TACKLE-IT

“The United States Home Improvement Market valued at USD419.80 billion in 2020 and is anticipated to grow with a CAGR of 4.47% in the forecast period, 2022-2026 to achieve market value of USD537.47 billion by 2026.”

— United States Home Improvement Market Report 2022

PROJECT OVERVIEW

THE CHALLENGE:

DIY (do-it-yourself) users needed a hassle-free and streamlined process to complete their DIY projects without the need to leave their homes, from finding and buying the right supplies to getting expert help.

THE SOLUTION:

TACKLE-IT is a comprehensive web responsive app that matches DIY users to specific category experts for their projects. Users consult with experts via messages and video chats, create supply lists, and purchase materials.

THE OUTCOME:

Target users agreed that TACKLE-IT can save them time and money if they can video chat with experts. Once the app launches, metrics like number of user sign-up, active users per month, and sales revenue will be used to measure success.

MY ROLE:

I took on the role as the only UX Researcher and UX Designer for CareerFoundry’s UX immersion project.

SKILLS:

User surveys and interviews, competitive analysis, personas, user journey maps, task flows, card sorting, information architecture, sketching, wireframing, prototyping, A/B testings, usability testings, and presentation.

DURATION:

Jan - Mar 2022

THE CHALLENGE.

With the growing trend of personal DIY projects comes the challenge of streamlining the process of gathering the right information and getting the necessary supplies.

I hypothesize that most novice users can find the information and buy the needed materials via online searches, ask friends and family, etc., but it is also common that the process is so tedious and exhausting that many will abandon their projects midway.

Before designing the solutions, I asked myself these questions as I consider the perspectives of both the users and business requirements:

How might we find a way to ease users’ pain of completing new DIY projects?

How might we provide the same quality of in-person store experience but virtually?

How might we capture a share of the projected $537.47 billion home improvement market by 2026?

How might we effectively centralize finding, buying, and answering user questions remotely?

The Design Process

 

EMPATHIZE.

Asking the right questions.

Before designing the app, I want to gain a clear understanding of who the potential users and direct competitors are. I am interested in learning what are the top DIY categories, why users are motivated to start a project, and where they look for help. Lastly, what app features are most important to them and when they will use them.

METHODS: user research & surveys, competitive analysis, and business opportunities

User Research & Surveys:

I focus on making the app accessible to all DIY users but defined the target users to be ages 30 – 50 who have limited knowledge on the DIY categories, have previous experience shopping online, and have consulted with other users and experts for their projects. They may be taking on these projects out of necessities or as hobbies.

I complied a list of research goals as a guide throughout the research process.

Survey Summary:

  • 30 participants from 6 different countries

  • Male and female ages 21 - 69

  • Top 3 project categories are crafts, home improvement, and gardening.

  • Top 3 sources to find help are online video tutorials, search engine, and friends and families.

User frustrations:

The survey revealed that online video tutorials like YouTube win the most popular learning method used by participants. However, participants expressed their limitations with comments like:

The insights suggest that:

  1. Crafts, home improvement, and gardening consume majority of the DIY categories so TACKLE-IT should direct its resources to recruit companies and experts specifically in these areas in the initial stage of launch.

  2. Users prefer learning by doing and watching others via video formats.

  3. Information available may not be relevant to the user’s current task or project on hand. They may need to search multiple videos and spend time filtering through them.

  4. Novice users may need expert guidance who can answer their specific challenges in order to feel confident and successful.

If the most popular method leaves them frustrated and annoyed, what do they really need to feel successful?

Competitive Analysis:

To better understand similar websites and apps that are currently available to users, I researched two primary competitions to search for missing opportunities.

These analyses not only assisted me in designing the high priority features, but would also help stakeholders and future users understand TACKLE-IT’s unique selling proposition.

6ya’s opportunities that TACKLE-IT can capture:

  • Increase user trust due to lack of price transparency.

  • Increase marketing initiative as they have low brand recognition

  • Include non-licensed experts (as mentioned in the surveys that DIY users would trust )

JustAnswer’s opportunities that TACKLE-IT can capture:

  • Make service information readily available to users

  • Expert advice may not be accurate as mentioned by some users

  • Improve pricing transparency

With every challenge comes opportunities.

DIY users can generally find answers to their project challenges using multiple channels like YouTube, ask my friend, etc, but not without friction. I discovered that users need an inclusive app that mimics the same quality, in-person experience without users leaving their homes to find the right supplies and answers.

