Natural Britain
Solo UX Designer
Appstricity is a tech start up that focuses on developing software for travel companies. After three months of assisting with usability testing and their launch, we successfully got Natural Britain approved by the App Store with 47 users signing up in the first week.
View on App StoreAppstricty wanted to do usability testing to improve the Natural Britain App. The main concerns were:
Tidying up the features to maintain a clear user journey
Improving the UI
Logging and correcting any bugs within the code.
The high-level objectives to meet the project's goals were:
Launch the Beta version, prepare test scripts, and schedule usability tests.
Make iterations based on test findings.
There were a few constraints that limited the freedom I had as a designer.
Before completing the test script, I wanted to have a better understanding of who Natural Britain's users were. I wanted to make assumptions about what their motives were for using the app so I could later identify the user journey.
After doing some research, It became obvious that there was a need for Natural Britain to take their digital presence to the next level. The current social climate, as well as trends in data showed that users were migrating towards a more efficient way to book their travel.
Users are looking to book trips as fast as possible.
Users need guidance on what to book.
Users want the process of booking a trip on an app to be easier than on the website.
To pick up on any bugs in the code, we released the Beta version of Natural Britain on Test Flight. We wanted to log and correct any issues that could potentially distract from the user journey.
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After completing 5 rounds of usability testing, we were able to identify and correct the main usability issues. I have sorted them into four themes below:
Between six rounds of user testing, I made a series of changes to the app with all project constraints considered.
Replaced and removed redundant icons that were confusing users.
Removed a matching feature and a file-sharing feature to focus on the MVP.
Cleaned up the UI so the experience on the app felt more intuitive (swiping left with left-facing fonts). Additionally, I toned down the colour because the green was overpowering the images.
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Changed all fonts to left facing for consistency and cleaned up the UI removing any drop shadows from elements that were not CTAs (created a design system).
Rearranged icons and CTA's to make them easier to click for the user.
Simplified the trip details and added photos throughout the description to keep the user engaged.
Improved the information architecture and enlarged images.
Added in advanced filtering options so uses can choose what they are looking for.
Added in a key word search bar.
The final step was to submit Natural Britain to the App Store for approval. Part of the requirements was to submit an App Icon and App Screenshots.
I understood that one of my constraints was that I could not change Natural Britain's logo. I got approval to keep the same logo but give the App Icon a refresh. I enlarged the logo and added a gradient to the background which improved the quality.
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I then prepared all of the App Screenshots to display all of the key features for new potential users to browse.
Since Natural Britain's launch, 47 users total have signed up. This number is not great, but it is a start for Appstricity. The company is constantly learning and evolving to provide more local travel companies with a digital solution.
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"the app was really easy to navigate and had a nice way of navigating around."
"really loved the colour scheme and photos. Thought that it gave the app a really bright feel."
"good usability and capabilities with the contact center"
After the App was launched, I made some suggestions to Appstricity about the second version that they are planning on pitching to future clients.
Natural Britain currently has ten features. From the results of usability tests, this has proven to be too much. The motive of most users seems to be to go on the app, get recommended trips, and book the trip. I found most of the other features to be redundant. I suggested the next time around to strip it down to focus primarily on their MVP and a few secondary features, ensuring they all relate to the user journey while still meeting projects goals.
I decided to take on the project with Appstricity to learn what it was like to work hand in hand with developers. Upon completing the project, I did just that. These were my main takeaways from the project.
It is important your client understands the value in UX research, UX design and accessibility.
When a designer joins a project in its late stages, there will be accumulated design debt.
There should be no time limit on usability testing, if something isn't working it will cost the company less to do another round than to release the App and fix it later on.
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