VoCab is a vocabulary learning app that uses a creative approach to improve skills.
As part of my intruduction into the UX Design field, this 3-week-project was focused on applying the design thinking process, getting an understanding for it, and also becoming familiar with related techniques, terms and tools.
Methods
- Competitive Analysis
- User Interviews
- User Personas
- User Flows
- Wireframes and Rapid Prototyping
- Usability Testing
- Competitive Analysis
- User Interviews
- User Personas
- User Flows
- Wireframes and Rapid Prototyping
- Usability Testing
The Problem Statement
How might we design a mobile app that empowers people to learn new vocabulary?
How might we design a mobile app that empowers people to learn new vocabulary?
Besides the given app feature requirements, such as onboarding process, a way to upload new vocabulary, a menu to navigate through the app, to name a few, I had flexibility how to meet those requirements.
Competitive Analysis
I started the process by researching three competitors to get a first impression what kind of applications to learn new vocabulary are already out there.
I also identified their pros and cons, and dug deeper into their functionality.
You can read the Competitive Analysis here.
I also identified their pros and cons, and dug deeper into their functionality.
You can read the Competitive Analysis here.
User Interviews
The next step was to conduct user interviews to get a better understanding on how people approach learning a new subject and vocabulary. This qualitative data would help me to understand potential users´needs and goals, as well as developing a proto persona.
You can have a look at this part of the research here.
You can have a look at this part of the research here.
User Personas
May I introduce Juli de Jaager.
Demographics
- Identifies as female
- 36 years old
- Lives in Amsterdam
- Studied Journalism
- Young professional as a Communication Consultant
- Born&raised in Harlingen
- In a long-distance relationship
- 36 years old
- Lives in Amsterdam
- Studied Journalism
- Young professional as a Communication Consultant
- Born&raised in Harlingen
- In a long-distance relationship
Behaviors
She either travels internationally for work or works from home.
As a communications consultant Juli provides internal or external support for a company's communications department.
Companies from different backgrounds usually hire her periodically to handle specific tasks or projects. She recently started expanding her network in the medical tech world.
She works on a freelance basis to keep her independence to travel the world and to write her own book.
Dutch is Juli´s native language, and she also speaks German and English.
In her free time she enjoys being in nature.
Juli stays in touch with her loved ones via social media.
As a communications consultant Juli provides internal or external support for a company's communications department.
Companies from different backgrounds usually hire her periodically to handle specific tasks or projects. She recently started expanding her network in the medical tech world.
She works on a freelance basis to keep her independence to travel the world and to write her own book.
Dutch is Juli´s native language, and she also speaks German and English.
In her free time she enjoys being in nature.
Juli stays in touch with her loved ones via social media.
Needs & Goals
Juli wants to improve her business English skills.
She already speaks English but wants to feel more comfortable in using especially business related vocabulary.
Time is critical for her because she works a lot and also for companies in different time zones. Therefore a learning tool has to be easy.
She would like to use it offline due to her travels.
To keep herself motivated and as a balance to her professional life, she would like to approach a creative way of learning and is interested in learning with other people who have a similiar worklife background.
She already speaks English but wants to feel more comfortable in using especially business related vocabulary.
Time is critical for her because she works a lot and also for companies in different time zones. Therefore a learning tool has to be easy.
She would like to use it offline due to her travels.
To keep herself motivated and as a balance to her professional life, she would like to approach a creative way of learning and is interested in learning with other people who have a similiar worklife background.
I believe by creating an app that uses a creative learning approach for business related vocabulary with study buddies, that adapts to her unusual worklife and that is easy accessible for Juli de Jaager,
I will achieve an enjoyable learning experience for her that helps her to improve her english skills and also expand her network.
I will achieve an enjoyable learning experience for her that helps her to improve her english skills and also expand her network.
Information Architecture
After I had established "who" I was designing for, it was time to understand th "how".
I identified main tasks Juli would need to complete to accomplish her goals, and visualized them in User Flows.
I identified main tasks Juli would need to complete to accomplish her goals, and visualized them in User Flows.
Task 1
Adding new vocabulary via scan
Adding new vocabulary via scan
Task 2
Solve a crossword puzzle
Solve a crossword puzzle
Wireframes & Rapid Prototyping
At this point, I have explored the problem space, practiced generative interviews, created Juli, the proto-personas, and outlined the tasks and flows necessary to design a positive vocabulary learning experience. Now it’s time to build a more physical system around these flows.
Meaning: I took pen&paper a started sketching, and used the tool Marvel to build a prototype.
Meaning: I took pen&paper a started sketching, and used the tool Marvel to build a prototype.
Splash Screen & Onboarding
Adding new vocabulary via scan
Solve a crossword puzzle
Valuable user input helped me identifying errors, as well as which parts needed revision.
Next Steps
Revising the onboarding process
Displaying rewards more prominent
Revising the menu
Adding color and creating mid- and high-fidelity prototypes
Learnings
I enjoyed the process very much - how everything just came together!
This introduction into User Experience Design helped me discovering what topics, methods and tools were already familiar, and therefore came more easy. More importantly, I found out which aspects I needed to work on personally - such as perfectionism and frustration.
This introduction into User Experience Design helped me discovering what topics, methods and tools were already familiar, and therefore came more easy. More importantly, I found out which aspects I needed to work on personally - such as perfectionism and frustration.
It is all about trusting the process.