This is a solution that could reduce user frustration while optimizing the business goal of capturing the growing trend of DIY projects in the form of sales generation.

But how can TACKLE-IT solve this if other apps have not?

It started with defining the problem and looking deeper into user needs and pain points.

DEFINE.

Prioritizing the most important app features and crafting the best approach by defining:

THE PROBLEM STATEMENT:

The TACKLE-IT app users need an effective way to streamline their process of completing their DIY projects by finding knowledgeable experts for help, so as not to waste time and money to buy unnecessary supplies or hire professional help.

METHODS: Persona and User Journey Maps

Personas:

Throughout the entire process, I used the personas to empathize with the users and stay focused on my design efforts towards a useful content strategy.

As the app proceeds through its product cycle, cross-functional teams can better understand who they are designing the app for. As a team, we can discuss new features that should be added to help TACKLE-IT grow for future releases.

Primary Persona

Secondary Persona

 

User Journey Maps:

Combined with the personas, Melanie’s and Kathy’s journey maps gave me a deeper understanding of the behaviors and goals of the app’s core users. They also offered the emotional context in which the app would be used as I was interested in their thoughts and feelings throughout the journey.

Primary Persona Melanie’s User Journey

Secondary Persona Kathy’s User Joureny

IDEATE.

Conceptualizing the user flows and the app’s information architecture.

User research suggested that users need video chats with experts to guide them throughout their DIY project cycles.

METHODS: Task Flows, Card Sorting, and Information Architecture

Task Flows:

To avoid the possible mistake of exerting too much focus on individual pages and app interactions, I outlined three task flows directly related to requesting and scheduling video chats with the right experts.

I prioritized the following task flows to solve the most important challenge: Finding and connecting with the right experts to curate their supply lists.

 

  • Users have the options to sign up using their emails, Google, Apple, or Facebook. If they are returning users, they can skip the onboarding process and simply sign in.

  • Once the user finds an expert they want to consult with but they have not established a connection yet, they will need to request a video chat by messaging the expert first. This practice creates a fair and safe community among users and experts.

  • Once the user receives a notification that the expert accepted the video chat request, they can schedule an available date and time through the schedule screen. A confirmation page lets the user know that the appointment is booked, and they can find the details of their appointment in their account.

 

Card Sorting:

Before designing the app’s information architecture, I conducted a closed card sorting to validate my design hypotheses. I had a strong idea of its visual hierarchy but needed card sorting to improve the labeling, grouping, and organization of the information.

Results showed that most users had no trouble sorting the app features (i.e. profile, payment methods) on the left to the categories on the right (i.e. Account Setting, DIY Experts), but features like My Expert Network and Supply List required more analysis.

Information Architecture:

After interpreting the results of the card sorting, I crafted TACKLE-IT’s sitemap as shown below with a few tweaks to its original layout, specifically for the DIY Expert category.

The sitemap would also be a useful communication tool for the team and stakeholders to understand the users’ goals and app features.

The DIY Expert category was updated to include missing features based on the results of the the card sorting.

PROTOTYPE.

Using prototypes to get user feedbacks and build desirable and useable design interfaces.

To bring the app concept to life, I started with rapid prototyping before moving on to mid- and high-fidelity prototypes. This was also the design phase where I established TACKLE-IT’s unique features that distinguishes itself from other apps in the market.

METHODS: Sketches, Wireframes, and High-Fidelity Prototype

Wireframes:

To start the process of rapid prototyping, I sketched on paper some simple low-fidelity wireframes to lay out the task flows. Once I formulated the ideas, I used Figma to design a mid-fidelity prototype and conducted usability testings with six potential users.

The process and results are shared in-depth in the Test phase.

 App Features:

The research validated specific app features needed for users to connect virtually with experts. But after usability testing using the mid-fidelity prototype, I discovered a new feature that would bring added values to the core users based on feedback: Find project inspirations.

Here is the full list of features that would make TACKLE-IT a comprehensive app for DIY users to successfully start and complete their projects.

  • Highly desirable, users can text message and request video chats with the right experts to solve their project challenges and curate supply lists specific to their needs.

  • To keep track of all their project needs, users have the power to create and edit supply lists for now or later in an organized and easy-to-find format. Items can be quickly shared or added to their shopping bags for checkout.

  • The app will locate the best stores (location, selections, and prices) to fulfill the users’ supply list. Users can purchase all items together in one order whether they are sold in the same store or not.

  • The Expert Network combines licensed professionals and experienced users. Anyone can apply to become an TACKLE-IT expert but their credentials will be verified and also rated by the community based on their level of expertise and contribution.

