Airplaza App - A social media platform transforming event posting and organization.
Category
UI/UX Designer
Role
UI/UX Designer
year
April - June 2024
Tools used
Download Airplaza on App Store and Google Play
BRIEF
Airplaza is an app created by Valentino Zegna to bring people together, allowing users to post about events they are organizing and see what is happening in their neighborhood.
USER PROBLEM
Users are struggling with the navbar changes, locating their chosen events, and excessive scrolling for upcoming events.
BUSINESS PROBLEM
The current brand styles are inconsistent, lacking a cohesive design, which hinders the business's ability to attract and engage users who would identify with the brand.
SOLUTION
Design a solution that enables users to easily access their event messages, organizes events into past, near future, and far future categories, and redesigns the logo to reflect the new brand colors.
BEFORE AND AFTER
MY APPROACH
" I divided the whole project was divided into 5 phases: "
CLIENT / BUSINESS GOALS
The aim is to encourage the creation and posting of more events on AirPlaza.
“ I arranged a meeting to understand the owner's objectives, branding, goals, challenges, and aspirations. “
" Capturing the company's essence, core values, vision, and preferences was crucial. "
3 important insights from the meeting:
USER RESEARCH INTERVIEW
Current users expressed difficulty accessing the future events they had planned to attend.
“ I collected feedback the Airplaza owner received from past users and reached out to over 20 current users to understand the issues they were facing with the app and identify the most pressing changes needed. Here are some of the answers received from past complaints ”
User Feedback
Shadowing Testing
“I let users interact with the app and asked them to record their interactions. Afterwards, I asked them a few questions. Here are the questions I asked: ”
“ Here are some of the most relevants answers I received ”
66% of users expressed difficulty maintaining focus due to the constant change of the navbar between the home and event pages.
“ After combining user feedbacks and my analysis from the shadowing results, it was crucial for me to divide the most important takeaways into three key insights. So here they are ”
3 important insights from current Airplaza users
ANALYSIS OF CURRENT AIRPLAZA APP
The discrepancy between the logo and app colors disrupts branding cohesion, while the use of two different navigation bars leads to user confusion.
" Next, I analyzed the current app. While completing this task, I meticulously observed each screen, identifying potential inconsistencies and usability issues crucial for determining the design solution. "
COMPARATIVE ANALYSIS
Given that both competitors lack proper desirability and accessibility in their designs, making our solution accessible will be essential to differentiate ourselves in the market.
"I conducted an in-depth analysis of competitors over two months. By focusing on their strengths and weaknesses, I aimed to understand their user experiences using the 7 Key Factors that shape user experience. My goal was to develop market-leading products to solve my targeted problem."
" This in-depth analysis was essential for identifying the flaws in the current design. The entire research process was highly beneficial in highlighting the most pressing issues. I have summarized them in these three points. "
4 important insights from the research
Airplaza has historically been used by millennials and Gen X as indicated by the owner's records. The focus was on making a journey map of the target audience.
"Focusing on potential use cases, I prioritized scenarios that reflect the challenges faced by Gen X in finding a platform to create, post, and organize events for themselves and their friends."
" After analyzing the current app and having gathered enough insights, I turned to my sketchbook to begin creating rough concepts for the identified opportunity areas from my analysis. To initiate this process, I needed to translate these opportunity areas into specific features. "
BUSINESS GOAL
A product strategy aiming to increase user posts by at least 10%
" Crafting the solution entailed addressing user issues while aligning with the owner's requests and business objectives. The primary focus of the design process was to resolve user concerns in order to attract more users to post on the app. "
3 proposed solutions aimed at enhancing user interaction on the app
LOGO CONCEPT
Communicating to the owner that using three colors, with two of them being extremely similar and unnecessary, proved to be challenging as they were reluctant to change their mind.
“ In order to design a logo that reflected what the owner wanted, I set up a meeting with them to understand their specific requirements and preferences. “
During the meeting, better options for the logo design and the use of colors were explained. This was enough to help the client understand and change the design direction.
3 important elements that the owner wanted were:
FINAL LOGO GENERATION
APP SKETCHING
" Sketches play a crucial role in swiftly visualizing my design concepts. They enable efficient communication of my design ideas and allow for the exploration of multiple iterations before finalizing a concept. "
WIREFRAME
" I aimed to keep the wireframes simple, concentrating on connecting the site's information architecture to its visual design by illustrating paths between pages. "
USER FLOW
CHALLENGES
Budget Issue
A change in the budget caused a restraint in service payment. It was decided to finish the design phase, wait for the payment before delivering, and then proceed to the development stage.
“ Constant communication ensured accurate information and kept me on track with the design or allowed for prompt adjustments. During a weekly meeting, I learned of budget issues and the potential for non-payment. I decided to complete my work and deliver it to the owner only upon payment confirmation. “
Budget and time constraints necessitated switching from qualitative and quantitative methods to A/B testing. Assessing design accessibility was crucial for the final design.
A/B TESTING
" For the initial round of testing, the prototype was distributed to a total of 20 current users of Airplaza. Participants were asked to share their overall experience with the app and I managed to identify the better option between the 2. "
Test 1
Interesting Insight from Test 1
" Adding the extra “new” text created repetition. "
Test 2
Insights from Test 2
FINAL DESIGN
BEFORE AND AFTER
INTRODUCING AIRPLAZA APP
An updated design with a consistent navbar and visual hierarchy.
CHALLENGES
Unexpected budget issues
" Adapting to this change and deciding the right course of action was challenging, but I managed to stay focused, complete my design, and accept that it might not turn out as I had hoped. I saw it as an opportunity to practice my skills and create a valuable learning piece and portfolio project. "
Managing unexpected design constraints with developer
" During the design process, I collaborated closely with the owner, who also served as the developer. We encountered challenges with implementing some of the designs, necessitating ongoing communication to modify and adapt the designs to ensure successful development. "
WHAT WOULD I DO DIFFERENTLY?
If I had the resources, I would have conducted qualitative research to gather information on how users interacted with the final product. This would have allowed me to verify if my final design was ready for development.
WHERE IS THE PROJECT CURRENTLY STANDING?
Project is pending payment and development timeline is still uncertain
" The project is currently awaiting further direction from the owner, and I have not received an update on the next steps. "
CONCLUSION
Despite the project being pending and payment not yet made, I see it as an opportunity to showcase my skills. I look forward to seeing my designs being developed soon.
