Connecting people with animals in need
Overview
An enormous number of domestic animals live in shelters, eagerly awaiting a chance for a better life. At the same time, many people are searching for an animal companion to share their everyday life with. This project aims to connect these two worlds by supporting the adoption process — both before and after adoption.
My Role
I worked with Magdalena Kotlarek, a talented graphic designer who was responsible for the app's branding. I was fully responsible for the UX design and led the research — conducting in-depth interviews (IDI), synthesising insights, creating personas, mapping experiences, and running usability tests.
Hands on Experience
Our experience working as volunteers at the animal shelter gave us a certain amount of knowledge about what kind of difficulties its employees and tenants are struggling with. We noticed that the motive that hinders the efficient functioning of the shelter is the excess number of homeless animals. Therefore, it seems important to increase the number of successful adoptions of shelter animals and to reduce the number of animals that return to the shelter.
It is necessary to understand those who are interested in adopting a pet and those who are currently caring for a pet that they got from a shelter.
Interviews
To better understand specified groups of users, we recruited 6 people with whom we conducted interviews lasting several dozen minutes. We categorised the obtained data with the empathy map technique, which gave us a high-level picture of their emotions, fears, and needs.
Users
The obtained data allowed us to create hypothetical user archetypes. We distinguished two main personas towards whom we directed further design work.
User Journey Map
An analysis of the various stages of the user experience allowed us to identify areas with potential for improvements.
Design Goals
After tracing the journeys of archetypal users, it became possible to define design problems and outline their potential solutions. Based on the materials we created, we concluded that this product should meet the following goals:
- Provide users interested in adoption with access to systematised, transparent, and condensed information on shelter animals, making the pre-adoption process smoother
- Support users interested in adoption by giving them access to clear and simple adoption instructions, dispelling potential procedural inaccuracies
- Enable new carers to have safe and easy access to the most important information about adopted animals, positively influencing their post-adoption functioning
Competitive Audit
Looking for a conceptual point of reference, we audited other products. This helped us identify approaches and design patterns currently functioning in the digital space.
HMW?
Rephrasing identified design problems into simple questions starting with "How might we...?" allowed us to look at the challenges ahead from a fresh, more creative perspective.
"HMW present the adoption procedure in a way that doesn't discourage potential caregivers from adopting?"
"HMW prevent new shelter animal keepers from needing additional information support?"
"HMW make the adoption procedure simple, easy to understand and not deter potential caregivers?"
"HMW provide access to critical information about adopted animals to those who need it?"
"HMW design a shelter animal viewer that encourages exploration, is understandable and transparent?"
"HMW make the exploration of a potential animal companion exciting?"
App Map
With the gathered knowledge, we were able to create a simple structure for our product.
Wireframes
Initial sketches were made on paper, and when they began to reflect what we wanted to show, we transferred them into a digital format.
Usability Study_v.1
After transforming screens into lo-fi interactive prototypes, we checked them during a semi-structured usability study.
We invited 5 people to moderated usability tests. The tasks to which the participants were subject were related to the functions of finding an adoptive animal, going through the adoption process, and finding various types of information. Additionally, the respondents had to complete the System Usability Scale.
- Most of the people complained about the lack of direct access to their own profiles
- Some testers noted a problem with distinguishing gender symbols in filters
- The analysis of the SUS results showed a very good overall attitude towards the tested product
Usability Study_v.2
In order to check the impressions of a higher-fidelity product, we conducted another iteration of a semi-structured usability study.
- Most of the participants had a problem with the contrast of minor graphic elements
- Most people looked for information about the adoption process in the wrong place
- Several participants mentioned that the most important information about a vet is its location
- Testers mentioned that it would be helpful to have fast filtering functions in case of emergency
- Testers mentioned the usefulness of the favourite function in the vet space
- It was pointed out that there are no filters that define the attitude of the adoptive animal towards other dogs, cats, and children
Release
After many iterations and an enormous amount of work, we brought the „Adopciak" project to its final version.
Summary
Working on this project was an incredibly uplifting experience. We have learned a lot, and we are sure that the acquired knowledge will have a positive impact on our future projects.
Although this is where the Adopciak project ends, if its implementation took place in the real world, this adventure would only be in the opening. We look forward to working on equally exciting projects.