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TOOLBOX

PROJECT TYPE: App Creation

ROLE: UX/UI Designer 

TOOLS:  Figma, Miro

Project Vision

The Challenge

The Solution

An app that helps users to easily find and compare top rated contractors. Our app will allow for seamless communication and bookings between contractors looking for jobs and users looking for services

Homeowners and renters have a difficult time communicating with reputable contractors.

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An app that allows for seamless communication and bookings between contractors looking for jobs and users looking for services.

Sketches

The team sketched wireframes of Toolbox to help visualize how the app would appear to users on their phones.

Low Fidelity

Information architecture is not intuitive; confusing navigation

Impact 

Mid Fidelity

Search bar is hidden in sidebar navigation under “Menu”

User does not know if they are logged in/out

Information architecture is intuitive; minimistic navigation

Major headings are not easily legible due to animated banners

Promotion written with eye catching typography mentioned in Hero image

User will know after signing in if they are logged in/out

Beer club sign up mentioned in Hero image

User Test Insights

Average time spent (3 Users)

Finding the search bar: 45 seconds

Finding the promo: 10 seconds

Find Navigation: 15 seconds 

 

Finding the search bar: 5 seconds

Finding the promo: 3 seconds

Find Navigation: 5 seconds

 

User Research

RESEARCH SURVEY

Key Insight: 45.5% of home owners and renters rarely hire a professional for home projects or repairs, while 24% said never.

 

 Only 30.3% of home owners and renters say they hire somewhat often.

PROTO PERSONA

Research Plan

RESEARCH QUESTION

What does the typical process of a user finding a contractor look like?

OBJECTIVE 1 

Understand what is important for our users to consider when looking for a contractor

QUESTIONS

  • Walk me through what you currently do when you need to hire a contractor

  • What makes a service/contractor credible to you?

  • Why does that determine credibility for you?

OBJECTIVE 2

Understand the pain points users face when looking for/deciding on a contractor

QUESTIONS

  • What are the main struggles in finding a service/contractor?

  • Tell me about your worst experience when looking for/hiring a contractor

  • What would have made that experience better for you?

OBJECTIVE 3

Understand what services are needed most by our users

QUESTIONS

  • Are there services you use on a regular basis? What are they?

  • Tell us about a time when you chose a DIY solution over hiring a professional. What was the reasoning behind it?

Affinity Diagram

Key insights are larger sticky notes in each section

User Persona

USER INSIGHT STATEMENT

​User needs and key insight: Homeowners & renters need an integrated platform with an open line of communication between themselves and contractors because gauging their personality and being well-informed of the nature of the service leads to a positive experience.

PROBLEM STATEMENT

Our challenge: We believe our app was designed for users to easily hire contractors. We observed that users are unable to communicate effectively with contractors, preventing them from confidently selecting one, ultimately resulting in an unsatisfactory experience.

HOW MIGHT WE

POV statement: How might we improve Toolbox so that homeowners and renters are successful based on improved customer satisfaction, less time spent comparing contractors, and repeat visits to our app?

VALUE PROPOSITION

Toolbox is developing a contractor finding app to help homeowners and renters effectively communicate with contractors in order to confidently select a good contractor.

 

We’re better because we offer a contractor responsiveness rating.


We’re believable because we provide incentives for contractors to respond in a timely manner, by showcasing them in specialized ads at the forefront of our app.

STORYBOARD

USER JOURNEY MAP

USER JOURNEY MAP

WIREFLOW

Our Wireflow will take you through Toolbox's user flow but with a visual representation of how a user would move from screen to screen. 

Here is a look into our prototyping phase and how each action will lead the user to the end goal.

LOW FIDELITY PROTOTYPE

GUERRILLA USER TESTING

Using our low fidelity prototypes, the team conducted 5 user tests to understand if the flow, functionality, and design of the app are intuitive.

 

Each test was recorded and notes were takes which were later used to iterate our prototype.

FREQUENCY SYNTHESIZATION

ITERATIONS

Iterated User Flow 

Must-Have: 

  • Larger chat button for user to be able to see it better while viewing a contractor 

  • Minimalistic home screen 

  • Back feature to be able to return to previous screen

Should-Have

  • Less filters for users to be able to narrow their choices

Could-Have: 

  • Quicker transaction process

MIDDLE FIDELITY PROTOTYPE 

FINAL THOUGHTS

  • Most homeowners find hiring contractors a highly stressful task

  • There are not many applications that offer a centralized platform where homeowners can efficiently search for and compare contractors in their area.

  • Homeowners appreciate fluid communication with their contractors 

  • Homeowners want guarantees that their jobs will be carried out on time and within budget

NEXT STEPS

  • Multiple user flow iterations to ensure Toolbox has maximum fluidity 

  • More time spent on testing to gather more data

Be sure to checkout the process for Toolbox below!

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