Wedding Bells
Wedding Bells
Challenge
One of the biggest struggles that newly-engaged couples face is finding a wedding venue. Some venue locations are booking over a year in advance, and many users are spending precious time calling or emailing multiple venues only to find out that their date has already been booked. Clear communication is a real challenge for these users, and there is no easy way to streamline this communication between the users and the venues.
Objective
To give users multiple options for wedding venues in their area, while also establishing clear communication and expectations between the venue owners and the users. This saves couples time in planning, and makes the experience between the users and the venues a much more positive one.
Research
In conducting research for Wedding Bells, two primary user groups were discovered with different goals for this app. These user groups were: Users who want to actively be a part of the planning process of the ceremony, and users who are seeking more guidance from the venue and might not have to time/ability to plan out the ceremony as well. Considering these different user groups showed that not everyone will plan a wedding in the same way, and the venue hosting the app will have to accommodate for these different types of users.
Through this research, several user pain points were identified:
Some users lacked trust in their venues
Some users lacked experience with weddings
Some users had busy schedules
Not all venues offer the same opportunities
A wedding venue preview app with in-app messaging and a calendar view of availability for streamlined communication between the venue and the user.
A wedding venue preview app with in-app messaging and a calendar view of availability for streamlined communication between the venue and the user.
Wedding bells is a mobile app designed to help users find the wedding venue of their dreams. It’s primary focus is making things as easy as possible for the user, streamlining communication with an in-app messaging service and a calendar view of the venue’s availability.
Competitive Audit
Four different wedding venues’ websites were examined for potential strengths and gaps that Wedding Bells could learn and grow from.
Persona Development
Two personas were created that would capture potential problems that real users might have while planning their wedding.
Copper Creek Ridge
Hyatt Regency Coralville Hotel and Conference Center
The Historic Davenport Hotel
The Celebration Farm
Strengths: Website is very visually appealing and has a clear call-to-action.
Weaknesses: Not many features outside of the “Book a Tour” call-to-action.
Strengths: Includes many clear photos of the venue.
Weaknesses: Lacks pictures of the venue hosting weddings, so users don’t get to see it in use.
Strengths: Fully responsive, and has incredible pictures of the venue with a location/dates dropdown menu.
Weaknesses: A lot of the more detailed information about the venue is hidden inside a PDF on the website.
Strengths: Organized, responsive, easy to navigate, and has videos of the venue.
Weaknesses: No clear call-to-action, and not much written information about the venue.
User Journey Map
Mapping Alyssa’s user journey showed that the app should include photos in the menus, and should also have an automatic sign-in feature through Google/Facebook. The app should have a field for special instructions at the end, and the venue should give a time frame for when they’ll reach out to the user to reduce the user’s anxiety regarding the process.
Wireframes
The first features that were considered for the functionality of the app were:
“Find a Venue Near You” (call-to-action)
List of venues
Log in Screen
Inbox
Each of these features work to provide efficient communication between the venue and the user. A calendar view was later added to the hi-fi prototype that would allow users to check the venue’s availability for an even smoother wedding planning experience.
Welcome Screen
Welcome Screen
List of Venues
List of Venues
Inbox
Inbox
Log in
Log in
View Lo-fi Prototype
Testing and Iteration
Wedding Bells went through two rounds of usability studies - once after the lo-fi prototype was created, and another round after the hi-fi prototype was finished. Five participants followed a series of prompts that led them through the app, and examined Key Performance Indicators such as:
User error rates - to track the frequency of mistakes made by users
Conversion rates - to find out if users can successfully complete a full user flow cycle
System usability scale - to see how users feel about the design and usability of the website
After the tests were completed, the following insights were drawn from the studies:
This resulted in added internal features such as the availability calendar, and more streamlined navigation with less room for error. Phone numbers and inbox notifications were also added, per the participants’ requests.
Round 1 Findings:
Users need clearer directional cues
Users would like more internal features in the app
Users would like a different approach on how to look at the venue
Round 2 Findings:
Users would like their phone numbers included in their profiles
Users would like inbox notifications
UI Design
Wedding Bells’ UI design is aimed to be gender-neutral so that anyone can feel a part of the planning process. It focuses on using luxurious colors like gold, white, and black to show users that this is an elegant app to help them plan their special day. The serif font is lends to this sense of formality, and the golden bells iconography goes along nicely with the namesake of the app, Wedding Bells.
