Gastronome is a food service app that was created by Fumiko Katsuki, Lisa Roxby, and Nabil Mir for Fashion Institute of Technology's UX Design Certificate Spring 2019 Program.
Through research, we discovered users found the Yelp interface too busy. Many of them did not provide high quality feedback on their dining experiences. Thus, we created a way to incentivize users to write reviews by giving them coupons.
To further enhance recommendations and engagement, the algorithm adjusts to user preferences through their visited restaurants.
For more information, read about it on Medium.
Emphasize
We performed a competitive analysis on Yelp.
Our target audience are people who use food service apps and eat out at least once a week.
Source
For research, I interviewed a coworker and a friend. They were asked which apps they use to find food and on which devices, if they write reviews, what types of food do they eat, and to tell a story about a positive experience using these apps and a negative one
My friend said she doesn't write reviews due to lack of time and there is no incentive to write one. She might write reviews if she was offered a coupon or discount. These interviews led our team to the following assumption:
People who use food apps found it frustrating to sort through eateries, time consuming to find restaurants, and were too busy to leave reviews.
We started mapping out our ideas and results from our interviews and research. Through affinity mapping, we categorized our findings and split them into demographics, user data, reviews, competition, wants, and pain points. We used this data to create personas.
Define
James is a foodie and his goals, needs, and pain points were the result of the previous research compiled. Here are some user stories that were developed based on him:
As a foodie, I want to find exciting new restaurants quickly so that I can diversify my palette and discover exotic cuisines.
As a Yelp reviewer, I want a way to incentivize reviews so that reviewers and people who don't write reviews are encouraged to leave meaningful feedback.
As a frequent Yelp user, I want a less cluttered interface so I can find my favorite restaurants and explore new ones promptly.
The journey map details a scenario where James goes out for dinner after work with his girlfriend Emma. Several key points were ideated from our maps:
1. Based on flavor profile and check-in history, users should find restaurants quickly with recommendations and search results tailored to their personal tastes.
2. Users should be incentivized to write quality reviews and stay engaged with the app by giving them coupons and discounts.
3. The app should provide an effortless reservation system with detailed search filters and personalized reviews.
Ideation
We named our project Gastronome, which means someone who loves eating delicious food.
For users who don't write reviews, Gastronome is a food service app that incentivizes writing restaurant reviews by giving people coupons and discounts.
Some of the app’s key features are:
• Coupons and discounts received for writing revealing reviews.
• Integrated moderating team to ensure quality reviews are being written.
• Specific filtering options for user-tailored review searches.
A site map was created to organize the hierarchy and navigation of Gastronome. The numbers on the site map indicate the order of the task flow. The site map was created in Axure RP.
Prototypes
Here is the first paper wireframe, which would be later aggrandized into a mid-fidelity wireframe and a paper prototype.
The next wireframe was created in Adobe XD. Users can now login through their Facebook or Gmail accounts. A location bar was added along with search and filter buttons, which lets users filter results before performing a search. After logging in, the user will be shown recommended restaurants based on their profile as well as deals and coupons.
I had three relatives perform the same task flow with the paper prototype The task was to find a restaurant and then go out for dinner and write a review. One user thought people would enjoy using the app and stay engaged
since it rewards users who write reviews by helping them save money on eating out.
Another interviewee noted the lack of expiration dates for coupons. She suggested removing the search and location bars on pages where they're not needed, such as restaurant pages and reviews. This feedback was implemented in the ensuing prototype.
I created the login page, home page, and search screen in Adobe XD. During testing, some of the typography and icons were too small to read or touch. This was addressed in the next iteration. We chose orange as our primary color since it stimulates appetite.
Here you can see the changes in the fonts, logo, and rating icon sizes.
I created:
• Ability to login via Instagram, a feature previously suggested by a relative
• Expiration dates on the coupon page
• New filler images
• Bookmark and Share buttons
Final version of the prototype showing how all the pages and artboards are linked. Here are some user flows for the app:
After signing up, the user creates a curated flavor profile which is used to tailor personal restaurant recommendations. After onboarding, the user is taken to the home page.
Sample search for Thai food, including restaurant page and reviews.
After submitting, the user is notified their review is pending moderation. If approved, the user can claim a coupon as a reward.
Here, a user creates a dinner reservation through Gastronome.
Currently, Gastronome exists as an Adobe XD prototype but hopefully this project will come to life in the Apple App Store or Google Play Store in the future. Like our professors always reminded us, user experience is an iterative process. For more information, read about it on Medium.
