UX/ UI Case Study
HomeNow: Streamlined Property Management Web App for Landlords, Property Managers, and Tenants
Synanopis:
6-week sprint, team of 4, Conceptiol
Tools:
UX Researcher and UI Designer specializing in WCAG audits. Crafted interview questions for user insights, developed personas and journey maps, utilized MoSCoW for feature prioritization, conducted card sorting, and produced comprehensive research documents.
Platform:
Role:
Web App
Timeline:
6 Weeks
Figma, Miro, Card Sort, Google Docs, Excel
Otter.ai, Chat gpt
Problem Statement:
Traditional property management processes are cumbersome and inefficient, leading to communication gaps, delayed maintenance, and tenant dissatisfaction.
Project Overview:
HomeNow aims to revolutionize property management by providing landlords and property managers with a user-friendly web app.
The app facilitates communication between property managers, tenants, and vendors, streamlining maintenance requests and vendor assignments.
Goals:
Simplify property management tasks for landlords and property managers.
Improve communication between property managers, tenants, and vendors.
Streamline maintenance request handling and vendor assignments. Enhance aesthetics.
Business Challenges:
Low User Retention: Despite positive feedback, app deletion rates remain high.
Monetization Challenge: Generating revenue without compromising user retention.
Feedback Discrepancy: Positive user feedback contrasts with high deletion rates.
Market Insight: Understanding trends and preferences to inform strategy.
Engagement Improvement: Enhancing features to captivate and retain users.
Design Process:
User Research
User Competition Analysis
Define:
User Personas
Journey Map
Analyzing F & G
MOSCOW
Discovery:
Initial Ideas
Task Flow
Card Sorting
Information Architecture
Ideate:
Recollect::
Challenges
What I Learned
What can be Improved
Whats Next
Color Scheme
Low Fi Wireframes
Design Tokens
High Fi Wireframes
Final Screed
Design:
Opportunities:
Payment Processing Optimization: Streamline payment processing, and reduce manual tasks.
Automated Marketing: Use automation for property listings, and enhance marketing strategies.
CRM Implementation: Integrate CRM for efficient interactions, and improve customer service.
Unified User Interface: Develop an intuitive interface, and enhance user experience.
Automated Contract Generation: Implement customizable, automated contract generation.
Smart Home Automation Integration: Enhance property value with smart technologies.
Cost Tracking for Owners: Track property expenses accurately.
ROI Analysis: Prioritize initiatives for business growth.
AI Implementation: Explore AI for task automation.
Proposed Project:
CRM (client relationship manager) integrates mass notifications, direct landlord-tenant/vendor messaging, and unit-specific maintenance history with alerts, emergency services, vendor management, and adjustable payment tools for streamlined residential property management.
Design Phase: Sketches to Mid Fidelity
I facilitated inclusive collaboration, guiding the team with "Yes, and..." and "How might we..." prompts. Mid-fi mockups enable user feedback, efficient iteration, cost-effective exploration, focusing on core functionality, early problem identification, collaboration, and risk reduction.
Results
Test Mule:
Third round
First round
Second round
Identified key areas of improvement, including layout balance and intuitive navigation.
Recommendations for separate dashboards for tenants and vendors.
Positive feedback from user testing on both quantitative and qualitative metrics.
This is an almost final version of the design.
Added a color to help users see issues.
Conducted a thorough WCAG AA analysis failed.
Further development occurred after testing.
Design Phase: Updated Information Architecture
New wireframe design optimized for MVP product post-MOSCOW analysis
Retained food location feature; fixed broken links
Implemented dual navigation: permanent bottom bar (Home, V-Community, Vedu, Profile, More) and dynamic top bar
Initial "For You" page displays locator offers: find restaurants, recipes, events
Design Phase: Qualitative Data
I facilitated inclusive collaboration, guiding the team with "Yes, and..." and "How might we..." prompts. Mid-fi mockups enable user feedback, efficient iteration, cost-effective exploration, focusing on core functionality, early problem identification, collaboration, and risk reduction.
Optimazations:
Clarify labeling, enhance button/icon placement
Optimize UI:
Enhance visibility:
Prominence of CTA buttons
Tooltips for unfamiliar features
Provide explanations:
Explore navigation options
Improve swipe:
Test button placements:
Prototype for intuitiveness
Presented founder with a style guide emphasizing WCAG
Emphasized WCAG-accessible colors.
Agreed to keep current typography/logos, limited to 4 sizes.
Demonstrated commitment to inclusivity.
Aligned with accessibility guidelines.
Design Phase: Style Guide
Logo
Color Pallets
Typography
Design Phase: High-Fidelity Mockup
Final Thoughts:
I see great potential for our web app at homenow.io. Our research-driven approach led us to create an intuitive CRM that addresses the needs of landlords, tenants, and vendors, facilitating communication and record-keeping while fostering professional relationships. Despite the success of our MVP product, I acknowledge areas for improvement, particularly in meeting WCAG standards and enhancing the project management capabilities.
Conclusion:
Reflecting:
Reflecting:
I've come to recognize the critical importance of early and frequent WCAG testing alongside our UX research efforts. While our team of four focused on driving design decisions through user research, we could have benefited greatly from prioritizing accessibility standards and implementing stronger project management tools from the outset. Despite these areas for improvement, I take pride in our achievements within the two-week timeline. Our product's user-friendliness and successful testing validate the effectiveness of our approach, but I now see the necessity of integrating accessibility considerations sooner in our development process.
Looking ahead:
My vision includes bringing the web app up to WCAG standards, enhancing the project management functionalities, and implementing an AI assistant to further streamline operations. I believe these enhancements will elevate our product and make it an invaluable tool for property managers.
Final Thoughts:
I thoroughly enjoyed the research process and identifying market needs. Our team's collaboration resulted in a strong MVP product, and with further testing and improvements, I'm confident it will become a standout solution in the property management sector