Perfect Properties is a web app designed to help users make informed purchases on real estate, to achieve financial security. This means lower risk and increased peace of mind for one of the biggest decisions ever.
• Empathize - Competitive Analysis, User Research
• Conceptualize - Personas, Sketching, Wireframing
• Design - Prototyping, Design Systems
Alleviate Financial Worries With Real Estate?
In late 2020, I was fortunate enough to be able to look for a modest home in the GTA (Greater Toronto Area) - a millennial dream come true! However, reality shortly hit as I thought I found "the one", multiple times. I went in-person and viewed around 27 homes, made an offer to half of them and lost the bid every single time.
I thought if I had more intentional information or data available at the time, then maybe I could pick better options to view and save myself some headache. Turns out, I was not the only one in this situation of course - the terrible housing market was a known issue to many and it is tough to get started.
Conceptualizing the Problem Space
I began with my own network, asking people who have recently purchased homes or are considering, and found that money aside, the primary uncertainty was the same: "how do I know I am making the right decision?" I then leveraged the idea of user personas to help bring research together while taking into account differing needs before moving forward.
Deriving the Problem at Hand
Future thinking users need a confident way to achieve financial security through investing with real estate. On top of being one of the largest purchases made, it is often a complicated process that comes with risk.
To include the user's needs and goals, I've derived 3 goals to get started:
Confidence Through Data
Helping users make a quicker decision at a glance. A ton of factors go into making a home buying decision, but is there one factor that is more important than another? Not really, at least from my personal opinion and research. What can help users though, is a bit of math and thought behind a rolled up metric that is highlighted on a busy page. Although not perfect for every user type, a rating system can boost confidence and prompt further investigation.
Connect Simply
I debated whether a typical messaging option would be a better call, but then opted out. Perfect Properties' focus is not in its ability to chat, but to get in touch with the right people to conduct more valuable discussions outside. To help users with that, the contact screen consists of a short form to fill, while the scheduling screen contains available options based on the expert. Different ways to get in touch is rapidly growing, so it's worth keeping an open mind on additional options to add (i.e. using third party meeting tools).
UI Components / Design System
What Could Be Better?
Met the expectations of 80% of participated users, to simplify their lives even just a bit. I recently versed myself in Lean UX, and applied the 'done is better than perfect' mindset, to quickly design a product while continuously taking feedback to improve.
Some questions I will be thinking about:
Perfect Properties is a web app designed to help users make informed purchases on real estate, to achieve financial security. This means lower risk and increased peace of mind for one of the biggest decisions ever.
• Empathize - Competitive Analysis, User Research
• Conceptualize - Personas, Sketching, Wireframing
• Design - Prototyping, Design Systems
Alleviate Financial Worries With Real Estate?
In late 2020, I was fortunate enough to be able to look for a modest home in the GTA (Greater Toronto Area) - a millennial dream come true! However, reality shortly hit as I thought I found "the one", multiple times. I went in-person and viewed around 27 homes, made an offer to half of them and lost the bid every single time.
I thought if I had more intentional information or data available at the time, then maybe I could pick better options to view and save myself some headache. Turns out, I was not the only one in this situation of course - the terrible housing market was a known issue to many and it is tough to get started.
Conceptualizing the Problem Space
I began with my own network, asking people who have recently purchased homes or are considering, and found that money aside, the primary uncertainty was the same: "how do I know I am making the right decision?" I then leveraged the idea of user personas to help bring research together while taking into account differing needs before moving forward.
Helping users make a quicker decision at a glance. A ton of factors go into making a home buying decision, but is there one factor that is more important than another? Not really, at least from my personal opinion and research. What can help users though, is a bit of math and thought behind a rolled up metric that is highlighted on a busy page. Although not perfect for every user type, a rating system can boost confidence and prompt further investigation.
Putting it Together
I used Card Sorting with my test users to determine the appropriate navigation to best go through the main tasks. I was able to create mid-fidelity sketches which then went through usability testing. Doing so revealed a few medium-high severity concerns that were crucial to address before moving on.
Road to Success
I conducted A/B testing iterations to determine what was more appropriate, then applied visual design and Gestalt principles to create organized screens. An important step before kicking it high-fidelity was to collaborate with other experienced designers to see if anything was missed. The design was shifted from an overextended process with far too many quantitative data - to a shortened design that tracks progress.
Take a Break
A key feature of Moment 5 is based on the evidence provided by users - who do not spend more than 10 minutes in a day to take care of their well-being. The design chosen provides versatile options separated by Move or Rest exercises, to increase engagement. To back up a user's selection, steps are listed followed by 5 minute guided instructions.
