Cakelicious
UX Case Study: a dedicated mobile app for a local cake shop
Role: UX Design & Research
Project Duration: June 2021 to August 2022
Developed as part of Google UX Professional Career Certificate
Cakelicious is a local cake shop, specializing in birthday and wedding cakes, in the town of Kottayam in India. They have recently revamped their business by introducing a new line of 'exotic' cakes and pastries to attract the millennial children of former expats, who form a significant demographic of Kottayam. But the unfamiliar nomenclature of the new line of products has caused distress among adult customers who aren't familiar with these cakes.
The problem
Customers seem to lack the knowledge required to make an informed purchase of 'exotic' cakes
The goal
Design a smartphone app for Cakelicious that allows users to explore and learn about the wide variety of cakes before placing an order
Responsibilities
Conducting interviews, paper and digital wireframing, low and high-fidelity prototyping, conducting usability studies, accounting for accessibility, and iterating on designs.
Summary
I conducted interviews and created empathy maps to understand the primary users and their specific needs. Two primary groups were identified through research: middle-aged homemaker women who buy cakes for their households and college students who are short on cash and therefore seek to 'invest' in their savings on the best cake.
The former user group feels intimidated by the huge variety of cakes and hesitates to talk to store assistants, fearing embarrassment. They care about nutritional information as they often buy for their children. The second user group is interested in popularity and taste factors and also exhibits curiosity to learn about new cake varieties.
A user journey map was developed based on the interview for a deeper understanding of the activities, user tasks, and pain points involved throughout the entire experience.
Given below is an interactive high-fidelity prototype that was revised after initial round of usability testing with prospective users majorly falling under the two primary user groups.