Project Summary
The organization: ioby is a crowd-funding platform and community organizing non-profit focused on the power of local engagement to create large-scale positive change. The organization is dedicated to supporting local Leaders in organizing their neighbors to fundraise for and execute local projects.
The challenge: User surveys also show that Leaders are specifically looking for better ways to connect with their donors to update them on their projects’ progress and create closer relationships for future and deeper engagement. This creates an opportunity to leverage a mobile apps’ ability to periodically and casually connect with users to contribute to a strong organic relationship.
The users: I used a combination of survey data from ioby’s users and interviews with community organizers and donors to determine the core needs and concerns of this ioby’s users.
In a nutshell, ioby’s leaders are busy, community-focused, results-driven people. They want to be able to connect with their donors and manage project details seamlessly, without process or technology getting in their way. Read more about the discovery process and persona here.
The user flows: I mapped proposed user interaction flows based on the Leaders’ need for simplicity and actionability. View the full user flows here.
The initial design:
Then I created a first draft focused on giving Leaders access to actionable elements. Then I quickly made a prototype to test. View the initial sketches and design here.
The iterations:
I ran seven usability tests.The information architecture and visual style was appealing and clear for everyone, but they got stuck in three key problem areas:
Users understood the ellipsis as a navigation tool rather than a profile menu
Users were unsure how to complete the budget line addition flow
Users were unsure about the impact of the update flow
Read more on how I handled these here.
The hand-off design:
The latest iteration was usable for seven more test participants. It responds to ioby Leader needs through clear, action-oriented user flows, transparent donor information an accessible communication features and mobile oriented designs. ioby is building their tech team this summer and this fall we plan to move forward in building the app. View the prototype here.
For more details on the process check out the rest of the page:
Working with ioby to understand their users
Understanding user movement on both sides of the platform
Deciding how to structure user action options