Application Design I Task 1: Project Proposal

1/9/2023 - 22/9/2023
Edwin Choo Quan Rong / 0348305 / Bachelor of Design (Hons) In Creative Media
DST 60504 / Application Design I
Task 1: Project Proposal

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INSTRUCTIONS

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Task 1: Project Proposal

Students are tasked with creating a proposal document for their mobile application project. Firstly, an existing mobile application with unsatisfactory design and user experience is selected for preliminary approval by the lecturer. The document provides a further analysis of the existing mobile application to proceed to the next development phase. 

Listed below is my google slides presentation for the project proposal. The existing app that is planned for redesign is WeatherBug, a weather app developed in the 2000s. 

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FEEDBACK

Week 1
No class due to Public Holiday
Existing app for redesign was chosen with simple proposal prepared for preliminary approval.

Week 2
Specific Feedback: Identify MVP (minimum viable product) of the app for future redesign

General Feedback: Include various features for the app that improves user journey (eg. login page)

Week 3

Specific Feedback: When doing card sorting method, it is useful to specify the categories that certain features (written on cards) fall under and justify why it belongs there.

General Feedback: Categorize related sections into respective columns in card sorting activity, card sorting is useful to understand the mental thinking of the user in comparison to other users for cross analysis.

Week 4

Specific Feedback: Focus on a specific user demographic to amplify the needs of that group with greater effect

General Feedback: Rating and Reviews of an application is a good way to analyze what, how and why users think about a specific app

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REFLECTION

The initial weeks of creating the proposal has been plenty of research into the various terminologies and aspects of research related to UX design. Core essentials of an app design would include clarity of information and accessibility from design to cater to a wide audience. Both of these are first amplified through visually aesthetic designs as an eye-catching design hooks the user, making it easier to understand information as there are no issues such as cluttering. This leads to improved user engagement as they can interact well with the app, as well as user retention as they are more likely to come back and use an app that satisfies them with its usage. Color scheme and consistency aids with brand design and recognition as users subconsciously associate specific colors with certain brands. For example, a color design of dark green and white with coffee drinks will typically be associated with Starbucks, while a dark blue and white design with coffee drinks will be associated with ZUS Coffee instead, same service industry but two different brands recognized through the power of color scheme. A combination of one strong color to contrast with one light color will aid with the redesign of the mobile application. 

Additionally, the card sorting activity was an interesting insight into how different individuals categorize specific chunks of info into their respective categories. The activity was held with multiple groups of people. Each group had similar categorization of the provided info however there are some differences in the placement of certain niche, undefined info chunks. The ways these are placed in different groups all have their own justifications of why it was placed there, and to my believes is that, every group's deduction is valid. However, one must consider a specific user demographic when using this information to design a specific mobile app layout as the suitable justification placement will be used to align with the needs of the user demographic.