Handoff
Once the design had been tested and refined, I handed off the final mock-ups and flow to the Development Team for guidance as they coded the app. They had direct access to the design files and links to brand guidelines to ensure consistency.
Mobile Reminder App
- My Role: Lead UX Designer, User Research, Information Architecture, UI Design, Usability Testing
- Tools: Figma, Figjam, Miro, Google Docs
Project Overview
The goal of this project was to design an MVP version of a Mobile Reminder App that helps citizens track essential dealings with state agencies in one place with the ability to provide reminders, timely notifications, and easy access to important information to prevent missed deadlines.
Problem
Many people struggle to manage their dealings with state agencies, such as renewing their licenses, paying property taxes, and other essential tasks, leading to missed deadlines, penalties, and other negative consequences.
My Design Process
Research
The research phase included analyzing the existing website, studying analytics reports, performing a content audit, conducting interviews, and comparing other nursing websites.
Kickoff
To begin the project, I held a Kickoff Meeting with stakeholders, including the development team, to gain insight into the project. In the meeting, I learned about the business goals for the app, constraints to consider, and users.
Key Insights:
- The current way citizens track business with state agencies is outdated.
- The deliverable would be a prototype for MVP with enough features to attract early adopters and validate the idea.
- This solution would decrease the resources (call center, mail, and chat), which would retain revenue and reduce workload.
- Users targeted – homeowners, voters, and motor vehicle owners.
Interviews
Then, I conducted interviews with individuals who manage dealings with state agencies to understand their pain points, needs, and challenges.
Interviewee Questions:
- What are some of the most common issues you see people face when dealing with state agencies?
- How do you typically handle situations where someone misses a deadline or has trouble completing a task related to a state agency?
- What features or tools would be most helpful for people when dealing with state agencies?
- What kinds of dealings have you had with state agencies in the past?
- Can you describe a time when you missed a deadline or had trouble completing a task related to a state agency?
- What factors contributed to you missing the deadline or having trouble completing the task?
- What would have helped you stay on the deadline or complete the task more efficiently?
- What strategies have you used to stay on top of deadlines and complete tasks related to state agencies?
- What resources have you found helpful when dealing with state agencies?
- Have you ever used a reminder or task management app to help you stay organized? If so, what features did you find most useful?
- What platforms will the app need to be developed for (e.g., iOS, Android)?
- What data can we display to users, and what will the app collect from users?
- What are the key technical challenges that the development team anticipates for this project?
Analyze Feedback
I used an Affinity Map to analyze feedback I received from the interviews to identify common pain points and needs.
Key Insights:
- Citizens were informed by mail or phone calls about tasks with the state.
- Citizens didn’t receive critical information due to invalid addresses.
- Citizens missed voicemails due to changing phone numbers.
- Call Center received a high volume of inquiries about due dates and how to take action on business needs.
- Finding the proper department to transfer calls to is time-consuming.
- Callers were often routed back to the call center.
- Citizens were paying late fees for forgotten renewals.
- Employees dealt with the frustration of handling late fees.
- Many citizens didn’t receive voter registration in the mail on time.
- Citizens missed the opportunity to vote.
- People wanted to know about upcoming events and closures due to holidays.
- They made trips to the offices when they were closed.
Market Research
Next, I conducted a comparative analysis to examine other mobile reminder apps to understand what features are commonly offered.
Common Features:
- Users are reminded via alerts and notifications
- Tasks are displayed in a list
- Users could update their preferences
- Option to mark a task as complete
- No internet is required for some functions
Define
This phase included the development of user personas and user journey maps. This information helped me create a list of key features.
Personas & User Journey Mapping
Using my findings from research, I developed user personas to identify the target audience and help me design a solution that meets their needs.
Problem Statement
Many people struggle to manage their dealings with state agencies, such as renewing their licenses, paying property taxes, and other essential tasks. This can lead to missed deadlines, penalties, and additional stress. The mobile reminder app aims to provide a solution by allowing users to track and manage their dealings with state agencies in one place, receive timely reminders, and easily stay on top of their obligations.
Feature Prioritization
I held a workshop with stakeholders to generate ideas and compile a list of possible features. Then, I used the MoSCoW method to prioritize and ensure that the most critical components are first developed.
MVP Features:
Guides users through a simple onboarding process to sign up and set up their accounts.
For Existing users
Users can select and update their location to receive information and reminders specific to their state and local agencies.
Users can choose the specific services that apply to them so they only receive relevant reminders and information.
A list of tasks, deadlines, and directions to take action.
Users can customize the type of notifications they receive based on their preferences.
Users can update their personal information and obligations.
Help link to assist with general inquiries.
User Flow
I developed user flows that map out the steps users would take to accomplish their goals within the app. Then, I synced with the development team to ensure the data on the screens could be retrieved from the database.
2 paths had to be considered:
New Users – Create Account, Onboarding
Existing Users – Login, Password Recovery
Design
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Wireframes
Based on the user flows, I created low-fidelity wireframes to display the layout and structure of the app, which I presented to stakeholders for feedback. The first iteration of onboarding was overwhelming, which we later simplified. After working through a few iterations, I finalized the layouts below.
Mockups
Once the wireframes were approved, I followed brand guidelines and translated them into high-fidelity screens in preparation for testing.
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Testing
I created a clickable prototype that simulated the user experience of the app. Then, I used it to test the app with users and gather feedback on its usability and effectiveness.
Test Plan
I created a test plan to identify usability issues and validate the app’s functionality and design.
The goal of testing was to get feedback and clarity on whether:
- Participants can navigate through the prototype successfully and if there are any friction points in the flow to eliminate confusion.
- Clarify if people could add their location and select services to track.
- See if participants could choose ways to be notified.
- Capture if they know how to take action before a deadline.
- Collect feedback and give users an opportunity for suggestions.
Usability Testing
Next, I ran a moderated test and observed participants as they completed tasks.
Results
The usability testing results suggested the mobile reminder app is user-friendly and effective.
Iterations:
Some areas for improvement needed to be addressed:
Increase the size of some fonts and icons to make them clear and easy to understand.
Retrospect
This project had a lot of requirements with little time to iterate. I would have liked to have access to more users and to conduct more testing, which is very important when building an app. Instead, I had to rely mostly on stakeholders’ insights to develop the features.
I learned how vital information architecture is to allow users to navigate quickly. The goal was to inform the user fast and efficiently, which we achieved. I’m proud of the work accomplished within a short amount of time.
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