Project Overview

 
 
 

  • The Problem

    Customers were too busy to buy flowers in person during the work day and didn’t have a way to customize their orders.

  • The Goal

    Create an app that allows users to order flowers quickly and simply, and maybe even have some fun.

  • The Product

    A Flower Shop is a mobile app that offers a fun and quick way to buy flower arrangements. A Flower Shop aims to simplify flower buying for busy individuals with little to no previous experience. Customers can choose from four “shopping adventures”, each with varying involvement and customization options.

  • My Role

    UX designer building the mobile app from conception to delivery.

  • My Responsibilities

    Conducted user interviews, brainstormed, created paper and digital wireframes, designed low and high fidelity prototypes, conducted usability studies, accounted for accessibility, and iterated on designs.

  • Project Duration

    July 2021 to November 2021

Understanding the User

 
 
 

I conducted interviews and created empathy maps in order to better understand my user and what needs should be addressed. A user group was identified of working individuals who lacked time in their schedule to visit florists during the work day or before shops closed.


After conducting interviews I learned about numerous pain points starting with flower shop hours and availability, a lack of support in personalizing bouquets, to being unable to track orders or control delivery time.

 

User Pain Points

Time

Working adults struggle to find time to make it to flower shops outside of their busy work day


Support

Users unfamiliar with flower arranging don’t know how to choose the right bouquet


Tracking

Flower deliveries have arrived late or at the wrong address

Stress

Shoppers find ordering flowers to be stressful and time consuming

Persona and Problem Statement

Jazz is a hard-working professional who needs help choosing and ordering flowers because they lack time in their day to visit a florist.

 
 

User Journey Map

Mapping out Jazz’s journey map validated the benefit of having a florist app with ordering support and tracking for users.

 
 

Starting the Design

 
 

Paper Wireframes

Creating the paper wireframes and iterating on designs highlighted elements to include in digital wireframes, such as easy order tracking, a fun way to feel empowered in shopping, and offering multiple ways to shop.

 
 
 
 

Digital Wireframes

Continuing to iterate on wireframes, I placed buttons for main navigation needs on the homepage, along with shopping flow options for easy and fun ordering.

 
 

To begin the checkout flow in the app, I created a shipping page for users to include the address they want flowers to be delivered to, along with a preferred date and time for the delivery.

 
 

Usability Study Findings

I conducted two rounds of usability studies with the first informing me of adjustments to make when creating mockups for the app, and the second round gaining insights in what to include or change when creating the high-fidelity prototype.

 
 

Round 1 Findings

  • Banners should be differentiated from buttons

  • Users wanted main navigate button in same spot on pages for easy clicking

  • Users want to order flowers quickly


Round 2 Findings

  • Wording in directions for customize flow were too similar to personality test

  • Color palette should be first selection for both customize and personality test flows

Refining the Design

 
 
 

Mockups

Early wireframes offered more navigation buttons with flat designs, confusing users with what to focus or click on. After the usability study, some functions were removed, and drop shadows were added to buttons in the main flow to give visual dimension.

 
 

To begin the checkout flow in the app, I created a shipping page for users to include the address they want flowers to be delivered to, along with a preferred date and time for the delivery.

 
 

Accessibility Considerations

  • Used illustrations and icons to help all users better understand the designs.

  • Included captions for screen readers and added context in navigation and descriptions.

  • Followed color contrast accessibility standards for buttons and written content.

Refined Designs

High-Fidelity Prototype

 The final high-fidelity prototype showcased four polished and streamlined user flow options for shoppers: personality test, customize, fan favorites, and seasonal specials.

Going Forward

 
 
 

Takeaways

Impact

A Flower Shop app allows users to feel confident buying flowers online, and having some fun in the process.

Quote from user feedback:

“This super-simplified the process for me. I’m not savvy enough to create my own flower arrangement nor do I want to choose from preset selections. Using my interests as a design theme was a great idea.”

 

What I learned

I learned that ideas and vision will morph and grow, along with understanding user needs, throughout the design and iteration process.

 

Next Steps

Conduct another round of usability studies to ensure edits and additions made effectively address user needs and pain points.

Conduct user research and iterate on designs as user needs change or are newly discovered.

 
 
 
Next

Gastropup