Case Study

LuvActually.com

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Introduction:

Our team had the opportunity to work with Niveen, the CEO and founder of LUV Actually, on developing a mobile app to enhance the dating experience for users. Niveen, who has an extensive background in design, research, and strategy, founded LUV Actually to help people streamline their dating journeys. By utilizing her expertise in product leadership, she created a platform that features an AI-based coach, which assists users in breaking self-defeating patterns, making better choices, clarifying values and goals, and receiving personalized guidance based on their relationship history.

For this project, our team collaborated closely with Niveen to improve the appā€™s overall experience. We focused on refining the visual design, creating an intuitive interface, and incorporating new key features that were identified during our discussions. Through this case study, we will showcase our approach to enhancing the user experience and the steps we took to bring Niveen's vision to life.

Problem Statement:

Users often lack someone in their lives to provide private, unbiased dating and relationship advice. Additionally, they do not have easy access to well-researched relationship guidance from experts.

Research Objectives:

The research aimed to understand how users would perceive and interact with the platform, identify potential pain points in the user experience, and determine effective ways to communicate the platform's safety and security. Additionally, we sought to discover what factors would motivate users to engage with the platform. The app was evaluated against a set of established usability guidelines to ensure a seamless user experience.

Heuristic Analysis:

A heuristic analysis was conducted to provide a standardized assessment of the app's overall usability and functionality. This evaluation helped identify any issues that might hinder the user experience and informed improvements to enhance the platform's effectiveness.

Heuristic Evaluation

#3. User Control and Freedom

Before the redesign, the platform lacked essential features that allowed users to maintain control over their actions. There was no "undo" or "unsend" option for messages, and the absence of a clear "X" button to exit the chat with Ishtar made navigation cumbersome. Users had to scroll up to the top of the page to access the side menu and select "Home," which felt unintuitive and frustrating. Additionally, when users navigated to other pages, such as "Chat History," there wasnā€™t a straightforward option to return to the "Chat with Ishtar" screen, which was a primary feature of the app.

Suggestions:

- Introduce an "undo" or "unsend" feature for messages.

- Add a clear "X" button to exit the chat with Ishtar.

- Provide a direct navigation option to return to "Chat with Ishtar" from other pages.

#6. Recognition Rather Than Recall

Before the redesign, users faced difficulties navigating to the platform's main features, such as "Chat with Ishtar" and "Personal Development Quizzes." These features were not easily accessible from the main menu, which was located in the upper right corner of the page. Instead, users had to click "Home" and scroll up to reveal the menu, making the process tedious and inefficient.

Suggestions:

- Include "Chat with Ishtar" and "Personal Development Quizzes" in the main menu.

- Implement a top navigation bar that remains fixed during scrolling, with these options readily available, to improve ease of access.

#8. Aesthetic and Minimalist Design

Before the redesign, the text on the "Attachment Style Quiz" under the "Personal Development" section was small and low contrast (gray text on a white background), making it difficult for some users to read. This design choice may also have violated the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines.

Suggestions:

- Use higher contrast and larger fonts to improve readability and ensure accessibility compliance.

Key Feedback Summary:

  1. Content Overload and Navigation Issues:

    • Users felt there was too much text on quizzes, making them overwhelming and difficult to read. They preferred shorter content with images to make the experience more engaging and fun.

    • Navigation was not intuitive; users found it confusing to return to the main features or the homepage. Key features like "Chat with Ishtar" and "Personal Development Quizzes" were not easily accessible.

  2. Design and Aesthetics:

    • The websiteā€™s design was perceived as unprofessional and not trustworthy, with inconsistent fonts and excessive white space. Users suggested it needed a more sleek and branded look.

    • The font and overall design choices did not resonate with users, who felt it made the site look less legitimate.

  3. Clarity and User Understanding:

    • There was confusion about the purpose of the website and whether it was an app or a web platform. Users were unclear about what the site was offering and its value.

    • The homepage content appeared too targeted at single individuals or those in situationships, leaving out those in committed relationships.

  4. Trust and Privacy Concerns:

    • Several users expressed discomfort with sharing personal relationship issues, feeling that the site did not look trustworthy.

    • The platform seemed unprofessional to some users, who were hesitant to trust it with their information.

