R A D I U S
Travel App.
THE GOAL Develop an app for users to locate accommodations near a specific address when traveling. Users should have the ability to see the time and distance it takes to commute using different types of transport. I wanted to design and create a sleek app appealing to the computer savvy business travelers and entrepreneurs who would be utilizing it most. I also realized there was a secondary appeal to this app, as it could be useful in general to find a hotel near a location for varying reasons like weddings, graduations and events, or wanting to be near a main attraction like Central Park or a conference center.
MY ROLE Interaction design, user research/testing and visual design
The Process
INITIAL RESEARCH The first step was researching similar booking apps. Airbnb was given as an example, so I studied it in addition to Hotel Tonight, VRBO, and Rent by Zillow. I included some other unrelated apps, like dating apps Tinder and Happn, because I wanted to create an environment that wouldn’t make booking accommodations feel like work. I went online and checked out sites with related features such as 'findhotelsnearanaddress.com.'
MOOD, DESIGN AND LAYOUT I chose the typeface LATO for it’s clean, sleek appeal, and it’s ease of readability. The icons follow suit with clean simple lines and basic shapes. The color palette is minimal; black communicates intelligence, white creates a feeling of space, gray stabilizes and simple splashes of color call attention when needed.
NAVIGATION Many hotel booking apps are specifically for finding cheap hotels, and the layouts can be very busy and cluttered. It was important for this design to have a clean and elegant layout, with the most important details easily visible upfront. Users can either create an account, or skip creating an account. Efficiency is a concern for potential users, so doing things that are unnecessary, like creating an account, might be a deterrent. Allowing them to get right to the good stuff makes this app more appealing for those trying to save time. The usefulness of creating an account comes to repeat users. It would allow for auto-login, and the ability to do searches based on prior trips, hotels they favorited previously, and other personalized actions.
USER FLOW DIAGRAM
USER PERSONAS Elle and Adam are two different types of fictional clients who might potentially use the app. Efficiency was determined to be the highest priority on the list. Other elements are also important to them, such as having quality lodging, service, style, etc. Elle represents the more trendy client, looking for interesting decor, a unique experience and stellar service. Adam is looking for reliability, consistency and benefits like being able to choose hotels where he can get points. Based off of these personas I was able to come up with a few more app features to increase usability. While I do think many elements and novelties were important, I focused on MVPs initially, just making sure I was covering all of the potential problems. Animation and haptic feedback add novelty, but I didn’t want them to detract from the efficiency of the app, so I employed these elements, but minimally —in a way that creates that novelty and not annoyance.
LOW-FI WIREFRAMES
MID-FI WIREFRAMES
HI-FI WIREFRAMES
DETAIL VIEW
