G COFFEY DESIGNS

INTERACTION DESIGNER

UI / UX SPECIALIST

PREAMP - IRISH GIG DISCOVERY APP

Overview

The purpose of including this project is to give an overview of the process of developing an app from concept to idea while working as part of a team. While this process was complex, the overview below mostly focuses on user-testing and user-based redesign.

My Role

Being a year-long project, it is difficult to provide an exhaustive account of my role in the project. However, being a two-person team we both contributed to all aspects of the process. Having developed the concept and conducted initial user research, my primary role was that of UI and UX designer, Graphic Designer and head of social media coverage.

THE FINAL PRODUCT

Preamp is an Irish Gig Discovery App that lets you discover gigs that are happening around your current location. Built natively in Objective C this app enables you to follow your favourite artists and see their upcoming Irish or UK tour dates in your personal upcoming gig discovery screen. If the artist has no gigs available we will inform you next time they are in Ireland.

Preamp is different from any other gig discovery app available as it enables you to initiate group conversations with your friends about upcoming gigs that you discover and let them know whether you would be interested in attending.

THE PROCESS

User Research

We conducted several user surveys firstly to identify the user's wants and needs were and how we could tailor our app to give the user the best possible experience. We also conducted focus groups at the beginning of the project to help with this process. We wanted to establish what kind of an app would be of benefit for young individuals within the 18-35 range, if they would use it and how they would use it.

Asking the right questions was critical at this stage, as we found that our users could be easily led to false conclusions if the questions were in any way biased. Once we had established or basic idea we maintained a dialogue with our target market to ensure that project stayed on track and continued to be of benefit to them. We created the persona below based on our results.

User Testing

We began testing in the very early stages of our project as usability was critical to the success of our artefact. Initially paper testing, we established a sufficient browsing interface, navigation strategy and feature list. We extended these paper prototypes to click through prototypes on the device by using POP ( Prototyping on Paper APP), then on to User Interface designs. Having tested a low fidelity prototype with our target market via POP we created our first hi-phi prototype with invision. At this stage, we had confirmed that our work-flows were coherent. Now we were testing visual designs of the app, button design, legibility of type, and navigation architecture. We confirmed any changes to the layout of the prototype with ABC tests. By the beginning of the third phase of the project, we were on the device with our minimum viable product. From here, most testing was carried on our coded artefact, UI changes were tested with invision prototypes. We continued with 3 more major phases of testing which we used to improve the functionality and flow of our APP. Our final formal tests mostly confirmed what we had already established but there was room for some fine-tuning in the navigation process. Below are snapshots of key points in our iterative process.

Initial Paper testing

Sample of initial Navigation work-flow used in paper tests

Sample of initial navigation work-flow developed after the first round of paper tests

Sample of ABC tests carried out on the device in the second round of testing

Sample testing scripts for on-device prototypes

1. What user is this e.g. user A.0 (home screen) A.1(grid view) A.2(list view)

2. Can you show me a gig that is happening now, tonight, later.

3. Can you select Arcade Fire for me and go to the next screen? - Time

4. Can you select Mundy for me and go to the next screen? - Time

5. Can you select Kodaline for me and go to the next screen? - Time

6. Can you name 2 gigs that are happening right now? Time

7. Can you name 2 gigs that are happening tonight? - Time

8. Can you name 2 gigs that have ended? - Time

9. Which home screen did you prefer and why?

10. What do you dislike about the other 2 screens?

11. Please input your email here if you want to take part in our beta testing

12. If you want to take part in more UI (user interface) testing please tick

Yes or no and we will email you when we carry out user testing.