  • To empower users to start new DIY projects, the app shows project inspirations uploaded by other users and experts on the home dashboard that are relevant to their specific interests and skill levels.

TEST.

Testing the prototype to gather user feedback and identify usability issues.

Recruiting a small group of users to testing the prototype was an essential part to ensure that it tailored to the user needs and preferences. Additionally, the results offered invaluable insights to understanding the effectiveness of the designs and identify issues early before development.

METHODS: In-person User Testing, Affinity Mapping, and Preference Testing.

Usability Testing:

Conducting a usability test with 6 users offered real human feedback; It helped me analyze the results and decide on the next steps. This process was time-consuming, but the information synthesized validated the app design and revealed usability errors. I also utilized the affinity map to interpret the information, documented relevant details in the Rainbow Spreadsheet, and classified the errors with Jakob Nielsen’s error rating system.

Upon reviewing all 6 test videos and using a tally system for repeated comments, I identified key finds and divided them into 4 different categories.

Error and observations were extracted and recorded in a spreadsheet to identify critical patterns and issues.

Usability Issue Comments:

“It’s counter-intuitive that I have to send her a message first before I can schedule a video chat appointment with the expert.”

— Usability Tester 😒

“Thought I should click Experts to request the appointment but it’s under Account?.”

— Usability Tester 😕

Usability Test Report:

6 participants shared their feedback and general impression of the prototype before and after testing. All participants found the layouts easy to understand, and the app looked familiar to them. Most issues found during the testing were rated 3 or lower except Task 3 - schedule an appointment with the expert after the request was accepted. I spent the most time redesigning this flow.

Using the Jakob Nielsen’s Usability Error Rating to prioritize issues:

0 = I don't agree that this is a usability problem at all
1 = Cosmetic problem only: need not be fixed unless extra time is available on project
2 = Minor usability problem: fixing this should be given low priority
3 = Major usability problem: important to fix, so should be given high priority
4 = Usability catastrophe: imperative to fix this before product can be released

Issue 01: error rating 4 out of 4

Most participants struggled with the task of scheduling an appointment with the expert at the “DIY Expert” screen, thinking there was a quick way to start the video chat except to find themselves lost .

The new screen was updated with new icons at top replacing the cards. Currently, it included a link to “video chats” for quick access.

 

Issue 02: error rating 3 out of 4

Some users found it counter-intuitive that they must message the expert after clicking the “Video Chat” icon.

With the updated flow, after the user clicked “Video Chat” to connect with their desired expert but were not currently within their network, an error message would pop up letting them know why and redirected them to message the expert first to wait for a response.

 

Issue 03: error rating 3 out of 4

Some users thought they should have a quick link to the supply lists instead of the hassle of finding it under “My Account.”

In order to make space, I removed the “About” icon on the bottom navigation bar since it could be placed under “My Account” and replaced it with “Supply Lists”.

 High-Fidelity Prototypes:

The usability tests validated my design but also highlighted errors that I missed. Positive and negative feedbacks were taken into consideration in addition to correcting the usability issues before developing the Style Guide and the high-fidelity prototype that you see here.

Preference Testing:

Before finalizing the prototype, I was curious if users may prefer a different sign-up screen. To conduct the test, I presented two slightly different versions of the sign-up screen to 31 potential users using UsabilityHub. The test simply asked them to compare two screen images and choose the design (A or B) that they liked best with an explanation following their selection. The goal of the test was to validate if different designs may yield different attitudes towards the app or if the original design better resonates with them.

The Interactive Prototype:

The interactive prototype showcases the core features of the app and how new and returning DIY users navigate through this digital space to start their project journey.

Interface Comparison:

TACKLE-IT is a mobile-first web app. In consideration of the usability interface for desktop, here is an example of how the home screen will look in comparison to the mobile home screen.

Conclusion.

The user research revealed the need for a streamlined process of tackling DIY projects. Target users agree that TACKLE-IT can save them time and money of buying unwanted supplies if they can video chat with experts.

One of the biggest challenge was to find participants for the surveys and user interviews. This process required the most time along with synthesizing the data collected. Fortunately, I was able to find enough participants to gain a well-rounded understanding of the problem, thanks in part to my network.

 
 

Once the app launches, metrics like number of user sign-up, active users per month, and sales revenue will be used to measure success.

Here are additional app features that I plan to design next:

  • Project Inspirations

  • Checkout

  • Become an Expert

  • Blog

  • Community Forum