Project Vision
Benkyo-Buddy is a study partner request app designed for university students. The product is available for desktops and mobile devices.
Challenge
Individuals need a reliable way to find a suitable study partner based on course ability, accountability, compatibility in completing assignments, and personal schedule.
Goals
Design a study buddy request flow.
Create a study buddy request application that ensures compatibility, accountability, safety for requesting a study partner.
User Research Summary
User Group Research
To understand the target user and their needs, I conducted user interviews, created empathy maps, personas, and user journeys.
Users reported
that current technology for collaborating was cumbersome and problematic - causing frustration and loss of time.
they needed motivation and some form of accountability to complete tasks.
Target User
The target user needs a web-based app that is technologically reliable, incentivizes accountability, and that also ensures compatibility of study styles and study goals.
User Pain Points
Ideate
The home screen paper wireframe focuses on solutions addressing pain points. I consolidated starred items before generating screen-size variations.
Paper Wireframes - Screen Size Variation
University students use various devices, so it is crucial to design the application to be web-responsive. Features that are important from the home page are:
The navigation bar at the top
Imagery to convey product use
Clickable labeled icons/pictures
Testimonials
Digital Wireframe
Information Architecture
Usability Insight
Refining the Design
Mockups: Original Screen Size
Mockups: Screen Variation
High-Fidelity Prototype
The high-fidelity prototype improved the overall user experience with better Call-to-Action (CTA) buttons and visual cues. These changes provided more efficient navigation of the study partner request flow.
Takeaways
What I learned:
UX research is essential for improving designs.
A usability study gives tangible evidence to either validate or challenge design ideas before creating mockups.
A thorough competitive audit is a catalysis for ideating improvements to address opportunities
Impact
From the usability study, users indicated positive engagement:
The user flow was described as “fairly direct," “very intuitive,” and “super easy,"
The design was described as “super clean” and “bells and whistles."