DELIVERABLES
Research
User Flows
UI Visuals
Prototype
DSM Library
ROLE
Digital Product Designer
YEAR
2022
PROGRAMS
PROJECT OVERVIEW
PROBLEM STATEMENT
The expansion of Plentific into the USA highlighted a crucial challenge: managing and displaying multiple time zones within its user interface. This was vital for ensuring seamless communication across chats, bookings, and calendar views, particularly in states like Texas, which spans two time zones. The goal was to create an intuitive, yet comprehensive UI solution adaptable to various time zone complexities, including daylight saving changes and multi-zone states. This task required a design that was both user-friendly and sophisticated, capable of addressing these unique temporal challenges efficiently.
ROLES & RESPONSIBILITIES
As the Lead Designer, my challenge was to engineer a time zone tag solution that seamlessly melded with the existing UI. In close collaboration with the Project Manager, I spearheaded the design facets of the project, focusing on devising a tag to accurately signify different time zones. A key responsibility involved presenting the polished design to stakeholders, ensuring it complemented and enhanced the overall user experience. My approach centered on creating a clear, succinct tag, delivering crucial information efficiently without cluttering the interface.
DURATION & HANDOFF
The design process was conducted within a tight timeline, encompassing the creation of user flows, UI prototypes, and the pivotal "tag" feature. Through collaborative sessions with stakeholders and team members, we converged on a final "tag" design that fulfilled the project's specifications. The finalised screens were distributed via Invision, Slack, and Jira, showcasing the end solution. Despite its seemingly modest scale, this project produced a vital element instrumental in bolstering Plentific's international growth and enhancing client satisfaction in the US market.
SCOPE & CONSTRAINTS
This project's scope focused on providing a streamlined solution for managing contractors and properties across different time zones, encompassing functionalities like booking and task allocation. We aimed to develop a time zone tag that would clearly indicate when a user or property functioned in a time zone different from the platform's default. We encountered constraints with states not observing daylight saving and multi-time zone regions, necessitating adjustments to initial proposals due to technical limitations. The objective was to create a solution that was both simple and adaptable, capable of navigating these varied constraints effectively.
RESEARCH
During the research phase of the Plentific time zone project, we employed a thorough and multifaceted approach to deeply understand the challenges and set clear objectives. A detailed interview with the Project Manager was pivotal in shaping our strategy, as it illuminated the project's goals, defined distinct user profiles, assessed our competition, and identified general user tasks along with technical constraints.
We engaged in a robust competitive analysis, utilising a blend of qualitative and quantitative methods. This analysis was enriched with insightful Maze questions and detailed analysis charts, enabling us to delve into user behaviour and preferences. These tools were instrumental in uncovering key insights and pinpointing specific pain points, which were crucial in developing accurate and relatable user personas.
Our methodology also encompassed empathy mapping and user journey mapping techniques, allowing us to empathise with our users and visualise their interactions with our product. This process was geared towards understanding our users' needs and expectations, aligning with Plentific's brand attributes and core values. We rigorously tested our initial assumptions and conducted a comprehensive SWOT analysis, scrutinising our strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats in this new venture.
The culmination of our research was a clearly defined roadmap, prioritised using the Effort versus Impact. This model helped us balance the project's complexities with the potential benefits, ensuring that our efforts were strategically aligned with both user needs and business objectives. The insights gained from this phase were pivotal in guiding the subsequent stages of the project, laying a solid foundation for the design and development of a solution that was not only technically feasible but also deeply resonant with our users' experiences and expectations.
UNDERSTAND
In the Plentific Timezones project, our collaboration with the Project Manager was instrumental in transforming broad goals into specific, actionable targets. This involved an in-depth analysis of the competitive landscape and user needs, particularly focusing on the unique challenges presented by managing multiple time zones in the platform's expansion into the USA. Our discussions were pivotal in pinpointing user pain points and technical limitations, aligning our efforts with Plentific’s strategic objectives, and identifying vital improvements for the platform.
The primary objective of this project was to develop a user-friendly and efficient interface for handling time zone differences across various platform features, such as chat, bookings, and calendar views. This task required a keen understanding of user interactions and the challenges faced due to time zone variances, particularly in areas with daylight saving changes and multi-zone states. Our solution aimed to bring clarity and consistency to these interactions, ensuring a seamless and intuitive user experience that supports Plentific's commitment to customer satisfaction and operational excellence in a diverse market.
