4m read
650 words
Designing an all-in-one mobile app for coffee lovers
Role
Product Designer
UX Researcher
Tools
Figma
Figjam
Timeline
14 weeks
Team
2 Product Designers
INITIAL PROBLEM DISCOVERY
So many coffee varieties, so hard to keep track of.
According to Counter Culture Coffee, there are at least 129 species of coffee out there but there is no formal way for coffee lovers to track the ones they've tried. This led my groupmate, Sandra, to ask herself and her best friend:
What if we designed an app that allows people to track, review, and share
their coffee-tasting experience?
SOLUTION
Introducing brevv
How did we get here?
QUESTIONS TO ANSWER
We started our journey with two questions
What do coffee lovers want?
What are some pain points in the coffee journey?
SURVEY
Physical and digital surveys
To get insights from the source and screen for interview participants, my teammate designed and drew physical flyers for us to distribute at local coffee shops. We also posted a version of them on our social media, and online communities on Reddit and Discord.
SURVEY RESULTS
41 qualifying responses
We had a total of 73 responses but only 41 of them were qualifying. To ensure the most relevant insights, we focused our analysis on responses from people who were highly engaged coffee enthusiasts. This way, we have confidence that the insights we are getting are relevant to our target audience.
INTERVIEW
Conducting 9 interviews through Zoom
We were able to accumulate 9 interview participants through the survey. To be eligible for an interview, survey takers would have to meet this criteria:
INTEREST IN COFFEE
Greater than or equal to 4
KNOWLEDGE OF COFFEE
Greater than or equal to 4
INTERVIEW CONSENT
Consented to interview
INSIGHTS
Synthesizing notes with an affinity map
We consolidated all of the survey data and interview data synthesized it into insights with an affinity map. With the affinity map, we were able to get a better idea of what it is that users want.
UNDERSTANDING
What do people want?
8/9
interviewees indicated that they would like to expand their knowledge on coffee.
15
responders expressed their wishes to learn more about local coffee roasters, retailers, and offerings.
10
responders expressed desire for a repository/database of reviews and relevant info.
TRACKING
How do people feel about tracking their coffee experience?
We specifically wanted information on our target audience's feelings towards tracking their coffee experience. This encompasses many things like rating and reviewing coffee varieties, keeping a collection of tried coffee varieties, and a wishlist of coffee varieties.
WE LEARNED…
Most people do not track their experience with coffee, but are very interested in doing so provided an easy way.
IDEATE
What would this actually look like?
We utilized different ideating methods like scamper, competitive analysis, lightning demos, moscow method, and mind mapping to gain a better understanding of the different features we could implement.
STYLE GUIDE
Standardizing the design
To match the warmth and comfort that coffee can bring to people, we chose an earthy tone and a font family that mimics that. We referenced this style guide consistently throughout the design process to ensure consistency, enhancing the user experience by providing clear direction.
SOLUTION
Four core features of brevv
We created brevv to help coffee lovers track, review, and discover coffee varieties. Through ideating and speaking to users, we ensured brevv had these four features:
FINAL DESIGN
Brevv, an all-in-one mobile app for coffee lovers
USABILITY TESTING
What can be improved?
Like all products, the work is almost never finished. We conducted usability testing with six participants and have a good idea of what works and what needs improvement. We were able to address some of the concerns for the most recent iteration but we hope to address all of the user feedback in the coming future.
Functionalities and IA matched participants’ expectations.
Positive responses to our visual identity and interactions.
Users struggle to form a coherent mental model.
Core identity/subject is not legible upon arrival.
REFLECTIONS
Working through a mismatch in collaborative styles
My teammate and I had very differing styles when it comes to collaboration. There were many moments when we weren't aligned on a specific part of the project and that only made the work harder. But, we were able to overcome that obstacle through communication and come out with a great project. Coming out of the project, I was able to gain a better understanding of my learning style and collaboration style and I can become a better designer because of that.