Inspired by You. Curated by Clad.
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Inspired by You. Curated by Clad. *
Mobile App Case Study
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Problem
Many people struggle with choosing the right outfit to wear when they’re rushing out the door to go to work or a social engagement.
I’d like to explore how to improve the experience of getting dressed in the morning when you feel like you have nothing to wear.
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Personal Connection
I’m someone who is obsessed with fashion and clothing, but I start running into problems once those clothes make it into my closet and outfit rotation.
There are usually too many choices and too little time when getting ready in the morning. This leads to decision paralysis and ultimately I don’t end up feeling or looking my best.
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Solution
I wanted to create an app that would allow users to search, manage, and create outfits from pieces in their own closets easily and in one place. The design process would rely on research and testing to ensure that the product would fulfill the needs of real life users.
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My Role
UX Designer, UX Researcher, Visual Designer
Tools:
Figma, Sketch, Adobe Illustrator
Defining The Problem
Secondary Research
Competitive Analysis
Since all of my knowledge of the problem space was anecdotal from my personal experiences, I needed to perform secondary research to get a better understanding of what problems existed, to determine if my hypotheses were valid, and if there was indeed a need for this product.
I chose three competitor websites, and conducted a Heuristic Analysis. Users for this type of product are primarily going to pair this app with needs in their everyday lives, so the ability to understand the jargon and connect with the product is crucial. For this reason, I chose to compare the competitors based on the heuristic “Match Between System and the Real World”.
Summary: Most of these apps have outdated interfaces, are not properly optimized for mobile devices, don’t allow users to easily sort between different filters, and most a pay wall in order to access the bulk of the available features.
After reviewing the competitors, my findings confirmed that overall, this type of product could benefit from having a more intuitive alternative that is more efficient, has an updated aesthetic, is free to use, and is easier to navigate.
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Cladwell
Cladwell does a great job at preventing user errors, but there is an ethical flaw because there is no clear indication of how to cancel the free trial before or when the trial period ends.
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Style Book
Style Book is lacking an inviting UI as well as any interaction with a user’s social media accounts.
This app follows consistency standards but is lacking some key features that would simplify the user flow.
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Pureple Outfit Organizer
Pureple provides a simple navigation and does a good job at connecting back to real world application. This app could benefit from another look at their user flows and how they can be refined.
Interviews
Target Users:
People with varying budget and wardrobe sizes searching for a way to streamline the way they get dressed each day.
Recruitment
I recruited participants mainly through Social Media.
I started out by posting about the project on Facebook, which included the screener survey. The individuals I reached out to have varying ages, life styles, and incomes…a perfect little pool of interview candidates. I went to a fine arts college, so I also posted the survey in my alma mater’s Alumni groups as well. I then waited, and ultimately collected and organized the almost 50 results into a spreadsheet.
I sent each candidate a link to a SignUp Genius invite where they could sign up for a time slot to meet via Zoom. I ended up sending out 20 interview invitations, and was able to schedule 5 interviews with candidates that met my requirements.
Potential users struggle with choosing the right outfit to wear when they’re rushing out the door to go to work or a social engagement.
Too many choices (or too little in some cases) may cause someone to become overwhelmed, turning a decision into a more daunting task.
Some lack the knowledge to choose the correct outfit for a particular event.
Potential users may experience stress and anxiety when faced with the possibility that they may be judged by their peers based on how they outwardly project themselves.
Summary
Synthesis
After interviewing potential users, I collected the most important, interesting points from each conversation, and created an affinity map out of sticky notes. I wrote down each important points from each interviewee, then rearranged each note, grouping the ideas by category, in order to gain insight into what was most important to the average user.
Before
After
The most important things to the users seem to be:
The need to save money (budget)
The need for better understanding and knowledge of how to use the items in their closet more efficiently
The desire to search for a clothing items using multiple filters for better organization
The desire to make a good impression and feel well-perceived by peers
Insights:
Defining the Users
Empathy Maps & Personas
It was important for the design process to keep the users in mind during the duration of the project, so I created empathy maps followed by personas for my potential users.
The majority of my interviewees worked in an office setting, and all of them held college degrees, were female, and were between the ages of 30-50.
I focused on 2 opposite types of possible users. One who is more of an “unorganized rusher” and one user who is a little bit more of a “put-together business woman.”
I chose to create maps and personas for the “unorganized rusher” and the “put-together business woman” to help in my understanding of the user’s feelings, goals and actions. I started with empathy maps to help build a potential user based on inner feelings and then fleshed out those thoughts/feelings into more of a full picture of what a potential user of the wardrobe app might look like.
Empathy Map 1 (Unorganized Rusher)
Empathy Map 2 (Put-together Business Woman)
Crafting a Solution
Ideation
HOW MIGHT WE . . . ?
Now that I had a good understanding of the problem space and who my users would be, I was able to take their needs into consideration and frame them as questions that would help kick off my brainstorming.
How might we help people reduce the amount of time spent picking out outfits?
How might we help help people organize their wardrobe to better serve their needs?
How might we instruct people to realize their style within the limits of their budget?
How might we improve user’s outfit choices in order to bolster their confidence?