What’s the problem you are trying to solve?
The problem is managing and displaying multiple time zones across the Plentific platform's user interface to support its expansion into the USA.
Who are the users and what are their goals?
The users are Plentific platform users, including contractors and property managers, aiming to efficiently manage schedules and bookings across different time zones.
How will they benefit from this feature?
Users will benefit from improved clarity and reduced confusion when managing activities and schedules, enhancing operational efficiency and user experience.
What will the target persona be doing when they encounter this feature?
When encountering this feature, the target persona will be scheduling or managing tasks and bookings, requiring accurate time zone information for coordination.
What threshold of quality do we need in order for customers to experience care product benefits?
We need a high-quality, intuitive, and reliable interface that seamlessly integrates time zone information without disrupting the overall user experience.
What assumptions are we making?
We are assuming that users require clear, simplified time zone information and that integrating this feature will significantly enhance their scheduling and management tasks on the platform.
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COMPETITOR ANALYSIS
In our competitive analysis for the Plentific Time Zones project, we scrutinized platforms like Google, Salesforce, HubSpot, and drew UX inspiration from Behance, Facebook, Slack, and Apple Mac settings. This process highlighted how these systems handle time zone management, focusing on user interface design and overall experience. The analysis revealed crucial features and functionalities needed for Plentific, such as intuitive time zone display and seamless system integration, guiding us in enhancing our platform to align with industry standards.
PAINPOINTS
Our comprehensive analysis of the Plentific Calendar revealed substantial user challenges, especially when benchmarked against established counterparts like Google Calendar. A critical issue was the calendar's basic functionality, which severely limited user actions and flexibility. Users were confined to rigid, single-path processes, exacerbating their experience with a non-responsive and bug-ridden interface. Beyond these fundamental flaws, there was a strong demand for additional features, including effective management of overlapping bookings, comprehensive time zone support, and advanced functionalities like GPS tracking to optimise scheduling efficiency. The calendar's user interface also lagged in ease of use, posing significant navigational and operational challenges for both new and seasoned users.
Confronting these challenges head-on, we set out to revolutionise the Plentific Calendar into a more powerful and user-friendly resource. Our mission was to elevate the user experience by simplifying operations, boosting scheduling efficiency, and integrating sought-after advanced features. The result was an overhauled calendar system, meticulously tailored to the evolving needs of property managers and contractors. This new system promises a streamlined, more effective scheduling experience, marked by operational fluency and enhanced user satisfaction.
EFFORT VS IMPACT
An Effort vs Impact chart was developed to prioritize features and enhancements. A lot features from the list was so advanced but needed that the Product managers weren’t even sure if it was going to be implemented, such as Auto-Detect Time Zone or Dynamic Time Zone Updates for Travel. This strategic approach ensured that company was aligned with the most impactful features. We prioritised features that causes the most friction or frustration in users such as unclear Calendar/Bookings Prompt for Time Zone or missing Onboarding Time Zone Prompt.
ROADMAP
The project roadmap was carefully crafted, balancing immediate user benefits with long-term strategic goals. Features were prioritized based on their potential impact on user experience and operational efficiency, as well as their technical feasibility within the current system infrastructure.
IDEATION & DESIGN
During the Plentific Time Zones project's ideation and design phase, we initiated creative brainstorming with "How Might We" statements, followed by employing user flows and card sorting for a deeper understanding of user interactions. This led to crafting a versatile "tag-like" element, iterating through various designs for optimal visual representation and functionality. The focus extended to refining the mobile prototype, addressing the challenge of integrating time zone displays within limited screen space. Our efforts culminated in a user-friendly design that seamlessly blended functionality and aesthetics, enhancing the overall user experience on the platform.
HOW MIGHT WE
How Might We" statements were crafted to stimulate creative thinking and problem-solving.
How might we design a time zone feature that is intuitive and easy to navigate for users across different geographic locations?
How might we ensure that the time zone information is displayed in a clear, concise manner, while integrating seamlessly with the existing Plentific interface?
How might we address the challenges of displaying multiple time zones, particularly in areas with daylight saving changes and multi-zone states, without overcomplicating the user experience?
How might we create a design that is adaptable for both desktop and mobile platforms, considering the varying screen sizes and user interactions?
How might we effectively communicate time zone differences in the platform's booking and scheduling features to enhance accuracy and efficiency?
