COFFEE SOUL
Create an app whose focus is on establishing a seamless ordering process for delivery, takeout, or in-person dining so users can avoid in-store lines, payment obstacles, and group order errors.
PROJECT OVERVIEW
Coffee soul is a chain of coffee shops with establishments in Bangalore, Mumbai, Delhi, Bhopal, and other cities. It aims to serve quality coffee with local flair. The app's focus is on establishing a seamless ordering process for delivery, takeout, or in-person dining so users can avoid in-store lines, payment obstacles, and group order errors. This app caters to users who frequently order coffee, including busy workers, students, seniors, and elders.
This project is part of the UX certificate program.
THE PROBLEM
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Working professionals and students are too busy to wait in lines at coffee shops to buy coffee.
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The ordering process in most apps is not as clear and straightforward as it is in a coffee shop.
HIGH LEVEL TIMELINE
Overall: 5+ weeks
MAKE OF THE TEAM
Shubhra Nath
KEY GOAL
Design an app for coffee soul that allows users to easily place cafe’s orders in advance with takeaway and delivery options.
THE SOLUTION
Design an app for coffee soul that allows users to easily place cafe’s orders in advance with takeaway and delivery options.
INTERVIEWS
I interviewed busy workers and students to learn about their pain points, the typical difficulties people encounter when attempting to handle a busy schedule and find time for coffee, as well as the frustrations people encounter when purchasing coffee.
Outcomes
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The data confirmed my presumptions about the issues users typically encounter, including line waiting, order errors, and payment barriers.
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Realizing that each user's ordering process has a unique flow allowed for the correction of other presumptions. Other assumptions were corrected by acknowledging that every user has a different flow in ordering process
SURVEYS
I wanted to make sure I was interviewing potential app users, café customers who order frequently. As a result, I asked a series of questions.
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How often do you order at café ?
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At what time do you usually order ?
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Do you often use apps to order food ?
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When ordering at café do you usually order take out or dine- in ?
Observations
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80% think that they spend too much time waiting for their order
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40% think sometimes they leave without ordering because of long queues.
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20% are satisfied with how traditional ordering works and wouldn't change it
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60% place the same order frequently and would want a way to make process easier
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30% are not fully aware of customization options or of all menu
User insights from the survey
PERSONAS
I wanted to form a deeper understanding of our users' goals, needs, experiences, and behaviors. So we created two personas for our user segments. They were based on user interviews and surveys, and we kept updating them throughout the project as we gathered more data. I used these personas whenever we wanted to step outside of ourselves and reconsider our initial ideas
Problem statement: Siddharth is an ambitious intern who is looking for a quick and efficient pick-up service.
Problem statement: Amit is a retired professor who visits the store with the intention of enjoying coffee and feeling connected and productive.
EMPATHY MAP
Empathy map helps articulate what we know about user
Problem statement: Siddharth is an ambitious intern who is looking for a quick and efficient pick-up service.
USER JOURNEY
I created a user journey to better understand the stages that users go through while performing a typical activity and how the new product can help improve the process.
Problem statement: Siddharth is an ambitious intern who is looking for a quick and efficient pick-up service.
INFORMATION ARCHITECTURE AND USER FLOW
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The Coffee Soul app is designed to be simple and easy to use. The user flow is straightforward and the features are clearly labeled.
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The app is focused on convenience. Users can order their coffee in advance and choose whether to pick it up or have it delivered.
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The app is also focused on personalization. Users can save their favorite coffee and food items, as well as their payment information, for future orders.
SKETCHES
I started the design process with wireframes and low-fidelity sketches to speed up decision-making without wasting time. My sketches were based on the initial user interviews, the business goal, and the heuristic evaluation. They each pointed out that there were too many distractions in the flow. I came back to the sketches throughout the entire design process to make sure that we don’t lose sight of our primary goals and ideas.
WIREFRAMES
Using Figma, I translated my first sketches into low-fidelity wireframes. Then, I improved them by adding a few relevant stock images and copies provided by the marketing team. At this stage, the wireframes were defined enough for some user testing.
The low-fidelity prototype connected the primary user flow of browsing a menu and ordering coffee shop products, so it could be used for a usability study.
UI DESIGN
Once the usability issues were resolved, I moved on to design the final screens in Figma. My goal was to create a visual identity that’s aligned with the brand’s values and message, which is: “brand motto”.
To create a clean and minimalistic look, use a monochromatic color scheme with accent colors.
USABILITY TESTING
I conducted two rounds of usability testing. In order to guide the designs from wireframe to mockup, the findings from the first study were helpful. A high-fidelity prototype was used in the second study to highlight the aspects of the mockup that needed improvement.
Round 1 findings
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user needed less cluttered interface with appropriate visuals aligned with text.
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user needed organized menu and filters.
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users want to overview order details before payment.
Round 2 findings
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Navigation bars need to be clearer.
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The login process takes a lot of time.
After conducting usability studies, I added a separate and detailed screen for order details.
I updated the design and login functionality to simplify this flow. I also introduced the option for users to login in guest mode.
TITLE OF THE CALLOUT BLOCK
LESSONS LEARNED
While creating the Coffee Soul app, I discovered that the initial ideas are merely the beginning of the process. Each iteration of the app's designs is influenced by usability tests and user feedback.