Seniors
A Chatting App
Designed for seniors and
their family
My Role
User research/Wireframing/Prototyping
Team
Shally/Caiwei Mao/Lu Houser
"oh no, press the wrong button again!!!"
"I gotta share my garden's pic to my friends and kids."
Duration
4 weeks( December 2021)
"Son, I forget how to start a video call with my friend"
"This app
is so complicated to use."
High-Fidelity
Wireframes
Senior is a chat app where seniors talk
to their family and friends easily
Overview
We built the app to serve the needs of seniors, who often feel that apps are too complicated. Many other apps have too many features they feel are useless, while other, necessary features are not available. Our goal is to build a chat app for them.
My UX Design Process
Define
Empathize
Competitive analysis
User interview
Personas
Journey map
Ideate
User flow
Test
Usability Study
Affinity map
Implementing feedback
Design
Wireframes
Visual design
Prototypes
Research
Competitive Analysis
The initial step in our research was to understand successful patterns in current products and missing gaps in unique values. We explored 15 products and narrowed down to 4 top competitors. We analyzed the good and bad of each competitor and performed our points of analysis on : user experience, features, unique value, and accessibility.
See details about competitive analysis
User Interviews
I framed 10 questions for the one-on-one interviews. I conducted interviews of 10 people to understand their mindsets and intentions for communication platforms. I focused on challenges or difficulties they faced in the past, along with preferences for features they liked. The following are some of those questions.
1. What method do you usually use to talk to your family and friends?
2. Do you use one chat app, or switch between several? Why?
3. Does your favorite chat app satisfy all your needs? If not, what other features do you need?
4. What makes you dislike other chat apps?
5. Do you think a "remote admin" feature would be helpful?
Learning Goals
Seniors
-
Some apps are too complicated to use.
-
It's easy to forget how to set the app up, even after they have done it several times.
-
Heavy text in the app is not friendly for seniors.
-
The bigger font is easier to read.
Othe Family Members
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They hope there is an easier way to assist seniors to set up their phones.
-
They feel other apps are too complicated for seniors. They want an app that combines Facebook and FaceTime.
Synthesize
User Findings
We synthesized our findings under the five main categories below in order to create a more solid frame and foundation for our design moving forward.
Goals
Motivation
Behavior
Channels
Pain Points
For this step, it was important to understand the target user and the specific situation, motivation, and outcome to better comprehend the exact steps the user would take to finish a task.
User Insights
Users told me that they often find other apps too complicated, for several reasons. Many apps have features they would never use. Many apps have difficult setup processes. Finally, they often forget what the icons mean.
Prioritizing Value
The findings from our research were then organized on an affinity map to better understand their relationship to each other and to determine our priorities moving forward in the process.
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Some apps are too complicated to use. Even though they were told how to use it, it's easy to forget.
-
They prefer a bigger font, which is easier to read for older people.
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They have difficulties reading a lot of text on such a small phone screen. A screen reader would be very helpful.
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"Remote admin" is a helpful feature, as long as it is easy to use.
Ideate
User Flow
Prior to coming up with solutions, we spent some time developing the user flow for seniors. We started with discussing target users and end goals, then connecting the two with key interactions a user has with the product.
See details about user flow
Design, Test & Prototype
Low-Fidelity Wireframe
Usability Study
Methodology
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Moderated Usability Study, conducted remotely with participants.
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Location: United States, China, Australia. Each participant will complete the study in their own home.
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Date: Sessions will take place on December 11 and December 13
-
Length: Each session will last 20 to 30 minutes, based on a list of prompts
Research goals
-
Determining if the Senior’s app is easy to use
-
Identifying reasons why users are going to use the app.
Key performance indicators
Time on task/User error rates/Drop-off rates
What are the questions the research is trying to answer?
-
What stops users from completing tasks?
-
Which parts does the user find confusing?
-
How long does it take for a user to complete a task?
Findings & Solutions
Early designs only allowed for sending text and voice messages.
I added "text reader" and "zoom" features. I also replaced the small “send” button with a bigger red button.
Early designs had standard settings: profile, notification, text size.
I removed some features from the setting, added "SOS", "pop-up instruction" and "Screen reader" features. SOS allows users to ask for help from a specific contact. Screen reader will read content for the user.
Hi-Fidelity Prototype
Takeaways
Prior to coming up with solutions, we spent some time developing the user flow for seniors. We started with discussing target users and end goals, then connecting the two with key interactions a user has with the product.