Design Brief

Dog owners sometimes need help caring for and walking their dogs. Create a service to connect dog owners with dog walkers. Consider how we can help dog owners trust their dogs are in safe hands.

Problem Statement

The problem we are addressing with this app is centered on two primary users: Dog owners and dog walkers.

For dog owners with busy lifestyles, the idea of leaving their dog at home without any physical activity, like a daily walk, is an unpleasant feeling. Issues like scheduling and location are perceived obstacles to giving their dog a break. Because of this reality, owners want a reliable platform to find trusted, experienced dog walkers. In addition to this value, owners want an easy payment system to quickly deliver reliable walkers.

Similarly, dog walkers also want a reliable platform for which they can secure dog walking opportunities and earn money. These individuals care deeply about the dogs they serve. Providing the best care is central to their service. That said, it is important that the platform effectively communicate this value to all seekers interested in their service.

User Research

For this project, I conducted several informal interviews via email with friends and co-workers who had dogs and were curious about dog walking app services. Only one of the interviewees had actual experience working with a service provider. On the whole, the responses were the same: Trust and affordability played a significant factor in their willingness to utilize a dog walking service.

"Trust is most important for me when looking for a dog walker or company. I want to know my dogs are safe throughout their walk and getting appropriate exercise." 

Another interesting factor that came up through the interviews was the weather. Being that the majority of my participants were from the northeast, the role weather plays in dog walking is significant - especially during the winter months where the environment can be extremely cold, wet, or both. From this vantage point, proximity to service is a value. Finding reliable and local walkers would definitely influence this group of owners to consider this service.

Sample Interview

Market Research

Early in my market research, it became evident that two dog walking services lead the market: Rover and Wag! What I found to be consistent with each of these apps is their ability to clearly convey the services and the service providers. What I found missing, however, was their ability to capitalize on the unique personalities, dispositions, and health-related issues associated with most pets. For many of my interviewees, their pet is considered family. A fur baby or fur child. Much like the relationship between child and babysitter, dog owners want assurance that the person in charge of their family pet is competent, qualified, and sympathetic to the unique needs of their dog. Recognizing this missing element in the onboarding process, I made it a priority and value to add to the dog walking service experience.

User Persona

Elizabeth lives a busy life. She's a lawyer at her firm who has recently made partner. Which means more is required of her at her office than before. Because of this added pressure and responsibility, Elizabeth is not able to give the same about of care and attention to her dogs as before. And because her dogs have special needs, it is critical that Elizabeth finds a reliable provider that can deliver the same level of care as if the dogs were their own.

User Flow

Through my research I also had discovered that many of my interviewees would consider relying on additional services from a dog walking app if the initial experience was positive. That said, I decided to expand the initial assignment beyond dog walking and explore provisional services like dog sitting. In time, I wanted to take this approach even further and offer boarding as well as training services. The example below highlights this first direction.

Wireframing

Visual Design

With my initial wireframe in place, it was time for me to begin exploring visual landscapes. What is the tone I want to create or the message I want to convey with this app? I knew that I wanted to rely less on real photography and more on illustrations. I also was drawn to soft, simple color palettes.

As you will quickly discover below, I did not seem to take my own advice.

As a former copywriter, I could not let go of the story. Though the assignment was to create an app, I kept finding myself wandering back to the branding and market position aspects of the app. Rather than invest more time into the user flow and wire framing, I double-downed on making sure the message made sense to me. My rationale was simple: If I can wrap my head around the brand I will have an easier time revising the user experience as I go.

Nothing could have been further from the truth.

Thankfully, through additional work on the brand narrative, I was able to land on an app name and tagline that gave me a north star to follow.

I came up with the name "HereBoyyy" for many obvious reasons. I wanted the app's name to be easily recognizable in both associations as well as memorable. And because the phrase implies a command from an owner to their animal, I wanted the user to feel a similar tone of empowerment with a slight dash of humor. In comparison to the list of names I originally started with, including my last, I feel like this was the right approach and could now lend itself to an easier time fleshing out the rest of the user interface from both a design and copy position.

Hi-Fidelity Design, Prototyping, and User Testing

To say I had used Figma in the past was an understatement. It wasn't until this class and the prototyping stage where I began to truly explore and learn the features and capabilities of this extraordinary app. In my day job, I use Adobe XD on a regular basis but not for prototyping. After this class, I have a new found appreciation for both the software and the warriors who wield this pixel sword in the day to day.

Once I arrived at the prototyping stage it became quickly apparent that the additional services that I had originally planned for to incorporate into my dog walking app would not be feasible due to time constraints and the fact that this is my first app and I want to make sure I have time for testing, etc. That said, I eliminated the other service functions and returned back to (wait-for-it) the original assignment which was to create a reliable dog walking app.

Through the testing stage and feedback, it was brought to my attention that I could have some ADA issues in regards to the color of the description fonts. Additionally, I was not aware of the confusion that my buttons were creating for users as they appeared to be in an empty state vs. active. From there, I course-corrected my design and you can see those changes here in the prototype.

Results

Overall, I am pleased with the finished product and believe it meets the assignment requirements. Objectively, though, I believe there is plenty of room for improvement in future versions, namely with feature enhancements like other dog care services. In addition to added features, I would also like to consider an alternative color palette to create better brand recognition in the marketplace. In hindsight, I see how this step was overlooked in my visual design study notes. By exploring alternative colors, I feel the app would have a more distinguishable look and feel outside of the UI. In doing so, it could only help with brand recognition when it comes to making a decision about which dog care service to select.

Before

After