design sprint

THE IDEA

PostUp is an app looking to help freelancers find locations to work remotely.

The design sprint is a five-day process for answering critical questions through research, design and prototyping.

DAY 1

UNDERSTANDING THE PROBLEM SPACE 

Remote workers have trouble finding accessible locations.  It is easy to find many coffee shops, restaurants, and public spaces, but it is not always clear which location is suitable for work.   

There are specific core needs that workers require including available seating, power outlets, WiFi, bathroom access and shops that welcome workers to their space.

How can I make it easier for users to find coffee shops as well as other public and private spaces to work from?

How can the user know if the public location is quiet? 

What if the remote worker needs to ensure privacy?

The end goal is to have the user find a place to work, wherever they are, at any time.

END-TO-END USER EXPERIENCE MAP

I first started do brief interviews with remote workers to hear their wants and needs. 

Filtering options were added so users can select from a wide range of features.
Ratings and reviews were requested by multiple subjects.

After testing different options, this was the quickest and most concise way to map out this app. The remote worker needs to go through a 7-step process to find the best location.

DAY 2

SELECTING THE MOST CRITICAL SCREEN  

Step one involved looking at competitor's apps for inspiration.

Filtering by location was the obvious critical screen, since this was consistently the number one priority for users.  

CRAZY 8'S

Crazy 8's is a fast sketching exercise which involves sketching eight distinct ideas in eight minutes.  The goal is to generate multiple solutions to this challenge, producing sketches of the app content focusing on the most important screens.

 Most other sites, including Yelp, focus on the food quality, which is secondary for this app. Interview subject consistently mentioned that it's time consuming to scroll through multiple apps to find a remote work location.  Photos are often geared towards food and drink, when remote workers are more concerned about photos of the location including all seating options.

DAY 3

STORYBOARD

This is an in-depth storyboard, walking the user through every screen. I wanted to allow users the option to reserve space at private locations.Oftentimes, public spaces such as coffee shops work well for telework. However, there are times when workers need to work out of a more controlled environment. This way they can be confident that their workspace will be quiet, their WiFi will be working and that they can reserve a seat. The app allows users to reserve and book locations.

DAY 4

After analyzing the storyboard, it was time to create wireframes. Once that was complete, I began usability testing.  There was some critical feedback during testing that needed to be address prior to creating the hi fidelity screens.  

It was not clear to users that there was an option to book a private co-working space. I made this more prominent to let users know that they were able to find and book space directly on the app.

Users also were interested in viewing a chart that shows busy times at coffee shops and other public spaces since that will impact their decision.
 On the last day of the sprint, I created the hi-fidelity screen and created an interactive prototype.  The flow shows allows the users to search for a coffee shop that is work friendly.  

Next steps involve making a prototype of an additional flow, allowing users to search and book co-working spaces.

DAY 5

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