Home-X
Role
Senior Product Designer, Motion Designer
Timeline
2019
TOOLS
Final Design Preview
A few screens from the final design, following the existing company style guide — swipe to see more!
Discovery: Competitor Analysis
Strengths
Provides flexibility by allowing users to book services at their convenience.
Wide range of handyman tasks and home services covered.
Well-established platform for local task-based services.
Weaknesses
Focuses mainly on in-person services, limiting options for users seeking remote support.
Lacks features for ongoing user engagement or repeat services.
Opportunities
Potential to introduce remote support or guidance for certain tasks (e.g., DIY repairs).
Opportunity to expand into virtual services or consultations, leveraging user convenience for a broader audience.
Threats
Competing with specialized remote support platforms (e.g., virtual tech assistance services).
Risk of customers switching to more tech-forward platforms offering both remote and local services.
User Experience
TaskRabbit’s user interface is intuitive and user-friendly, but its reliance on in-person service limits the digital experience.
Navigation is straightforward for booking services, but there’s potential to enhance the digital journey by integrating more self-service features, such as video consultations or chat-based troubleshooting.
Strengths
Trusted brand with a reputation for reliability and a large network of service providers.
Extensive reach in the home services industry.
Transparent feedback system adds credibility and builds user trust.
Weaknesses
Primarily connects users with local contractors, focusing on onsite services.
No significant remote service offerings, leaving a gap in the digital experience for tech-savvy users.
Opportunities
Potential to offer remote services, like video consultations or virtual home improvement advice, bridging the gap for tech-focused users.
Can capitalize on growing demand for convenience by enhancing their app’s user interface and introducing features like live chat or virtual appointments.
Threats
Competing against platforms with more user-centric digital solutions and remote services.
Risk of customer base shifting toward platforms offering remote assistance solutions.
Strengths
The platform is well-established with a solid, user-friendly interface.
The mobile app and website are easy to navigate, with strong emphasis on local service provider connections.
There is room for improvement by adding features that facilitate remote interactions and virtual consultations, increasing user engagement.
Strengths
Covers a broad range of home services, from repairs to renovations, appealing to a diverse audience.
Offers easy navigation with a clean, intuitive design.
Peer-based feedback system provides valuable social proof, aiding users in making informed decisions
Weaknesses
Primarily connects users with local service providers, limiting its appeal to those seeking remote troubleshooting.
Lacks specialized features for digital or virtual solutions.
Opportunities
Incorporating virtual support or remote troubleshooting could enhance Thumbtack’s offerings and appeal to a wider market.
Introducing online tools (e.g., AR features for visualizing home projects) could increase the platform’s usability and value proposition.
Threats
Competition from platforms focusing on remote service and digital solutions.
Losing customers to apps offering more interactive, tech-driven experiences for home projects.
Strengths
Thumbtack’s platform is highly functional and easy to navigate, making it user-friendly for both tech-savvy and less-experienced users.
The platform could benefit from enhanced interactivity, such as live chat features for immediate customer assistance or tools to simulate home improvement projects digitally.
Room for improvement in streamlining the user journey by introducing smarter suggestions and a more personalized experience.
User Groups
Young Professional
Name: Sarah, 28
Occupation: Marketing Manager
Lifestyle: Sarah has a fast-paced job and enjoys a social life. She often feels like there’s not enough time to do everything—especially things like cleaning her apartment. She’s willing to outsource tasks to avoid spending her free time on them.
Time-Constrained Adult
Name: John, 35
Occupation: Marketing Manager
Lifestyle: John has two young kids and both him and his wife work full-time. They are juggling household chores, work, kids' activities, and family time. They often feel like they’re running on empty and would rather outsource household chores to save time.
People Lacking Specialized Knowledge
Name: Kevin, 25
Occupation: Software Developer
Lifestyle: Kevin is tech-savvy but doesn’t have much experience with physical tasks like assembling furniture or fixing things around the house. He needs help with tasks he isn’t sure how to approach, like moving large items or mounting a TV on the wall.
Seniors and People with Mobility Challenges
Name: Linda, 72
Occupation: Retired teacher
Lifestyle: Linda lives alone in her home and has trouble lifting heavy objects or cleaning hard-to-reach places. While she’s independent, she needs help with things like grocery shopping, light cleaning, or moving boxes during seasonal changes.
Small Business Owners or Entrepreneurs
Name: Alex, 32
Occupation: Owner of a small coffee shop
Lifestyle: Alex runs a small coffee shop and often spends long hours managing the business. He has limited time for administrative tasks, delivery runs, or fixing broken equipment. He needs help managing these tasks to focus on his business's success.
Event Organizers
Name: Emma, 40
Occupation: Wedding Planner
Lifestyle: Emma is responsible for organizing weddings and other events. She needs extra hands to help with setup, decorations, and coordination on event days. Her work often requires flexibility and quick adjustments, so outsourcing tasks is key to her success.
