This was the original assignment that started the UX journey. The assignment establishes the question that was asked randomly around the JMU Campus to students. After gathering student responses I was able to determine what the site needed to accomplish and provide to ensure our target audience would be interested. I was then able to create some personas that embodied what the demographic’s needs were.
Design question:
- “How can we improve student’s ability to discover new restaurants in downtown Harrisonburg”
Research Questions:
- How often do you usually go out to eat at restaurants in the downtown area?
- What do you look for in an optimal dining experience?
- Do you find it difficult to discover new restaurants?
- What type of transportation do you usually use to get downtown?
- If there was an app to help students discover new restaurants downtown, what would you look for in this app?
Interview Process:
- In order to find people to survey, I interviewed five random students (Lisa, Margo, Charlie, James and Kyle) at Carrier library. The students were happy to partake in a brief survey detailing an app to help discover new restaurants downtown.
Interview Findings and Related Design Requirements:
- When asked how often they go out to restaurants, the majority of students responded that they do go out often to downtown Harrisonburg to eat. Whereas the minority of students surveyed they stayed in to make food in order to save money.
- The design requirement related to this question is that the app needs to inform users about current prices and specials at the restaurants in downtown Harrisonburg.
- When asked what they look for in an optimal dining experience, the interviewees for the most part answered that the quality of food was the most important factor in an optimal dining experience. Other important factors mentioned included quality of service, décor and menu options (vegetarian, vegan, gluten-free, etc.).
- The design requirement related to this question is that the app needs to show past customer reviews and also show what the menu offers in terms of alternative diets.
- When asked about the difficulty of finding new restaurants in downtown Harrisonburg, the majority of students answered that while they were aware of some restaurants downtown they were however not well informed on the various possibilities downtown has to offer.
- The design requirement related to this question is that the app must offer new options that have not been tried or restaurants that have just recently opened in the downtown area.
- When asked about what form of transportation the students usually take to get to the downtown area, the majority answered that they drive their car to get to the downtown area. Other answers included using ride-sharing apps and using public transportation to get to the downtown area.
- The design requirement directly related to this question is that the app will need to show parking lots in close proximity to the restaurants and also include bus lines and bus stops.
- When directly asked what features they would like to see in the app the student’s answers included many if the features listed above and also included hours and listed demographics (family, night life).
The App Must…
- List prices and also current and upcoming specials.
- Include reviews and menu items.
- Show untried restaurants and new restaurants that have recently opened.
- Show parking lots and bus stops in close proximity to the downtown area and restaurants.
Personas:
Terry
- 20 years old
- Lives in Harrisonburg
- Student at James Madison University (Junior)
- Business major
- Lives in house with three roommates
- Has a car and drives downtown
- Eats out often
- Believes quality of food is most important in a good dining experience
Regina
- 21 years old
- Lives in Harrisonburg
- Student at James Madison University
- Biology major
- Lives in apartment with two roommates
- Vegetarian
- Uses public transportation to get downtown
- Usually stays in and makes food to save money
- Believes menu variety and service is crucial for an optimal dining experience