Project Overview
The app will offer visits to art galleries around the world in-person or virtually where customers can book tickets/tours, access information about artists, browse artist collections, listen to audio-guides and save for later reference, and be able to find exclusive memorabilia from gallery shops. Virtualley targets art galleries, museums, and individuals who are interested in history, art and culture and who do not have the time to visit in person or have missed visiting during their travel to a new city or in their hometown.
Project duration:
October 2021 – February 2022
Problem Statement
Busy professionals interested in art, history and culture who like to visit art galleries from the comfort of their home or when visiting a new city.
Goal
Our artist biography app will let users book tickets/tours, learn about artists and their collections and purchase gifts from gallery or museum shops which will affect users who want to save time by letting them skip the lines and be able to access information instantly. We will measure the effectiveness of the app by offering online payments and ease of use to complete the intended task.
My Role & Responsibilities
UX Designer designing an app for art galleries and museums from conception to delivery. My responsibilities included conducting User interviews, Competitive analysis, Creating personas, Identifying pain points and Defining problem statements, Creating user stories and journeys, Storyboarding, Wireframing and Prototyping and Iterating on designs.
Design Process
Empathize
User Research
User Interviews
Empathy Mapping
Define
Persona
Problem Statement
Goal Statement
User Journey
Ideate
Brainstorm ideas
Competitive Analysis
Storyboards
IA & User Flow
Prototype
Paper Wireframes
Digital Low-fi Prototypes
Usability Studies
Test
Findings
Refining designs
Hi-fi Prototypes
Mockups
User Research
I conducted interviews and created empathy maps to understand the user I am designing for and their needs. A primary user group identified through research were individuals who like to visit art galleries aged 18 - 65, who often like to learn about history, art and culture either visiting physically or from the comfort of their home.
This user group confirms that they found it difficult to use various places to get information about artists and their works and wanted to be able to use an app that can serve multiple purposes.
Interview questions
1. How often do you visit or like visiting an art gallery/museum in your hometown or in a new city?
2. What are some things you do when visiting an art gallery or museum?
3. Do you like visiting alone or with someone? How was your experience when you visited all by yourself or with a friend?
4. Tell me about a time when you visited an art gallery? What did you like and what problems/challenges did you face while visiting the gallery?
5. What challenges have you faced while searching for information about a painting/work or art/artist ?
6. What motivates you to visit an art gallery? Are you interested in specific works of art by artists you like, or do you prefer seeing anything in general?
7. What do you think about having an art gallery app that can guide and help you in experiencing your next/subsequent visits to a gallery?
8. Have you previously used a mobile app during your visit to a museum or art gallery? If yes, which apps have you used ? Can you name and describe some things you like about the app?
9. How would you use the app if it was created? Would you like to have a virtual assistant feature that guides you through your visit?
10. What are the top 3 things that you would like to experience through this app?
11. What ways do you think this app could resolve the problems you faced while visiting the gallery?
12. Is there anything else you would like to share with me that would help build this app/feature?
Pain Points
Persona : Jennifer Catalano
Problem Statement : Jennifer is a professional Graphic Designer who needs to visit an art gallery once every couple of years and be able to use the app for multiple purposes in order to save time
Persona: Harry
Problem Statement: Harry is a busy man who needs to visit two or three times a year that have enough floor to wall space and be able to find exhibition catalogues for further reference
User Journey Mapping
Storyboards
User Flows
Flow 1: Book tickets/tours
Flow 2: Learn
Flow 3: Shop
Information Architecture
Style Guides - UI Elements
Wireframes
After careful considerations of user pain points, I began to draft iterations for each screen and chose elements that made it to the digital wireframes.
For the home screen, I wanted to give the user a good overview of the app features with navigation icons at the bottom. I also wanted to have big Call-to-action buttons in the flow that the user would take to complete their tasks. My idea for the basic layout of the screens was to have card like UI elements that are easy to click and navigate.
Digital Wireframes
Usability Study: Findings
Low fidelity Prototype
The low fidelity prototype shows the primary user flow of being able to book tickets to a gallery through the “VIRTUALLEY” app
Refining the design
After sign in into the app for booking tickets to the gallery, the user was taken straight to the confirmation screen.
The user was frustrated that there were no payment screens. The addition of proper checkout screens created a better user experience
Final Mockups
Hi-fidelity Prototypes
The final high-fidelity prototype presents a smoother user flow for booking tickets to the gallery or museum through the “VIRTUALLEY” app and offers other features like learning about artists and their works and ordering gifts from gallery shops
Responsive Web Design
Sitemap
Wireframes
Mobile Devices
Desktop
Going forward
Takeaways
What I learned:
While designing the application, I learnt that the initial drafts/wireframes are only the beginning, in the process of addressing issues that the users face. I also understood the importance of keeping the users in mind always while making iterations to the product for delivering a better user experience.
Impact:
The app makes users feel like “VIRTUALLEY” can help them save time and use the app for multiple purposes
Thank you for taking the time to
review my case study.
If you would like to get in touch, please email me at eternal.sn90@gmail.com