Cathy's Cafe
Cathy’s Café is a local restaurant that aims to offer quality breakfasts and lunches. Their target customers are white-collar workers in the area that want food that can be brought to them during their busy days.
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Project Duration: September 2022 to November 2022
The Problem
Many working adults find getting a quality meal during the day to be a challenge.
The Goal
Design an app that helps Cathy’s Café reach an untapped market and help users get a fresh and healthy meal delivered.
Project Overview
Role: UX Designer
Responsibilities:
Conducting interviews, paper and digital wireframing, low and high-fidelity prototyping, conducting usability studies, accounting for accessibility, and iterating on designs.
Understanding
the user
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User Research
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User Persona
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Problem Statements
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User Journey Map
User Research: Summary
I conducted interviews and created empathy maps to understand the users I’m designing for and their needs. A primary user group identified was working adults with little time to travel during the day.
Users confirmed initial assumptions about Cathy’s Café’s customers but also identified additional customers who have trouble leaving their homes due to other factors such as disability.
User Research: Pain Points
1
Time
Working adults do not have the time to pickup meals during business hours.
2
Accessibility
Platforms for ordering food are not equipped with assistive technologies.
3
Scheduling
Working adults need reliability that other delivery apps do not offer.
Problem Statement:
Chan is a busy intern who needs a delivery app because he does not have the time to pick food up.
User Journey Map
Mapping Chan’s user journey revealed how helpful it would be for users to have a dedicated app for their local café.
Starting the design
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Paper wireframes
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Digital wireframes
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Low-fidelity prototypes
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Usability studies
Paper wireframes
Each iteration of the home screen on paper helped ensure that user pain points were addressed in the created digital wireframes. The final drawn design (bottom right) captures the best of each of the previous designs. For the home screen, I prioritized a quick and easy way for customers to order.
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Stars were used to mark the elements of each sketch that would be used in the initial digital wireframes.
Digital Wireframes
As the initial design process continued, I made sure to use the feedback I received from user research to plan the layout.
Digital Wireframes
Easy navigation was a key user need to address in the designs in addition to equipping the app to work with assistive technologies.
Usability Study: Findings
Round 1
Findings
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Users want an easier to use menu
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Users want a cleaner ordering process
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Users like the profile navigation
Round 2
Findings
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The checkout process wasn't clear
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Modifications weren't clear
Refining the design
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Mockups
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High-fidelity prototype
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Accessibility
Mockups
Early designs called for fewer screens but users found it missed key information. I revised the design so users could see/confirm payment types.
Before usability study
After usability study
Mockups
The second usability study found that users were not confident with confirming an order. Added options to the Confirm Cart page to make it easier for users.
Before usability study
After usability study
Accessibility considerations
1
Provided access to users who are vision impaired through adding alt theme to images for screen readers.
2
Used icons to help make navigation easier.
3
Used imagery for menu items to help all users identify what they are selecting.
Going forward
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Takeaways
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Next Steps
Takeaways
Impact:
The app makes it easy for users to order food/drinks with confidence.
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One quote from a user: “The app made it easy for me to check allergens which is important to me, and it was easy to schedule ahead.”
What I learned:
I learned that many different steps need to be added to an app for ordering to make it easier for users. Usability studies and peer feedback were critical in coming to that conclusion.
Next Steps
1
Conduct another usability study to validate whether the pain points users experienced have been addressed properly.
2
Conduct additional research to see what services might need to be added to improve the user experience.
3
Confer with peers to discuss additional layouts that might have a positive impact on the user experience.