giuliacosco

As part of my Master’s in UX Design at the UX Design Institute, I completed a project-based case study focused on designing a new website or mobile app for users to search for and rent cars online. My task was to improve the user experience by addressing pain points in the existing process.

The Process

Throughout the project, I conducted user research through interviews and surveys, analyzed the findings to identify key insights and user personas, developed design concepts focused on simplicity and usability, created interactive prototypes to test different solutions, and designed low-fidelity wireframes to map out the website/app structure and user flow.

The Process

1. Research

Competitive Benchmarking

As first step I conducted a detailed competitive benchmarking analysis in the car rental industry. This involved a comprehensive evaluation of leading competitors' digital interfaces and user journeys. By scrutinizing their websites and mobile apps, I extracted valuable insights to identify industry trends and best practices. This research served as a pivotal guide for making informed design decisions and proposing strategic enhancements to the platform.

Usability Test and Note Taking

Conducted usability tests on competitor car rental apps, evaluating user interactions for efficiency and satisfaction. Identified key strengths, weaknesses, and improvement opportunities. Applied findings to enhance our own app, ensuring a competitive edge and good user experience.

Usability Test and Note Taking

2. Analysis

Affinity Diagramming Session

Once collected different research findings and large volumes of data, it was time to sort it out. Here I reviewed all of the research from my previous work and created an affinity diagram to represent what I’ve learned so far. This work helped you with further analysis and design decisions in the coming projects.

2. Analysis

Affinity Diagramming Session

Then I ran a Affinity Diagram Session. During it, ten categories have been identified:

Goals
Build Trust
Properly communicate car features
Sorting + Filtering
Properly communicate prices
Clarify insurance policies
Provide Pre-built plans
Streamline booking procedure
Ease pick-up and drop-off
Allow for flexibility.

The session has been conducted by a group of five people, and the research shared came from:

Online Survey (15 responders);
Usability Tests (3);
Competitive Benchmark (5 apps).

Design

Customer Journey Map

Drafted a Customer Journey Map by analyzing and mapping in detail the entire user experience starting from the useful insights of the Affinity Diagramming activity. This involved identifying touchpoints, pain points, and moments of delight for users throughout their journey.

Design

Customer Journey Map

User Flow

I created a user flow for the car rental app, mapping out the steps users take from searching for a car to completing the booking, ensuring a seamless and intuitive journey throughout the process.

Design

Paper prototype

I created a low-fidelity paper prototype of the car rental app, using sketches to map out the app's flow and user interactions, allowing me to visualize and test the design before moving to digital development.

Tappable Prototype

I then drafted a high-fidelity, tappable prototype of the car rental app in Figma, incorporating detailed design elements and interactive features to simulate the user experience and test the app's functionality.