Roll & Go
A moving solution crafted to alleviate user stress by offering instant updates on the status of their belongings.
**Everything on this project was sized for a Samsung Galaxy Fold Phone**
Problem:
Moving to a new location often entails numerous tasks and logistical challenges. While users need to manage their belongings efficiently and coordinate various aspects of the move, they typically end up using multiple apps to stay organized.
Solution:
Roll & Go is a user-centric moving app that simplifies the logistical aspect of moving while also consolidating essential features. It includes real time tracking of personal belongings, live maps to display attractions near the area and provides easy access to contacting moving companies, eliminating the need for switching between multiple apps.
Research
At the start of this project, my focus was on the broad concept of settling into a new place. I believed that my goal should be to streamline the process for individuals moving to a new city, helping them acclimate to their surroundings more easily. I examined existing sites that offered similar services, such as Yelp and TripAdvisor, but I felt as though there was something missing from them.
“According to Steinway Moving and Storage, the average American moves 11.7 times in their life”
Secondary Research
Looking at competitors related to relocation and neighborhood research, none of them were apps that focused on item scanning and tracking. I thought that this would be the factor that would set my app apart from the current ones. I compiled them in an excel sheet here. Some of them were mainstream competitors like TripAdvisor and Yelp while some were not as well known like Livability and Areavibes.
User Interviews
In order to understand the decision-making process and challenges people face when moving to a new place, I found out that:
None of the participants had used a moving app on their phone.
Most participants relocated due to work opportunities, while others moved for personal reasons or a change of pace.
The most common challenges encountered during the move included the stress of the moving process itself, adapting to a new area, and cultural or demographic changes.
A recurring theme was the importance of social connections in helping individuals adjust to their new environment. Participants found that forming friendships or relationships in the new area played a crucial role in making it feel like home and incentivized them to explore different parts of the city or state.
The interviews highlighted the need for a moving app that addressed users’ concerns and provided support with the relocation process, particularly helping them facilitate research on the new area and creating social connections to help them feel at home in their new environment.
Define
After conducting the interviews, I went on Mural to create an affinity map and split the categories into 4 different sections: Summary of Each Participant, Patterns, Pain Points, and the Ranked Tier List.
The most common pattern that I found was that they all had someone who made them more comfortable with their move. The most common pain point that I found was that most of them regretted not doing research prior to the move.
POV Statements and HMW Questions
In order to focus on my users’ needs, these statements serve as a guide for developing the app so that it can focus on the mover’s adaptation to their new community, provide support during the moving process and promote community engagement in order to enhance the overall moving experience.
User Personas
Creating personas to provide an understanding of how introverted and extroverted individuals experience moving to a new place differently allowed me to focus on a design that can meet their specific needs and preferences, which in turn can create a more inclusive and supportive environment for all users.
Storyboard
The story board showcases a relatable scenario where Diana, a potential user, faces the stress and uncertainty of an upcoming move. By introducing the app’s features through her friend, this demonstrates how the app can directly address all of Diana’s concerns. Also by showing Diana’s expression from worry to relief, the storyboard communicates the app’s ability to enhance user confidence and facilitate a smoother transition to a new place.
Design
The design portion started with creating user/task flows in order to smooth out any problems that a user would encounter if they were on the log in screen and in the barcode creation section. This would help tremendously as I would create a good foundation from that with low to mid fidelity wireframes. With the addition of color palettes and brand values, the transition to creating a high fidelity wireframe was not an issue.
Mid-Fidelity Wireframes
Because I had done my user/task flows already, it made it easier to plan out the wireframes. I decided to focus on the onboarding, the homepage and barcode creation process.
Color Palettes and Brand Values
When considering the brand values for this product, I decided traits similar to reliability and customer centricity are important since this is a moving product. In order to achieve this I had to make sure that the product:
Utilizes consistent branding elements
Allows users to navigate the app effortlessly
Has transparent communication, notifying the mover to know exactly where their items are
UI Components
Keeping the components into its own frame with the proper labels have helped me navigate through my project easily.
High-Fidelity Wireframes
When testing the first version of the High Fidelity wireframes, the participants were tasked with creating an account, creating a barcode for their item, resetting their password and selecting a moving company. I reached out to users on Discord and conducted both moderated and unmoderated testing through Zoom meetings and Maze.
Test
Tasks:
Create an account
Create a barcode
Reset a password
Select a moving company
Goals:
See if users are able to complete the tasks.
Learn if the design is easy to use
See if users have a good user experience while navigating through the product
Find average time for users to complete the tasks
Test Results
Results:
Task 1: 5/6 participants successfully completed this task.
Task 2: 6/6 participants successfully completed this task although 3 of them were through indirect success.
Task 3: 6/6 participants successfully completed this task.
Task 4: 5/6 participants successfully completed this task. One was unfinished.
Time spent on Tasks:
The average time users spent on the tasks was around 25 seconds.
User Experience:
There are comments about the UI aspect of things, like line height or how close certain buttons/colors were together. Some had issues with the testing through Maze.
Iterations
Before Iterations
I changed the icons for the initial and concluding screens of the scheduling screen, as well as for the print email. I also adjusted the color of buttons that weren't Call-To-Action buttons to a lighter shade.
Conclusion
Creating a moving app like Roll & Go was a challenge at first. Because there weren’t that many products that focused on item scanning and tracking, it was difficult for me to gauge an idea of how I could get it to stand out from other moving apps. Initially, I concentrated on how movers would adjust to their new environment. However, as I progressed further into the project, I decided to shift my focus to the moving process itself, considering its inherent stress.
Next Steps
To maintain high user retention, I would prioritize adding features such as a list of events to keep users updated on what's happening around their neighborhood, and a pin feature that allows users to mark and save specific locations on the map for future reference.
Reflections
I learned that shifting focus on a project is not so bad as long as I can justify my design choices. This was also my first time delving deeper into research aspects such as user/task flows, user personas, affinity mapping, and many others.
I also added a “flip” effect on the package tracker screen