Also different pages for different targets will solve the problem!
“The process is quite smooth and you always know where you are and what you are doing. I wish more websites were like this!”
Key learnings
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Finding the users in the correct target for the testing has been essential
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Testing the scale and deciding the hierarchy at the beginning is fundamental.
Next steps
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Translate in different languages.
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Set up a chatbot and a helpline.
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Develop an app.