How might we gather and incorporate user feedback into the design process to ensure the time zone feature meets the needs and expectations of our diverse user base?
USER STORIES
These user flows, conceptualized through user stories, were pivotal in mapping out the journey of our users as they interact with the new functionalities. To aid in this process, we leveraged tools such as Whimsical, which proved invaluable for visualizing these user journeys. This visualization helped us to create a coherent and user-friendly experience, catering to the real-world needs and behaviors of our users.
User story 1
As a property manager, I want to easily schedule and view bookings in different time zones, so that I can efficiently manage properties and contractors without time-related confusion or errors.
User story 2
As a contractor, I need to see job times displayed in my local time zone, so that I can accurately plan my schedule and avoid misunderstandings with clients in different regions.
User story 3
As a new user, I want to quickly set and understand how the time zone feature works, so that I can effortlessly manage my tasks from the get-go.
User story 4
As an admin, I need a reliable way to track and manage bookings across multiple time zones, ensuring that there are no overlaps or scheduling conflicts.
User story 5
As an operative on mobile, I want the time zone information to be clearly visible yet not overwhelming on my screen, so that I can efficiently manage my tasks on the go.
User story 6
As a stakeholder, I expect the time zone feature to enhance overall user satisfaction and operational efficiency, thereby supporting the platform's growth in the international market.
HI-FI DESIGNS
The onboarding flow for both new and existing users was elegantly simple, negating the need for traditional wireframes. Instead, the process leveraged pre-existing modals to enable users to configure their time zone. I crafted multiple variations of a “tag-like” element, exploring various visual representations such as pills, icons, textual indications, diverse colour schemes, and time-specific copy such as "ET (UTC-6)" or "2 hours behind." After engaging in iterative design and collaboration with stakeholders, we reached consensus on a specific “tag” and abbreviation.
The design extended beyond the primary screens, incorporating additional areas affected by this new time zone feature. Though subtle, this feature was strategically designed to inform the user without overwhelming the interface. I vigilantly monitored the platform during the development phase, promptly identifying and reporting any design inconsistencies or bugs via Jira.
Designing the mobile prototype presented unique challenges, especially within the constraints of the calendar view. The requirements demanded a solution for booking jobs across varying time zones for both contractors and admins. The limited screen real estate made it particularly demanding to integrate two different time displays, an additional dropdown, and the newly designed time zone tags. However, through creative design solutions and thoughtful consideration of user experience, I successfully incorporated all elements without compromising the integrity or functionality of the interface.
TESTING & LAUNCH
In the final stages of the project, a rigorous testing process was conducted to ensure the design's functionality and effectiveness. This phase involved diverse testers representing various stakeholders, project managers and developers, utilising different testing methods like scenario simulations and usability assessments. The focus was on iterative refinement, with each cycle of feedback leading to improvements in design and functionality, ensuring that the solution met the specific needs and expectations of our user base.
Upon launch, the feature underwent continuous monitoring to assess user engagement and satisfaction. This involved analysing user interactions, support ticket trends, and gathering post-launch feedback. These insights were crucial for making real-time adjustments, showcasing our commitment to quality and the evolving needs of our users. The launch not only represented a significant advancement in Plentific’s offerings but also reinforced our dedication to enhancing user experience in a multi-time zone environment.
CONCLUSIONS
The successful implementation of the Time zone project marks a pivotal advancement in user experience, particularly for a platform operating across multiple time zones. This feature not only streamlines scheduling and management tasks for our diverse user base but also demonstrates Plentific’s adaptability and commitment to meeting the evolving demands of a global market. Looking ahead, the project has laid a robust foundation for future enhancements. Identified next steps include fine-tuning the user interface for even greater intuitiveness and exploring advanced features like automated time zone adjustments based on user location, which could further elevate the platform's usability.
Reflective analysis of the project underscores the effectiveness of our methodical approach, revealing areas of strength such as our comprehensive research and user-centric design process. It also highlights opportunities for improvement, particularly in pre-launch testing methodologies to even more accurately anticipate user needs. Overall, this project exemplifies Plentific's dedication to continuous improvement and innovation. Every stage, from ideation to launch, was executed with meticulous attention to detail, culminating in a feature that not only meets our current goals but also sets the stage for ongoing development and enhancement. This commitment ensures that Plentific remains at the forefront of providing exceptional user experiences in the property management and contracting industry.