Tools: Figma, Adobe Illustrator, Google Suite | Duration: Oct. 2022 - Jan. 2023

Hello Dribbblers! 👋🏼

PawPals is mobile app designed to seamlessly offer on demand and scheduled pet care services with local pet caregivers. The overall goal considers how we can help dog owners better trust that their pets are in safe hands.

Problem Statement

To begin, I had to define and identify current pain points that dog owners experience. The problem that PawPals set out to solve was to connect pet owners with caregivers with people that they can trust and rely on fully.

User Research

Research was conducted by delving into what already exists in the market to find what was and wasn't working, as well as by interviewing various individuals with different circumstances.

My discoveries are located below:

Personas

All the information that was gathered through the research stage was then used to define my user personas. Below are the fictional users that best represent all findings. They are who I leaned into for aiding in the decision making for the creation of a functional user experience.

The Solution: Requested Features

After talking to my research pool, I took in their feedback and created a user focused game plan. Trust was the biggest roadblock that most users had because the act of hiring a stranger felt risky and overwhelming.

In the case that friends or family are busy, I found that people were more likely to trust a friend of a friend. When someone you know recommends another, there is a source of comfort that comes along with the proximity in relationships. In order to help assure users, they have the ability to connect their social media accounts. This would function in the same way that LinkedIn lists who your mutual connections are in order to see the local community.

While exploring the overall user experience, there were notable attributes to consider relative to additional pain points that were discussed.

The requested features that were applied are explained below:

User Flow

This flow has the main focus of allowing users to book time with a dog walker. In addition, it gives them the opportunity to see mutual connections and set up interviews to get to know their chosen walker and build rapport before the completion of booking.

Below is my proposed user flow:

Wireframes

Both low fidelity and high fidelity layouts were explored. Based on the user flow, wireframes were sketched to then help test and validate multiple ideas as possible product solutions.

Visual Design

PawPals was designed to be honest and dependable. Leaving your fur baby with a stranger can be incredibly stressful. The goal of this brand aesthetic was to calm the innate fear and leave users with a sense of assurance.

Prototyping & Testing

The prototyping and testing stage was successful. There were a few things that were identified to me that were changed for the final product design. Some of the contrast and hierarchy needed to be adjusted, so the user knew exactly what priority was on each screen. The copy was another thing that needed adjustments; it was weak wording that lead to confusion.

It is your time, test the prototype here!

Reflection

Throughout this process, I realized that often times my first idea is not the best or correct decision. Repetition was essential to arriving at the most thought out solution. I also learned that having to go back and change how something works or looks is just part of the process and that the design process matters! The community around me served a great purpose and it was so nice to have other designers to ideate alongside. It helped me grow rapidly.

Below are a couple other key takeaways I discovered:

Thank You!

All this attributed to Dribbble's Product Design Course!