Market Research & Competitive Analysis

I began the research process by conducting market research on the furniture industry as a whole and AR apps specifically as well. I examined more general trends, while also gaining insight on demographics for the target user.

I then conducted research on competing AR furniture apps, noting their strengths and weaknesses

Some Key Market Insights

• Online Furniture sales hit over $50 billion in 2018, representing the fastest growth amongst ecommerce product categories

• Large furniture online retailers like Wayfair have implemented AR into their sites already

• As Millennials enter the peak furniture buying ages of 25-45, they are making up a larger and larger percentage of the furniture market, up to 44% in 2018

• 47% of millennials research furniture before buying it, the highest of all age groups

• AR users generaly fall in the younger age group, between 16-34

• 39% of users believed that technical errors or bugs were standing in the way of their frequent adoption of AR

Primary Research: User Interviews and Empathy Mapping

I interviewed 5 participants about their experiences buying and shopping for furniture online and in person. I then organized my observations in order to synthesize my interview findings. I looked for patterns and came up with 4 chief insights that would allow me to deduce my prospective user’s needs.

After defining insights and needs based on my 1:1 interviews, I created a fictional persona, Robin, who would serve as a model for my target user. I then took the insights and needs from my 1:1 interviews and turned them into POV statements and HMW questions in order to define the problem.

I also used my persona’s goals, along with the business goals from the project brief to create a project goals diagram, with a set of mutual goals going forward.

Brainstorming and Product Roadmap

I took my HMW questions and in short bursts brainstormed as many solutions as I could think of for each,then Prioritized features in the form of a product roadmap.

User Flow

Based on my user goals proposed features I created a user flow document to map out two different user flows my persona would take through the app. I also created a Sitemap and Task Flow to further solidify the Architecture and Interaction Design of the app.

Sketches

I sketched out preliminary versions of the main app pages in order to start to solidify layout and features, while envisioning where how users would interact with the app. Below is a sample of the screens I sketched.

Mid-Fi Wireframes

Using my sketches, product roadmap, and sitemap I then created mid-fidelity wireframes of the app screens I would need to create and test a prototype. You can see a sample of my wireframing work below.

Usability Testing

Using a prototype I created with Invision, In order to gain feedback from prospective users, I went out and had 5 total strangers interact with my prototype and complete 3 specific tasks.

User Tasks

• Scenario 1: You are looking for modern style furniture and want to find a loveseat that will fit that style

• Task: Find a modern style loveseat

• Scenario 2: You find a couch you like but want to see it in AR and see it’s measurements

• Task: Find the product’s measurements in AR

• Scenario 3: You want to ask a friend what they think about the couch in your room

• Task: Share an AR photo with a friend

Results From Testing

Once I had my collected notes from testing, I separated my testing notes into Successes, Patterns and Comments, and then used the commonalities to come up with insights on specific elements or features of the prototype, learned from the users. From there I came up with design recommendations based on each insight. I also prioritized my insights and recommendations top to bottom

Insights

• Users were confused by not seeing an AR link below the image on the product screen

• Users commented on not being able to share via Social Media

• Users were confused by not seeing writing below the Measurement icon

Branding and Final Designs

Using insights and recommendations from my Affinity Map, as well as my decided upon branding elements and created a UI Kit and Style Tile, then used those elements and my wireframes to develop finalized UI designs.

You can find the final prototype below as well as here.

Final Prototype

Next Steps

• Hand off the designs to the development team to get the finalized app launched

• Continue to test and iterate designs as needed

Reflection

This was my final DesignLab capstone project, and I felt very comfortable at this point with the design thinking process and was able to adapt deliverables to suit the current project. I felt flexible and more nimble in my execution and was therefore able to comfortably take the project from early stages to a full fledged product in a short amount of time.