Overview
Role
UX Designer, UI Designer, UX Researcher
Tools
Figma, Mural, Otter.io, markers and whiteboard
Timeline
7 months
Background
Culinary knowledge and nutritional practices among young adults have declined, raising concerns about long-term health impacts
With the correlation between at home cooking and greater nutritional quality, this demographic is at a disadvantage as those within this age group are more likely to look towards already prepared foods such as processed foods, restaurants and fast foods as a source of nutrients compared to any other age group.
Users
Young adults who may be interested in cooking more frequently at home but lack the knowledge and skillset.
Current situation
With their limited resources, this demographic terns to unhealthier food options as a source of nutrients.
Room for opportunity
By improving comfortability within the kitchen, the younger demographic will be able to cook frequently, and in turn improve their nutritional health.
Problem
Young adults are interested in developing cooking skills, but lack time, energy, skills, resources, and find current options dull and inflexible, hindering their progress
With the correlation between at home cooking and greater nutritional quality, this demographic is at a disadvantage as those within this age group are more likely to look towards already prepared foods such as processed foods, restaurants and fast foods as a source of nutrients compared to any other age group.
Lack of time and energy.
Skills and resources.
Need for excitement in their diet.
Design Challenge
How might we guide the user along a straight path towards culinary confidence while being attentive to their lack of resources and need for excitement?
Encourage healthier decisions.
Utilize the user's resources.
Drive excitement.
Solution
A mobile cooking guru for young adults offering gamified, healthier versions of cheat day foods using available ingredients and simplifying future meal planning
It is important to not only pay attention to the issues generally faced during the activity of cooking, but also the specific concerns presented by this age group.
Encourage healthier decisions
Guide users towards improving their skills to grow their nutritional knowledge and eat healthier.
All meals generated will follow proper portioning of key food groups.
Push notifications to guide users back to the app.
All recipes have ingredient lists between 5-8 ingredients to save time and reduce cooking anxiety.
Allows users to generate recipes using ingredients they have on hand.
Auto generated meal plans to reduce planning time, and encourage cooking in advance.
All recipes are healthier versions to ‘cheat-day’ meals to excite users and help satisfy their cravings.
Acquire in-app credit towards purchasing specialty recipes in the Market.
Push notifications to guide users back to the app.
Process
Market research
Research goals
What cooking resources & educational platforms will strive based off of past and current offerings and how will the act of cooking emerge for young adults?
Methods and analysis
6 publications 1 trend matrix 1 industry diagnostic.
Outcomes
Steady increase of learning to cook early & often then downward trend of cooking at home meals followed by an interest within cooking reinvigorated .
User Research
Research goals
What cooking barriers are present for young adults aged 17-35? What are the nutritional requirements of this target demographic? What mechanisms can be applied to help users towards a better nutritional lifestyle?
Methods and analysis
6 publications, 4 user interviews, 24 surveys, 3 expert interviews and 3 picture interviews.
Outcomes
Data collected demonstrates that young adults enter a time of culinary exploration but concerns of time & energy; skills and resources; as well as cooking's inflexibility and sometimes dullness cause road-blocks when it comes to cooking.
Taking the traits of the user demographic identified through research, a persona highlighted the type of user this solution will be tailored towards.
The Customer Journey Map highlighted the user's points of frustration with each step in their cooking session. This led to opportunities to resolve pain points.
Iterate and test
The icons cause navigational confusion. They don’t properly portray their purpose.
Design icons specific to the app and add labels for easier navigation.
The skill sessions are not descriptive. It seems as though all I will be doing is cutting vegetables.
It would be more useful to display when I will be preparing meals for meal prep rather than when I will have it
It would be more useful to display when I will be preparing meals for meal prep rather than when I will have it
Display a schedule for meal preparation dates, to cook meals in advance
Learning Outcomes
A collection of different frameworks and matrices for every step in the design thinking process
how to work in an effective agile environment for quick feedback towards a finished product
Reflection
Although the importance and benefits of good project management has been demonstrated in
past times, during this 7 month cycle, this project was able to excel by adhering to the planning of
the project scope defined during the initial stages of production
Growth opportunity
The project would have benefited from breaking down the user base further through
segments of gender, race, location, and age to see the differentiating factors that may attribute
to their struggles with this goal
