As the cycle of consumption and disposal continues to accelerate, many want to reduce their impact.
People aware of their environmental impact try to buy less and choose to to find things secondhand, to cut waste and new demand for goods.
Though online platforms facilitate item exchanges, there’s untapped potential to use these transactions to foster a stronger culture of community support and mutual aid.
How can we preserve the website’s unpretentious, local business feel while strengthening its brand identity and making it more distinctive?
An app where users can easily list items, request what they need, and coordinate pickups - or simply alert neighbors about a free box with no coordination required. By encouraging fair offers and lending, with the option to remain anonymous if needed, the app fosters trust and inclusivity.
I knew that finding specific things you need could be challenging, while clearing your home of things you don’t need can feel arduous. However I didn’t want to just follow my assumptions so I used different research methods to achieve my objectives.
Affinity mapping showed that the visual impact is one of the factors that is used to decide on where to go. Without visuals, people often want a recommendation from someone they know. Social media came up frequently - not only as a way people discover places, but also as proof that a business is vibrant and active.
Key Insights
I wanted to understand the experiences of people leaving things on the curb or finding them. I wanted to find out what motivations, challenges and behaviors surround the use of existing peer-to-peer marketplaces. I conducted interviews with six adults with an age range of 29 - 64 who regularly get things for free or want to give things away. There a few baseline assumptions that I wanted to make sure I could validate:
I was also mindful of the risks involved in talking to people. Their motivations for giving away or picking up items can be complex, influenced by economic, social, and environmental factors that are hard to fully capture. Responses may also be biased, such as wanting to appear more eco-conscious.
Key Insights
Through affinity mapping, I could gather my observations, find patterns, and distill them into personas. I interviewed people who frequently give things away to gather insights. For them, giving is a natural part of life and culture. While some see keeping items out of the trash as a bonus, others view it as a key motivation.
Based on the primary research, I identified two user personas: Elizabeth representing those who mostly gives things away, and Em representing users who mostly acquire items. Having these personas as a reference ensured that I stayed aligned with user needs and avoided straying from the problem I was trying to solve.
Using a persona, I developed a user journey map for the task I wanted to eventually test: finding used furniture. By parsing out the highs and lows that a user may experience, I could focus on an opportunity where the app can do some heavy lifting.
I had many ideas for features that would make the app more useful and stand out amongst competitors but ultimately many of the pain points identified by the participants interviewed were better suited to minor enhancements that would elevate the experience and differentiate the product in the market.
For the MVP, I chose to prioritize addressing a core need: enabling users to easily acquire items while focusing on the relevant pain points. The most important aspects of the app for users are:
To identify the key screens and prioritize what would need to be developed first, I mapped out the main functions and user flow for the app as a whole.
I used a rudimentary figma wireframe prototype to assess whether the layout and task flow felt intuitive and frictionless. Six people participated in moderated think-aloud sessions, primarily testing the desktop prototype.
11 participants completed a mix of moderated and unmoderated tests. Overall the flow was successful, with 75% rating for a 4 out 5 or higher. There were some oversights with the testing and guiding the user, I did not tell them that after completing the messages that they had to go back to the map to complete the flow.
11 participants completed a mix of moderated and unmoderated tests. Overall the flow was successful, with 75% rating for a 4 out 5 or higher. There were some oversights with the testing and guiding the user, I did not tell them that after completing the messages that they had to go back to the map to complete the flow.
Key insights from lo-fi testing
11 participants completed a mix of moderated and unmoderated tests. Overall the flow was successful, with 75% rating for a 4 out 5 or higher. There were some oversights with the testing and guiding the user, I did not tell them that after completing the messages that they had to go back to the map to complete the flow.
All participants were able to complete both tasks quickly. Two people rated the flow as 4/5, and the other 7 rated it a 5/5. Overall users found it to be straightforward, easy, and intuitive. The organization and navigation patterns were familiar and easy to figure out.
Key insights from hi-fi testing
Most of the feedback I received were about minor issues, as shown below.
