Introduction

What started as a figment of Kinsey Still's imagination bloomed into a solid introduction to UX/UI and fabricated into a wonderful prototype.

Our IAD3000 course at Kennesaw State University was led by Professor Michael Lahey, who taught the Goal-Directed Design process during the spring semester of 2022. After presenting potential app ideas, groups were formed to produce a team that would spend the next 8 weeks using the GDD process in order to produce a prototype worthy of acknowledgment.

At the beginning of the project, we were assigned groups of 4-5 based on which projects we seemed interested in after every student presented an app idea. My teammates were Kinsey Still, Nicole Brazier, and Cristy Kennedy. Our group chose to create OwlsNest, a Kennesaw State University social media platform originally presented by Kinsey. Kinsey served as our team leader - we were appropriately titled "Team Still" by our professor. Kinsey's role on our team not only mimicked the real-life role of a project manager but also provided guidance where needed. Kinsey's top skills included organization, technical writing, and interview moderation. Nicole proved herself as a dependable and adaptable team member, contributing substantially to our research report and allocating ample time to the interviewing process. Despite her busy work schedule, she consistently prioritized OwlsNest and showcased her expertise in interview moderation, technical writing, and document design. Cristy played a vital supportive role in various aspects of our project. Her primary contribution to the creation of OwlsNest was strategically placing filler items in our prototypes. Throughout our meetings, she asked numerous questions to ensure her understanding of our discussions. Cristy's top skills encompassed creativity, technical writing, and inquisitiveness. My role was to be the primary visual design expert. Being the only member with a history of wireframing and using Figma, I happily took on this role as I flourish in the visual aspects of projects like this. I also researched and wrote a significant amount of our research report, which complemented my technical writing skills. My top skills were prototyping, technical writing, and wireframing.

Goal Directed Design

The process by which we executed our project is called Goal-Directed Design, a method created by Alan Cooper. The GDD process guides team members through 5 stages: research, modeling, requirements, framework, and refinement.. By utilizing this method, we were able to establish a comprehensive plan from the beginning, enabling each team member to assign themselves general responsibilities and deadlines.

Phase 1

Research

The journey of OwlsNest commenced with meticulous research aimed at laying a solid foundation for its development. Recognizing the importance of aligning the app's features with its intended purpose, we embarked on a comprehensive exploration. This involved conducting interviews, studying competitors' offerings, scrutinizing scholarly articles, and exploring various sources to gain deeper insights. Our team's dedication and enthusiasm propelled us forward, driving us to immerse ourselves wholeheartedly in the project. With each step, we sought to expedite the realization of OwlsNest, channeling our collective energy towards its successful creation and eventual launch.

Interviews

Our interviews targeted KSU students, aiming to gather insights directly relevant to our intended audience. To reach a broad spectrum of students, we shared a Calendly link on the KSU Reddit and the IAD Discord, where fellow IAD students provided invaluable feedback. Through these interviews, we gained a deeper understanding of our audience's preferences and expectations, which helped shape our vision for OwlsNest.

Competitive Audit

To stand out in today's crowded app market, we conducted a thorough analysis of similar apps to identify their strengths and weaknesses. Surprisingly, many competitors, including Corq and OwlLife, were found to be largely unsuccessful, with some not even recognized by our team members or interview subjects. This audit underscored the importance of developing an organized, aesthetically pleasing app that provides students with easy access to campus events.

Compiling Data & Reporting

After conducting our interviews, our team utilized Miro to organize our understanding of each meeting. We created affinity maps, which enabled us to brainstorm key terms and then compare and compile them in the maps.

Once our research was complete and our team was aligned, we commenced the task of crafting the most comprehensive research report possible.

Click here to read the research report

Phase 2

Modeling

Creating OwlsNest posed the most significant challenge that any of us, as interaction designers, had encountered in our journeys thus far. Over the next eight weeks, we would collaborate closely to tackle our first large-scale project together.

Upon reviewing our affinity maps, we translated each interviewee's unique traits, thoughts, feelings, and actions into a visual representation. This process enabled us to gain a deeper understanding of our audience. However, we encountered challenges when we discovered numerous outliers that complicated our vision for the potential app.

The Personas

Creating personas was our next step as we synthesized our research and insights from interview subjects. While we acknowledged the potential for a wide range of users, we opted to model only two personas to meet our project deadline, which loomed closer with each passing week of our 8-week timeline.

Phase 3

Requirements

By crafting persona profiles, our team developed project plans centered around fictitious users. These users, Gilbert and Mauricio, had specific app requirements. To address their needs, our team generated a list of requirements that served as the foundation for our wireframes and prototype.

Phase 4

Frameworks

Our team utilized Miro to craft wireframes outlining the basic layout of our app. These simplified pages ensured that we incorporated all necessary elements and catered to the needs of our personas and prospective users. Wireframing enabled us to collaboratively refine our ideas and establish a cohesive vision for the app.

Phase 5

Refinement

Our prototyping sessions extended over a period of two weeks, during which several team members familiarized themselves with Figma. Crafting an interactive prototype of our app enabled our team to experiment with features that complemented its style.

The process of entirely fabricating an app from scratch was a collaborative endeavor, with each team member contributing input to the prototype. We all had the freedom to delve into whichever page we wished, fostering a sense of collective ownership and collaboration.