June - August, 2022 (~25 hrs/wk)
Ecomak Recyclers
Mobile Application Design
Product Designer | UX Researcher
As the sole designer, I had to create a product from scratch without a clear business idea or targeted user for research.
I provided two fully high-fidelity prototypes and a design system.
I helped elevate the business idea and secure €4,000 in funding for further development.
With over 75% of used plastic bottles ending up in landfills, lakes, and rivers, this waste situation seriously damages the environment and humans.
Furthermore, over 1.5 million refugees live in overpopulated settlements.
The overpopulation aggravates waste pollution, resulting in poor living environments.
Ecomak Recyclers (ER) uses innovative technology to turn plastic waste into durable and cost-effective construction supplies. To collect waste, ER has hired over 100 underserved refugees who collect 30 tons of plastic waste every month.
ER now aims to expand its market in Uganda and East Africa by addressing two key priorities:
1. Collect a sufficient amount of plastic waste as raw material for production;
2. Extend the business services beyond buying waste from suburban refugees and actively collect waste from urban businesses.
As a product designer, I collaborated closely with my client and identified the problem before designing the solution.
To ensure timely delivery, I managed the product development process. This involved defining the product scope and work plan, hosting weekly meetings, and setting the cadence to stay on track.
Between June and August 2022, I worked diligently on the project with the client. Upon completion of the design phase, I handed over the user flows, high-fidelity screens, and design systems to the engineers responsible for the project's implementation.
Four core challenges arose due to various constraints and considerations. Fortunately, these challenges provided an opportunity to unpack the process further, enabling me to identify and overcome obstacles to deliver a superior product.
How the challenges informed the design process
At the project's outset, I lacked a clear understanding of the business model, target users, or product goals. As such, I needed to delve deeper into the background, problem, and domain to identify a suitable approach.
To overcome the challenge of lacking pre-existing insights into the project, I turned to ER to acquire as much information as possible as they were the most familiar with the project at that moment.
I began by compiling product assumption lists, reviewing with the client, and documenting all feedback. Additionally, I established a project plan, setting a cadence to ensure alignment on the necessary steps to meet the mid-July fundraising deadline and deliver a ready-to-build product. This approach helped us align and work collaboratively towards a common goal.
Documents of discovery strategies
Moving forward, I focused on understanding the basic features and their relationships.
To achieve this, I created a user journey map and user flow to visualize the product's structure.
Initial user flow based on assumptions
are the focal point of the user experience at both emotional and logical levels
Early on, it was essential to empathize with users. However, since Uganda was a country I had never been to, cultural, geographical, and even psychological differences could exaggerate design bias and eliminate authenticity.
As my client found it difficult to organize user interviews, I need to find ways to empathize with the distant target users.
Competitors would help me narrow down the scope of the product model.
Despite the location difference that limited my access to all screens, this analysis helped me determine the essential features of our product and differentiate it from competitors.
Key service flow and fundamental screens of the competitor
To ensure that the product is familiar and user-friendly to Ugandan users, I studied four key flows of the three most used apps in Uganda.
This helped me design the product consistent with the context-wide standards and user expectations.
Four key flows analysis of the three most used apps in Uganda
To build empathy, it's crucial to talk with people who are familiar with the target users.
Despite not being able to connect with the remote users directly, I created low-fidelity prototypes and held a focused group user test with my client's business partners and colleagues. They completed various tasks, provided feedback on what worked and what didn't, and suggested missing features.
Additionally, I obtained insights from UX designers located in East Africa.
Two prototypes for the focused group user test workshop
A user-friendly product shouldn't require users to spend a significant amount of time and effort learning how to use it. However, the previous research showed that several disruptions in the user flow made it not fluid enough.
In previous versions, users were required to select their user type each time they accessed the homepage. Users need to quickly and easily complete the scheduling process without interruption. Thus, I designed to divert users upon sign-in to reduce the number of identification points.
In the future, if ER finds that one specific type of user generates more business profits and is worth investing in, it has the flexibility to focus on developing a more tailored user flow.
User-type diversion iteration
To simplify the task journey and reduce user frustration, it's important to streamline the screens required to schedule a service. This includes providing clear and concise information regarding the address, time, contact, and payment information.
After submitting a schedule, it must go through 4 (+1) stages before completion. Users need to easily review and manage each stage to ease tracking and taking action.
Waste pickup schedule flow iteration: Synthesize the steps from 5 to 3.
Schedule history management iteration
User-friendly interactions also significantly improve the overall user flow. Several improvements were made based on user feedback, interaction best practices, and the impact on the entire product flow.
I revealed information in an appropriate manner to ease decision-making and improved the features that users care about, such as waste type and contact information.
Waste type selection iteration
Pickup time and contact methods iteration
A successful product not only provides a useful solution for users but also aligns with the underlying goals of the company's growth. Therefore, I needed to ensure the product could contribute to the business's success.
↑ plastic waste = ↑ raw materials for production = ↑ sales = ↑ business profits
The product must offer clear and tangible benefits that users can quickly and easily understand.
Strategies to encourage scheduling
To reduce the workload on EK's end to manage an expanded market, users should be guided to take on some management tasks themselves before reaching out to ER. This can be achieved by motivating users to complete as many tasks as possible within the app.
Strategies to guide users in managing tasks
1. User-friendly onboarding. The two types of users can easily sign up for the allocated group and access support if needed.
2. Comprehensive schedule management. The users can manage and track all past and upcoming schedules to stay organized and informed.
3 + 4. Intuitive schedule flow. The users can easily fill in the information with appropriate guidance provided at each step.
5. Straightforward financial transaction. The users can make financial transactions simple and hassle-free, similar to other apps users may be familiar with.
The design system draws inspiration from previous studies of Ugandan trending APPs, waste themes, and local cultures. It adheres to the principles of a familiar color scheme, comprehensive visuals, and readable components.
