Jean Kim

Yahoo Design Challenge

Task : Redesign up to two core flows of an existing iOS or Android mobile experience you feel can be improved and proposing a new direction for it.  The goal of this design exercise is to get a sense of your overall thought and creative process, gain insight into how you would critique an existing product, and understand your approach to solving its problems.  

The first action I took in approaching this challenge was to think of all the apps that I use and decide which I felt had the most issues. It was difficult to decide upon an app but there was one app that I felt most consistently frustrated with when using. Despite how frustrating it is to use, there is an incentive to the app that makes me keep using it, so I really wanted to improve the experience of it so that it would be a more enjoyable experience. The app I chose for the challenge is Coffee Meets Bagel.

Coffee Meets Bagel

CMB is a mobile dating application that provides users with a match, referred to as a bagel, who has been carefully chosen based on similar interests, preferences, profile, and mutual FaceBook friends. Every day at noon, a new bagel is presented to the user and the user has the option to either Like or Pass the bagel. If both parties hit Like, then a connection is made and a temporary chat between the two is created. The chat is open for only 7 days until the app will ask the users to either continue the conversation for a couple more days, or to set up a date (this is to be done outside the app). A special algorithm is used to provide users with a highly personalized match that should be an ideal match. If the match is not ideal, another match can be purchased with "beans" which is a form of currency within the app that can be earned from frequent use and sending other users bagels. 

Below are screenshots of the current application experience

Problem

Despite the popularity of the app, the user experience of the application suffers from several problems that require the user to exit the app and finish their actions through a different app. This disconnects the flow of the user's experience on the app, as well as decreases the amount of time spent on the app. Users are also not provided with enough incentive to begin a conversation with a connection, resulting in frequent missed connections.

Process

I began by researching and understanding where the exact moment of when users leave the app is. The moments occurred when users would send a bagel to a friend, but also after hitting LIKE or PASS to the current day's bagel. The main action of seeing the daily bagel was what the user would access the app for, however the experience was hitting a dead end once the user liked or passed. But in the case of a CONNECTION, the user is prompted to take action to initiate a conversation with the bagel. 

User Research

Several of my peers use Coffee Meets Bagel and upon interviewing them about their experience with the app, there were many interesting findings that I was able to gather. Users use CMB ultimately to find a match who they could become friends with or have a romantic interest with, but there was a secondary experience that kept users coming back to the app. The sharing of bagels to earn beans but also to find a friend who they believed was an ideal match for them was an enjoyable part of the app. According to users, even though the app uses a sophisticated algorithm to provide the best possible match, "I trust my friends to find me a better match than the app because they know me better" (Karen, 23). 

Storyboard and Lo-Fi Wireframes

I sketched out different possible flows and designs for the app. Because my design would be adding more features to the app, I had to make sure the experience would not become too complicated and still be simple and easy to use. I was also putting a greater emphasis on the conversation with friends and sharing of bagels, so I had to make sure the hierarchy of the features were clear.

This is an initial wireframe that was eliminated due to too many complicated visuals that can overwhelm the user with information. The differentiation between a chat with a friend and a chat with a bagel is unclear.

The Redesign

Flow Diagram

The inbox tab is accessed from the main navigation page. This differentiates chats with bagels and chats with friends, and also organizes the retrieval of bagels. In the current app, bagels must be sent and received through an email application, which sends a link that automatically opens the app, requiring too many actions and redirection of the user. The chat icon on the top right then directs the user to the chat section with bagels, which there is no problem with in the current design. An added feature of initiating a conversation through an emoji was added to the flow.

Breaking the Ice

A problem with the current app design is that it is difficult and often awkward to begin conversation after being connected. The 7 day time limit for a chat room encourages users to begin talking as soon as possible, but this also ends up in a lot of connections that end after 7 days with no conversation having taken place.

According to an article on dating psychology:

In redesigning the chat feature, I added a "This or That" option where the user can gift an emoji to their bagel rather than having to come up with a first line to say. The emoji would cost the user a certain amount of beans in order to give a sense of investment so the bagel will be more inclined to respond. Similar to FaceBook messenger, the emoji can then be used throughout the chat. The introduction of an emoji within the chat can be used to alleviate any awkwardness and make a more dynamic conversation.