PAL
NEW PRODUCT | iOS APP
OVERVIEW
PAL by Project Playdate is a marketplace mobile application that connects parents with caregivers to set up supervised activity-driven playdates for their children.
METHODS
2-Week Design Sprint
User Interviews
Stakeholder Interviews
Competitor/ Comparator Analysis
Persona Development
Journey Mapping
Design Studio Sketching
Wireframes
Rapid Prototyping
Usability Testing
TOOLS
Sketch
Adobe CS
InVision
TEAM
Danielle Francois
Melissa Frank
MY ROLE
UX Researcher
UX Designer
UI Designer
CLIENT TESTIMONIAL
"We were blown away by how exceptionally intuitive this team was to the goals of our business and needs of our users. This combined professionalism with an indisputable mastery of user experience design resulted in a phenomenal outcome for our business. We are so very grateful for their work and couldn't recommend them more highly."
- Amanda Raposo, Co-Founder/CEO
RESEARCH & SYNTHESIS
5/5 PARENTS SAY SCHEDULING IS THE MOST STRESSFUL PART OF CHILDCARE
5/5 PARENTS SAY TRUST IS THE MOST IMPORTANT FACTOR WHEN CHOOSING A CHILDCARE PROVIDER
5/5 PARENTS COMMUNICATE WITH CHILDCARE PROVIDERS BEFORE, DURING, AND AFTER CHILDCARE SESSION
5/5 PARENTS MENTIONED TIME IS IMPORTANT TO THEM; TIME WITH PARTNER, CHILD, OR WITH SELF
PERSONA:
Jen, 35, mother of 2
Works in finance, city-dweller
"I want to feel confident that I'm doing the right thing for my kids. I want to be able to trust someone to give them enriching and engaging experiences."
PROBLEM STATEMENT
Jen wants to spend “adult time” with her partner and friends, but has trouble scheduling child care with someone who she trusts to enrich her child’s development.
How can we help Jen feel confident scheduling child care with someone she trusts to engage her child in activities they enjoy?
DESIGNING FOR TRUST
The challenge for this team was to design a product that would allow parents to trust caregivers solely through interaction with the application. We wanted to eliminate the parents' need to pass through multiple levels of interaction with caregivers in order to trust them with their children. We organized qualifying information about the caregivers for parents who are demanding but short on time by using visual elements and hierarchy.
FEATURE PRIORITIZATION
BEST PRACTICES
Usability tests in the second round of high-fidelity prototypes were successful. Additional design changes were made based on UX/UI and iOS best practices. Below are a few of the iterations made.
PLAYDATE PAGE
Visual hierarchy was improved and iOS best practices were adopted for buttons and shadows.
VERSION 2
FINAL
PARENT PROFILE
Buttons were differentiated from icons with shadows and additional iOS principles were applied.
VERSION 2
FINAL
FINAL
VERSION 2
SPECIALISTS SEARCH PAGE
Tabular navigation between playdates search and specialists search was not intuitive to users in first rounds of usability testing. Design was improved to make functionality clearer and was successful in testing.
VERSION 2
FINAL
PLAYDATE GRID
Information hierarchy was changed to cater to the needs of the parents. Ratings and photo of caregiver were given priority because parents want to trust them. The "Reserve" button was removed because all users in testing went to playdate details before reserving.
USER FLOWS
Successfully designing for trust:
"I would trust this person with my kid even before meeting them. It seems credible, and I can see everything about them right there. I would've never thought I'd be able to make a decision for childcare that way."
5/5 users say they would use this product again
FINAL THOUGHTS
This two-week sprint boosted our client's target launch date by 20% and provided user data and personas to drive design of additional platforms (desktop web, mobile web, Android). Additional client work will include further usability testing on iOS mock-up and development of full functionality. The team will design the caregiver-facing side of the app through additional user interviews and design studio rounds.
Our team learned the value of business needs in user-centered design and the importance of communication with the client. Full transparency with the client during the design process was exercised to assure them we were creating a product that was in demand for users and in line with their needs.
