Dandee Packs
Feature design
Overview
Client:
Dandee Packs is a small business that sells handmade ultralight backpacking packs
What I Contributed:
User research, data synthesis, UX and UI design, prototyping, usability testing
My Role:
Co-design lead on a three person design team
Timeline:
2- week sprint
Discovery
Meeting our client
Before diving into our research, we met with the client to make sure we were prepared to meet their wants and needs. After getting to know our client and their expectations, we were prepared to begin researching.
C&C analysis
Our client provided three competitors with websites we could examine to see how they went about solving the problem our client wanted to solve.
Questionnaire
To gather data about user’s experience ordering custom items, I created a questionnaire. The questionnaire screened so that only people who had ordered custom items would provide responses. These responses provided valuable insight into the highlights and frustrations people experienced when custom ordering.
User Interviews
Before concluding our research, we wanted to talk directly to people who had placed custom orders before. We put together some questions and recruited interviewees. Our objective was to find the pain points, goals, and needs of users who order custom items.
Key takeaways
Users need to establish trust with the company through user reviews and secure payment at checkout
Users want to know what their options are and what each option means when customizing a product
Users want to be able to contact a real person at the company
Users want to be able to track what part of the process their orders are in
Synthesis
Persona and journey map
After getting to know our user’s wants, needs, frustrations, and goals, we had a good idea of who our user was. This guided our persona creation.
Hannah
Bio
Hannah is a careful planner. She spends a lot of time planning her hikes, making sure all of her gear is good quality, and preparing for being on the trails. She knows what she likes and dislikes, and she tailors every trip according to these preferences.
Scenario
Hannah has a short backpacking trip coming up. She has a backpack that works fine, but it doesn’t have all of the features she would ideally want in a backpack. She wants to custom order an ultralight backpack that perfectly fits her needs.
Needs:
To be able to read reviews
To know she can trust the company she is ordering from
To be able to track her orders
To have the flexibility to customize her orders so they meet her expectations
To be able to communicate with someone at the company
Frustrations:
Not knowing when her orders will be ready, or what part of the process they are in
Not knowing whether the item she is ordering will be good quality
Not knowing what customizations are available and thus not being able to customize her orders to her exact preferences
Problem:
Hannah needs to be able to order a custom backpack that meets her needs from a trustworthy company that has a secure ordering, tracking, and payment process.
How might we:
HMW make a feature for users to feel secure placing an order from Dandee Packs
HMW create a customization process that is clear and allows users to be aware of every customization option
HMW allow customers to keep track of their orders
Journey map:
In order to see the high points and low points of ordering a custom item, we laid out the process in a journey map.
First low point:
Hannah goes on the website to order a custom backpack but can’t figure out where to order one on the website
High point:
Hannah is able to communicate directly with Dan, the owner of Dandee Packs, and then is able to securely pay for her custom backpack using Square Pay
Second low point:
After placing her order, Hannah has no idea when it will arrive or if it is even being made yet
Design
Solutions
Create a custom backpack form on the website that shows all the customization options available
Add a reviews and rating section so users can feel confident that they are ordering a quality item
Add tracking to the site that allows our client to update the customer on their order
Our main focus when designing the solution for our client was creating a custom backpack form on the website. When we met with our client, they explained to us that custom orders were only available by contacting Dandee Packs directly through Instagram direct messages or email.
We started by adding a button to the main navigation bar that allows users to customize their backpack. This allows users to easily find the custom backpack page without having to search for it.
This takes us to a customization form that is organized by which part of the pack is being customized to make it easy to view the available options.
Reviews and ratings are available to scroll through at the bottom of the page.
Prototype
Feel free to explore the prototype
Usability testing
We presented our testers with a task: create a custom backpack with specific measurements and materials. Everyone who tested the prototype was able to successfully complete the task. There were some areas of confusion that guided us when deciding on our next steps.
Next steps
The solution we delivered is just the first iteration. To continue to improve user experience, we plan to do another round of usability testing, apply the feedback given, and continue improving on the design.