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Take Control
Tracking progress is one of the most effective ways to determine how far away a goal is. Users thought using mood tracking would benefit this the most, so a reflection step was added post exercise. The results taken would be shown visually in the home screen, with options to further slice and dice goal-related information.
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Outcomes and Takeaways
Perfect Properties is a web app designed to help users make informed purchases on real estate, to achieve financial security. This means lower risk and increased peace of mind for one of the biggest decisions ever.
• Empathize - Competitive Analysis, User Research
• Conceptualize - Personas, Sketching, Wireframing
• Design - Prototyping, Design Systems
Alleviate Financial Worries With Real Estate?
In late 2020, I was fortunate enough to be able to look for a modest home in the GTA (Greater Toronto Area) - a millennial dream come true! However, reality shortly hit as I thought I found "the one", multiple times. I went in-person and viewed around 27 homes, made an offer to half of them and lost the bid every single time.
I thought if I had more intentional information or data available at the time, then maybe I could pick better options to view and save myself some headache. Turns out, I was not the only one in this situation of course - the terrible housing market was a known issue to many and it is tough to get started.
Conceptualizing the Problem Space
I began with my own network, asking people who have recently purchased homes or are considering, and found that money aside, the primary uncertainty was the same: "how do I know I am making the right decision?" I then leveraged the idea of user personas to help bring research together while taking into account differing needs before moving forward.
Outcomes and Takeaways
Perfect Properties is a web app designed to help users make informed purchases on real estate, to achieve financial security. This means lower risk and increased peace of mind for one of the biggest decisions ever.
• Empathize - Competitive Analysis, User Research
• Conceptualize - Personas, Sketching, Wireframing
• Design - Prototyping, Design Systems
Alleviate Financial Worries With Real Estate?
In late 2020, I was fortunate enough to be able to look for a modest home in the GTA (Greater Toronto Area) - a millennial dream come true! However, reality shortly hit as I thought I found "the one", multiple times. I went in-person and viewed around 27 homes, made an offer to half of them and lost the bid every single time.
I thought if I had more intentional information or data available at the time, then maybe I could pick better options to view and save myself some headache. Turns out, I was not the only one in this situation of course - the terrible housing market was a known issue to many and it is tough to get started.
Jobs To Be Done
Due to the volatile nature of public sector limitations, fundings and timelines could change based on policies that align with provincial/federal directions. To account for this insight, a jobs-to-be-done framework was utilized to access valuable knowledge from employees versed in existing tools. The approach involved conducting user interviews, with the intention to learn how the tool was used, what did the tool do well and what could be improved? This process was repeated for multiple “super-users”, and the information was consolidated to begin formulating feasible solutions.
Key Focus
We synthesized the information gathered from interviewing super-users, and brainstormed ideas that would fit the bill of user needs. Ideas were iterated and discussed with various stakeholders including the Business Analysts and Developers to ensure we were all aligned. A plan of action was drafted, and the main components to keep in mind while designing were:
Transformed Experience
The project was part of a broader digital transformation initiative, to modernize the experience and better equip internal teams. With that in mind, my task was to create simple and intuitive wireframes that would transform existing pages and incorporate a new design for wizards. Current friction stemmed from difficulty navigating through layered tabs, populating and viewing fields, and unstandardized design that were built for pure functionality.
Taxes
Implemented fixed headers and left aligned navigation bar for consistency. Maintained the separate tax tabs (Tax Credits/Tax Slips) while emphasizing hierarchy. I leveraged my experience as an Engineer working in data, to craft an accessible way to view data in tables.
Group Benefits
The original client had 3 tabs to split content similar to Tax Credits/Tax Slips, however a business decision was made to to view all content in one page. A show/hide drawer was implemented for users to easily glance at necessary information without having to navigate elsewhere.
Wizards
Previous Wizard processes were inconsistent in terms of screen sizing, spacing, and overall layout. The focus for new designs were to maintain a cohesive and effective process, and not confuse users. We utilized the abundant spacing of a web-based solution to create a new standard.
Project Results
Redesigning an existing pension management client to a web-based solution in a collaborative tight-knit team. I leverage my Engineering experience designing data visualizations to craft accessible navigation, tables, and processes.
Moment 5 is a mobile wellness app that focuses on promoting physical and mental wellbeing with flexible 5-minute exercises. People are often busy and backlogged with responsibilities, sometimes a spark is all that is needed to get through the day.
Pizza Garden is a popular franchise that specializes in pizza cooked in a stone oven located in the Vancouver area. The redesign focuses on the primary menu page.
