FoodieSocial & Ux Company

1. FoodieSocial &Ux Company SocialGrace app development

2. Project Purpose/Objectives • FoodieSocial, an online food-enthusiast social hub, teamed up with UX Company to help develop and test their first application- SocialGrace. • This application needed to make the FoodieSocial world applicable to every day life and encourage connections through the website. • Thus, establishing FoodieSocial at the forefront of review sites and as the newest, most desirable social media application.

3. Description & Backrgound: Socialgrace APP • This social hub app features a live map that pinpoints your FoodieFriend’s favourite spots in proximity to your location. • The app also enables FoodieFriendssocialisation. Users can designate which ‘friends’ they are happy to chat with, meet-up with or even bump into. • The live map will ping you if one of these special FoodieFriends is in your vicinity; encouraging spur-of-the-moment culinary experiences. • Select ‘meet up’ on the ping and SocialGrace will give delicious & nearby suggestions as to where you and your FoodieFriend should meet. Once a location is selected directions are automatically generated to each FoodieFriend via Google maps. • When two or more FoodieFriends are in close proximity the app will also send prompts for tweets, Instagram, or Facebook posts of the friends enjoying their meal.

4. Goals and challenges Goal • To increase FoodieSocial signups by 16% in the next quarter and have 50% of our FoodieSocial community download the application. • Privacy = Trust • Offer very clear opt-in or out of FoodieFriends meet-ups, bump-ins, and/or chat. • We designed an inlayed stoplight status sidebar. Green means fully available, yellow means I’m busy, red means completely invisible. • Allow a FoodieFriend to designate exactly who they would or would not like able to access their information. • We developed a prompt immediately after friending a fellow Foodie asking what type of relationship they wished to have: online only or online & mobile. Challenges

5. UX Process, methodology and approaches • Development of application using a Develop-Test-Develop methodology. No more than 2 weeks development without testing. • Continuous one-on-one usability testing on website, mobile, and tablet. • Relevant and readily available participant pool of 300 people. • Gave each participant different tasks. • This included groups of 2-5 testing the ‘meet-up’ function. • 1-day of guerrilla usability testing.

6. Effects/Results: target audience discovery After research via rapid random surveying of 70+ participants in 5 key locations we pinpointed the following major target audiences: • Self proclaimed ‘foodies’ • Socialites • Young professionals • Travellers

7. User feedback “I’m always reading reviews to determine where to eat next. This makes the process much quicker, instant really! Absolutely invaluable on my mobile! Easy-to-use, informed eating suggestions readily available for spontaneous meet-ups.” “I would love to use this whilst travelling. What a great way to really get to know the culinary hotspots in a new city - even find a local to enjoy them with!” “This is great! I have so many friends working and living in the city, I love the idea of knowing if they’re a step away from me.”

8. Screen Shots FoodieFriends Availability Restaurant w/ photos & scores Reviews

9. Watch us talk about this project!

10. UXUK Core Criteria for Submission • Minimal accessibility requirements met • Clear how to action tasks/goals • Consistent IA, visual design and interaction design • Content that is good and appropriate • Works well across platforms • Path for the user start to finish is clearly defined • Functions without bugs and loads at a reasonable speed • Good navigation, clear labelling, well defined iconography etc • Interface does not get in the way of the content • Purpose of app/website/service is clear • Evidence of good research process • Aesthetically pleasing visual design