  5. Visual Content and Engagement:

    • Users wanted more quizzes, images, and interactive content, like videos on dating tips and success stories, to make the experience more dynamic and engaging.

    • Suggestions included adding more interviews with the CEO and varying the sources of dating advice to avoid repetition.

  6. Tone and User Experience:

    • While some appreciated the friendly tone of the AI, others found it too intimate or cheesy, suggesting options for customizing the tone of communication.

    • Users found the AIā€™s video representation unsettling and suggested a less uncanny depiction.

  7. General Usability:

    • Despite some usability issues, there were positive comments about the websiteā€™s intuitive navigation and overall easy-to-use interface.

    • Some users suggested improvements such as aggregating chat history by topic and adding options to switch conversation topics or select different AI personas.

  8. Brand Perception and Authenticity:

    • Several users felt that the current state of the website appeared rudimentary and unprofessional, which impacted their willingness to engage with the platform. They suggested a redesign to enhance authenticity and appeal.

Ideation Phase:

During the ideation phase, our team focused on generating creative solutions to address the key issues identified in our research for LUV Actually. We began by organizing brainstorming sessions to explore different ways to improve the platform's usability, enhance user engagement, and build trust with users.

Usability: Simplified navigation with a fixed bottom bar.

Engagement: Made quizzes more interactive with images and colors and introduced multimedia content like videos and expert interviews.

Trust: Redesigned the site for a professional look, added transparency about AI technology, and included testimonials to build credibility.

Content Expansion: Increased quizzes, interactive features, and blog content to meet diverse user needs.

This phase guided the redesign to enhance user experience and meet user expectations.

Mood Board I created for ideas for branding, colour scheme quiz formats for the redesign.

Low Fidelity Wireframes

High-fidelity wireframe my team member designed and sent to client, she was very unhappy with this design and the deviation from the original branding of the website.

Design Process:

After receiving approval from the client, our team proceeded to the design phase, where we focused on developing high-fidelity wireframes that captured the complete user flow of LUV Actually.

We began by refining the key features and layout identified during the ideation phase, ensuring the wireframes were aligned with the client's vision and user needs. The design process included:

  1. Creating Detailed Wireframes:
    We created high-fidelity wireframes that illustrated the redesigned navigation, interactive quiz formats, and multimedia content integration. These wireframes provided a clear visual representation of the platform's enhanced usability and engagement features.

  2. Ensuring Consistency and Accessibility:
    Our team paid close attention to consistent use of fonts, colors, and design elements throughout the wireframes to ensure a cohesive and professional appearance. We also incorporated accessibility standards, such as adequate contrast and readable font sizes, to ensure the platform would be usable for all users.

  3. Incorporating User Feedback:
    The wireframes were iteratively refined based on feedback from the client and stakeholders, with particular attention to improving navigation flow, reducing content overload, and enhancing the overall visual appeal.

  4. Preparing for Prototype Development:
    With the high-fidelity wireframes completed and approved, we moved on to the prototyping stage, where these wireframes would serve as the foundation for interactive prototypes to test with users.

This design phase was crucial in transforming initial ideas into a tangible, user-centered design for LUV Actually, setting the stage for further development and testing.

Wireframes I redesigned based off clientā€™s original branding, but elevating it to look more professional. She decided to go with the second design.

User Testing and Feedback Incorporation

During the user testing phase, we used Maze to gather insights on the high-fidelity prototype of LUV Actually. This testing allowed us to observe how users interacted with the new design and identify areas for improvement.

Positive Feedback:

Users responded positively to the prototype, noting that it was intuitive and easy to navigate. Many users appreciated the simplified navigation and clear layout, which made it easy to find key features like "Chat with Ishtar" and "Personal Development Quizzes." Additionally, users praised the updated branding and aesthetics, highlighting the modern and cohesive design as a significant improvement. They found the color scheme, fonts, and overall visual appeal to be engaging and fitting for the platform's theme.

Feedback Incorporation:

Based on this feedback, we fine-tuned the prototype to enhance the user experience further. We ensured that the navigation remained straightforward and that the branding elements aligned with users' expectations. This process helped us refine the design to better meet the needs and preferences of our target audience, ultimately creating a more polished and user-friendly platform.

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