View Full Testing Plan
Final Mockups
Wedding Bells went through a series of visual changes from the lo-fi version to the hi-fi version.
The original log in screen was changed to a simplified version with where users could choose between the options of signing in or logging in. This helped minimize the number of actions possible on the screen, streamlining the onboarding process.
Profile icons were added to the inbox, and users are now taken to a confirmation screen after successfully sending a message to a venue.
Lastly, a calendar screen was added to show venue availability. This allows the user to skip the initial step of asking the venue if their date is already booked.
Interact with the full Wedding Bells hi-fi prototype using the button below:
Challenge
One of the biggest struggles that newly-engaged couples face is finding a wedding venue. Some venue locations are booking over a year in advance, and many users are spending precious time calling or emailing multiple venues only to find out that their date has already been booked. Clear communication is a real challenge for these users, and there is no easy way to streamline this communication between the users and the venues.
Objective
To give users multiple options for wedding venues in their area, while also establishing clear communication and expectations between the venue owners and the users. This saves couples time in planning, and makes the experience between the users and the venues a much more positive one.
Research
In conducting research for Wedding Bells, two primary user groups were discovered with different goals for this app. These user groups were: Users who want to actively be a part of the planning process of the ceremony, and users who are seeking more guidance from the venue and might not have to time/ability to plan out the ceremony as well. Considering these different user groups showed that not everyone will plan a wedding in the same way, and the venue hosting the app will have to accommodate for these different types of users.
Through this research, several user pain points were identified:
Some users lacked trust in their venues
Some users lacked experience with weddings
Some users had busy schedules
Not all venues offer the same opportunities
Competitive Audit
Four different wedding venues’ websites were examined for potential strengths and gaps that Wedding Bells could learn and grow from.
Persona Development
Two personas were created that would capture potential problems that real users might have while planning their wedding.
User Journey Map
Mapping Alyssa’s user journey showed that the app should include photos in the menus, and should also have an automatic sign-in feature through Google/Facebook. The app should have a field for special instructions at the end, and the venue should give a time frame for when they’ll reach out to the user to reduce the user’s anxiety regarding the process.
Welcome Screen
Wireframes
The first features that were considered for the functionality of the app were:
“Find a Venue Near You” (call-to-action)
List of venues
Log in Screen
Inbox
List of Venues
Inbox
Log in
Each of these features work to provide efficient communication between the venue and the user. A calendar view was later added to the hi-fi prototype that would allow users to check the venue’s availability for an even smoother wedding planning experience.
Testing and Iteration
Wedding Bells went through two rounds of usability studies - once after the lo-fi prototype was created, and another round after the hi-fi prototype was finished. Five participants followed a series of prompts that led them through the app, and examined Key Performance Indicators such as:
User error rates - to track the frequency of mistakes made by users
Conversion rates - to find out if users can successfully complete a full user flow cycle
System usability scale - to see how users feel about the design and usability of the website
After the tests were completed, the following insights were drawn from the studies:
Round 1 Findings:
Users need clearer directional cues
Users would like more internal features in the app
Users would like a different approach on how to look at the venue
Round 2 Findings:
Users would like their phone numbers included in their profiles
Users would like inbox notifications
This resulted in added internal features such as the availability calendar, and more streamlined navigation with less room for error. Phone numbers and inbox notifications were also added, per the participants’ requests.
UI Design
Wedding Bells’ UI design is aimed to be gender-neutral so that anyone can feel a part of the planning process. It focuses on using luxurious colors like gold, white, and black to show users that this is an elegant app to help them plan their special day. The serif font is lends to this sense of formality, and the golden bells iconography goes along nicely with the namesake of the app, Wedding Bells.
Final Mockups
Wedding Bells went through a series of visual changes from the lo-fi version to the hi-fi version.
The original log in screen was changed to a simplified version with where users could choose between the options of signing in or logging in. This helped minimize the number of actions possible on the screen, streamlining the onboarding process.
Profile icons were added to the inbox, and users are now taken to a confirmation screen after successfully sending a message to a venue.
Lastly, a calendar screen was added to show venue availability. This allows the user to skip the initial step of asking the venue if their date is already booked.
Interact with the full Wedding Bells hi-fi prototype using the button below:
View Hi-fi Prototype
© Madison Stahl 2024
Want to see more?
Check out my other case studies below:
Want to see more?
Check out my other case studies below:
© Madison Stahl 2024
© Madison Stahl 2024
Want to see more?
Check out my other case studies below:
