Mobile Biking App
User Research • Sketching • UX/UI
Overview
This is a personal project to design a mobile app that addresses the pain points and goals for bikers. Over a two week sprint I conducted 4 user interviews as well as 4 usability tests. Sketched out a variety of possible solutions and developed a high-fidelity prototype in Figma.
Research
User Interviews
First, I conducted 4 in-depth interviews with bikers in my personal network to see what, if anything, could be improved (See interview guide). This method of recruitment, known as convenience sampling, was advantageous because it provided me an easy way to talk to my target users. However the limitations of this method were noted as I was not able to gather a representative sample in my given timeframe. After tagging the interviews, I synthesized my findings into three key takeaways that my persona “Carter” embodies:
Bikers wish there was an easier way to explore new trails based off their unique preferences.
Bikers wish to grow their biking community.
Biking equipment can be a hassle to maintain.
After considering Carter’s pain points and goals, I brainstormed several how might we statements but chose to focus on the following:
How might we help users find the best bike trails for them so they can save time and have an enjoyable ride?
Design
Sketching
To generate potential solutions to Carter’s pain points, I sketched out a variety of possibilities. At this stage, I considered digital and non-digital solutions and asked bikers to co-create solutions with me. However, I chose to prototype a mobile app because mobile apps are great for task-oriented solutions and my research showed that bikers already use their mobile devices to find biking trails.
Wireframes
To develop this idea further, I created wireframes to represent the screens Carter would interact with in order to accomplish his goal. The first is a screen where Carter could input all of his preferences and even click the advanced option to be more specific. Next was to provide Carter with a variety of trail options to explore. Third is a way to save trails so he can explore them later.
Test
Usability Testing
To test my design, I conducted 4 usability tests (Click to see my test plan and test guide.) with bikers using the snowball method (bikers recommending other bikers). I learned that while all participants were able to complete all major tasks in under two minutes and reported how much they enjoyed the ease of navigation, all users reported that the “Type of View” button confused them. Many did not know what that phrase meant or that they were supposed to click the dropdown arrow.
Design Iteration
After brainstorming potential solutions to address the confusion users had around the “Type of View” button, I settled on a multiple choice option with different wording. In a second round of usability testing I would test this function to see if users still have confusion.
Results and Next Steps
The result of this project was a mobile biking app that makes it easy for users to discover new biking trails based off their unique preferences. With more time, I would set out to fulfill 3 objectives:
Conduct more research into the preferences bikers have when selecting a trail.
Ideate potential solutions to address research findings.
Run a second round of usability testing to gain feedback on the new multiple choice function and other design improvements.