Preliminary Research
To ensure our solution aligned with user expectations, we engaged in comprehensive user research. We conducted in-depth interviews with 20 participants, representing diverse demographics and household incomes. Among the 20 recruited participants, 50% were female, and 50% were male—average income distribution ranging from 20K - 150K. Next, we analyzed interview transcripts data by identifying comments related to our research interests, forming clusters of group comments and themes. User concerns included trust in maintenance services, uncertainty in RA call scope, and a strong preference for flexible pricing based on issue severity. These insights became pivotal in shaping the features and functionality of our Remote Assist platform.
Empathy map with insights from user interviews
Customer journey map
Business Challenge and Goal
Our goal was clear: to introduce an MVP Remote Assist (RA) platform within a tight timeline of 4 months. This platform would revolutionize how we deliver home maintenance solutions by enabling our technicians to remotely guide clients through repairs and installations. This approach not only addresses safety concerns but also enhances convenience and efficiency for our valued customers.
How might we gather and apply user feedback to keep Remote Assist aligned with user needs?
How might we ensure privacy and security in remote assistance for a safe, trustworthy experience?
How might we create a flexible pricing model that adjusts to issue complexity for fair pricing?
How might we build trust and reliability in Remote Assist to ensure user confidence in guidance?
How might we design a clear system that transparently communicates call duration and scope?
Features and Functionality
The following core features of the Remote Assist prioritized afterwards :
Instant RA: Immediate access to remote assistance for urgent home issues.
Screen Drawing: Technicians can annotate and guide clients through troubleshooting steps directly on the screen.
Online Booking System: Flexible scheduling to accommodate the busy lifestyles of our customers.
Search: Let users easily compare, filter and order as they wish and do so while having minimal cognitive load.
Rating: Add ratings and make it available at the page where users compare taskers.
Pandemic Compliance: Stringent adherence to health and safety protocols during all RA sessions.
Flexible Pricing: Subscription model pricing.
Remote assist user flow (high-level overview)
1
Prototype - Interaction and visual salience
2
Prototype - Voice control and cognitive support
Prototype 1
This design ensures important info stands out. The bright logo opens the actions menu, and tapping 'Remote Assistance' prompts users to select a service. All related details, like booking via chat, stay in one place for quick access. For RA, users swipe up to connect—an intuitive, well-known gesture. By leveraging common interaction patterns and principles of design such as, salience, and visibility, the design enhances consistency, making it easier for users to transfer knowledge from other apps and quickly spot key elements.
Prototype 2
This version adds voice control to touchscreen interactions, making the app even easier to use. An automated phone system answers calls and directs clients to the right department without needing a human operator. For example, if a client says "Electrical," they are connected to the first available support technician. If no technician is available, the client can schedule a session for later. From a cognitive perspective, this design supports memory by using auditory cues to reduce the load on visual processing. By presenting details and actions through sound, users can focus on one sensory input at a time, which helps with better information retention and recall. The design also supports top-down processing, enabling users to quickly understand and navigate the virtual experience through straightforward voice commands and video calling.
Other Scenarios
The auto-attendant supports peak call hours by managing callers in queue and playing hold music during brief holds. Being put on hold often feels like being stuck in traffic—frustrating! I saw this as an opportunity to turn a mundane experience into something engaging and aligned with the brand.
We worked in short, rapid design sprints with key team members to iterate efficiently. To make the prototypes feel more real and enhance user empathy, I created animations following the style guide. These animations connected situations to user emotions—for example, during a 'Call on Hold,' the user scratches their head while waiting, accompanied by elevator music and a relaxed yet uncertain character. This reinforces the experience while maintaining a sense of calm. For 'Call Dropped,' a timer indicates the reconnection attempt, after which the user can retry or reschedule, making the flow clear and intuitive.
By focusing on these small but impactful details, we transformed a traditionally frustrating experience into one that felt seamless, intuitive, and even a little delightful.
User scenario prototype: handling a dropped call
User scenario prototype: call placed on hold
We conducted short, iterative design sprints to prototype and validate key user flows and functionalities. This collaborative approach ensured that our team remained aligned with the project goals and responsive to evolving customer needs. By continuously iterating on our designs and incorporating feedback from stakeholders, we refined our RA platform to deliver a user-centric experience. This process not only accelerated the development timeline but also enhanced the overall usability and functionality of the platform. After selecting the ideas to move forward, the next phase was to ideate some key user flows to validate them quickly with design thinking.This work was primarily done using InVision, Invision Studio and Figma, as it suited the project’s speed and allowed to quickly get prototypes into people’s hands. Finally, the final hand-off animation to engineering in JSON file-coded format.
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