I redesigned Sole’s website to be more inclusive to customers who may have a dietary restriction. The CDC states: “In 2015–2018, 17.1% of U.S. adults aged 20 and over were on a special diet on a given day”. With dietary restrictions a customer would want to know if they find something they can eat.
It’s hard finding something to eat if you have dietary restrictions
After equipping myself with valuable insights from a heuristics evaluation, I delved into a stakeholder interview to pinpoint their project needs. Their primary objective? Amping up website engagement and attracting a fresh influx of customers.
What may stop customer conversion?
After user interviews and research, it's clear that pixelated photos and vague menu descriptions deter potential customers. Stakeholders and some users also pointed out the difficulty for those with dietary restrictions in finding suitable menu options.
Solution
Higher quality content & menu filtering
We revamped the dining experience for young adults by offering easily accessible nutritional information and top-notch content about a restaurant. To boost their confidence in exploring new culinary ventures, we upgraded the visuals by swapping out low-resolution photos with high-quality ones. Additionally, we streamlined the menu for user-friendly navigation.
Mobile Web Prototype
-The dietary filter function instills confidence that everyone in their party can find something to eat. -From the previous website design, I made the menu more efficient to navigate through with a sub menu.
How I tried to design for emotion
I tried to provide a positive and memorable experience.
confirmation feature can help alleviate this anxiety by providing a positive and reassuring message that their order is ready.
Strategic phase 1 of 4
Empathizing
I initiated my research by collecting qualitative data about the online ordering experience on the Starbucks app.
User Interviews
User Interview Objectives
The goal of this research is to identify the main reasons why users visit restaurant websites and motivates users to order online or visit the restaurant.
Participants
5 people (23-54 years old)
Eat out at least twice a month
Interview Location
Conducted via Zoom
Key Insights
📜
All Interviewees want to be about to find a clear and concise menu
📱📅
A majority of interviewees mentioned that they’d light to be able to order ahead online or book a reservation online.
📸🍔️
80% of interviewee’s mentioned that they wanted to see high quality photos of the restaurant’s food
🥗ℹ️
60% of interviewee’s mentioned that they wanted to see dietary information about the dishes.
Empathy Mapping
During my user interviews, I mapped out recurring trends in user behavior. This visual representation has been instrumental in helping me identify and understand what the targeted user may be experiencing.
Strategic phase 2 of 4
Defining
Establishing Who We Are Designing For: User Persona
After collecting qualitative data on the issue, I crafted a user persona. This persona served as a valuable tool, guiding design decisions.
The Problem Statement
Based on user interviews, the development of a user persona, and mapping their journey, I formulated a targeted problem-solving statement.
🚫😕️
POV
The lack of nutritional information and high-quality content available on a restaurant’s website makes young adults reluctant to try them, which in turn reduces their confidence in venturing out to new dining experiences.
🤔📊️️️
HMW
How might we provide young adults with easily accessible nutritional information and high-quality content about a restaurant to increase their confidence in trying out new dining experience?
Strategic phase 3 of 4
Ideating
How might we improve the accuracy of pick-up times and reduce wait times in the Starbucks mobile order process to eliminate frustration and anxiety for customers?
How do these solve the HMW statement?
Filtering Function: users can filter by dietary restrictions and quickly find if they can eat at the restaurant.
High Quality Content: users may feel more confident in visiting the restaurant as high quality content may instill a sense of legitimacy.
Strategic phase 4 of 4
Prototype & Test
Refinement
Low Fidelity → Mid Fidelity → High Fidelity
About Us Page
Menu Page
Landing Page
User Interviews
User Interview Objectives
Our goal is to gather data that quantifies effectiveness, and ease-of-use.
Metrics
I requested users to rate their confidence level (on a scale of 1-5) regarding the restaurant's menu offering an item that could cater to their specific dietary needs.
Participants
5 people (23-54 years old)
Eat out at least twice a month
Interview Location
Conducted via Zoom
Key Insights
😊📑
All interviewees expressed their satisfaction with the sub-menu feature, which greatly facilitated the process of finding menu sections effortlessly.
🤔🔍
A significant majority of interviewees expressed their desire to have the ability to filter the menu according to specific dietary needs.
👏📊️
A notable 60% of the interviewees expressed their appreciation for the ability to view nutritional information by clicking on menu items.
Iterating based on feedback
Final Takeaways
Major Learnings
Throughout this project, I had the opportunity to acquire valuable real-world experience by navigating various challenges such as engaging with stakeholders and overcoming technical and budgetary limitations. As Sole, a small upscale restaurant, depended on GoDaddy's website builder as a cost-effective solution for hosting and constructing their website, I needed to familiarize myself with the technical constraints associated with the platform. Additionally, I had the responsibility of aligning the stakeholders' interests with the requirements of the end-users, ensuring that the website catered to the needs and preferences of Sole's target audience.
What would I have done differently?
Conducted user research earlier in the project to involve stakeholders in the process and ensure their understanding of user perspectives from the beginning.
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