The place that helps users save on accommodations through free home-swapping with other users!
Product Designer
Jessi Melcer
Project Scope
80 hours - November 2022
Stakeholders
Designlab UX Academy Capstone Project
Background
Trips provide relief from stress and a break from the mundane, and connect people with their loved ones.
“Time together wouldn’t happen...if we didn’t plan a trip”
Problem
Many people want to travel but are limited by how far and frequently they can travel due to budget, time constraints, and care for children and pets.
Initially, I wanted to develop a digital product that helps users plan trips within their budgets and ideal time.
“I want to unwind because life has been so crazy”
Process
Through an informal survey posted on social media, twenty-eight out of 37 survey respondents expressed that, in the last 3 months, they thought about planning a quick get-away trip.
1
Identify a travel niche
From there, 7 people were interviewed to:
2
Determine what prompts someone to try a new product
3
Understand users’ decisions when planning travel
Insights
The participants were motivated to take a get-away trip when they were feeling stressed out by work, bored with their daily routine, or needed quality time with friends or family.
“I don’t want the cost of the travel or lodging to take over too much of that budget that it would take away from [doing] the things I want.”
Nearly all participants expressed that cost factors into their trip planning process.
“Let’s get the heck out of here”
Most participants are compelled to try something new if it could offer something special that similar products couldn’t, while still fulfilling their travel goals.
Interviewees preferred to spend less on accommodations so they had more money to spend on activities; one person frequently visited with friends to save money.
“I like to disconnect”
I focused on two personas whose needs and paint points were similar, and could be addressed by one product.
Secondary Research
I came across an Instagram post where a user was reaching out to their network to see if anyone was interested in swapping homes. This got me wondering if other people had this issue; how would I solve this problem?
“There’s something fascinating in every city”
Logo
I chose the word Place because it conveys openness, warmth, and fun, it’s short and easy to remember, and is a popular colloquium for someone’s home or a cool destination.
Design
For the logo icon, I designed several options that played with the type-case and used simple shapes that are recognizable as a home. After receiving feedback from peers, I developed a few more options before settling on a final version which conveys friendliness and playfulness.
Creating a Community-Based Application
That Allows People to Swap Homes
What
A community-based application that allows people to swap homes with others also on the app. It prioritizes location, cleanliness, and safety over high-end details.
Who
People who want to visit a new place, meet new people, experience the area, and want low-cost or free accommodations so they can focus on spending their money on activities.
How
It provides a community of users a platform to offer up stays at their homes to other app users in exchange for the opportunity to stay at the other person’s place.
‘[I choose] affordability over luxury accommodations which leaves [me with] more money for activities”
“[We] try to be less materialistic in our quality time together”
Features
Accessibility
Labeled icons
Large buttons and search fields
Contrasting color schemes
Building Community
To encourage users to register an account, account-holders can favorite places to stay and experiences, write reviews, and create a profile and book a place to stay and swap with other users. They can also participate in the community of other swappers on the site, post photos/videos, and leave reviews.
Users who haven’t created an account can explore these features but must create an account to actually book a swap and participate in the community.
Search & Discover
The homepage contains a search feature to find places to swap, showcases popular destinations, and a section to explore trending experiences. If the user allows the site to use their location, the user would be shown things in their area.
Font
I chose League Spartan because it’s personable, playful, and approachable.
Color
I used a bright and bold color palette that evokes joy, warmth, and whimsy.
The Users’ Journey
I utilized a task flow to understand how the user might make their way through the product.
Storyboarding was a great tool to understand the users’ journey from start to finish. I love drawing and this was a fun opportunity to play with those skills.
Objectives
Learn how users navigate through the product by observing them interact with the product, focusing on the ease of completing the task and how long it takes.
Understand the strengths and weaknesses of the product.
Learn what the product evokes for users as they interact with the product, and follow-up with questions. Focus on the emotional response.
Gain feedback on the UX/UI design.
Reflection
Challenges
Though I approached each aspect of my testing from the users’ perspective, next time I would ask more questions about how the survey participant/user feels about the product, prototype, etc.
Part of the process is experimenting and the quick turn around time forced me to take more risks.
Moving Forward
Next Steps
This case study is for a conceptual web-based application. If it were real product, I would explore how it could be a lucrative business:
How might revenue be generated through partnerships with vendors selling activities and experiences for users?
How might revenue be generated with ads?
An option for users to swap for free or pay to stay.
Payment required only for a deposit or late cancellation.