super duper
A mobile app that effectively allows users to find budget friendly skin care alternatives that meets their needs.
Role: UX Researcher, UX/UI Designer, Branding
OVERVIEW
Skincare has undoubtedly become a powerful daily routine for radiant and healthy skin, one that is embraced by a growing number of individuals. However, skincare can come with a hefty price tag. Nonetheless, with proper guidance, one can elevate their skincare journey without draining their wallets. Skincare products can get super pricey and a lot of times there a products that can be equally effective as the expensive ones!
Goal: Create a mobile app that empowers users to discover skincare products that meet their budget and needs.
RESEARCH
User Interviews
Participants: 6 User Surveys: 8 participants
Who: Skincare Enthusiasts
What: We want to uncover the journey individuals take when purchasing skin care products. Furthermore, we want to understand what various factors influence their decision-making process.
Uncover what concerns users face when wanting to try out new skincare products
Learn their process of finding and buying skincare products that work for them
Identify impactful ways for users to personalize their skincare solutions based on their unique needs
Research Objectives
Findings: Price
Findings: Knowledge
Uncovered a huge pain point in the process of wanting to buy and item and actually buying it!
“I want to start using retinol and serums but just looking at the price alone deters me away from it.”
Core Insights
The biggest common theme participants brought up was how expensive skincare can be
Time and energy spent on researching products lead to feeling overwhelmed and quitting
Input from a dermatologist makes users feel more at ease and less hesitant about buying
75% (6 out of 8) of survey participants view price as one of the most important factors when shopping for skincare related products
75% (6 out of 8) of survey participants view ingredients as one of the most important factors when shopping for skincare related products
Numerous competitors focus on the different aspects of attaining skincare goals. However, they face significant challenges such as limited product range, inadequate transparency regarding both product and ingredients, and the presence of a paywall. Evaluating these circumstances allows me to identify the opportunities Super Duper can pursue.
Competitive Analysis
Define
So, who are we solving for?
Joey - “The Budget Friendly Skincare Newbie”
Our user persona, Joey, is feeling burdened by the investment of his skin health and wants to find affordable yet effective products that won’t hurt his wallet!
What is Joey thinking and feeling?
How might we assist budget-conscious individuals discover cost effective skincare alternatives?
And, what does our persona need?
ideate
With the high price point of skincare products being the biggest barrier in people’s decision to not buy products that they want to. It comes down to finding similar products that work just as well.
USER FLOW: What will our persona accomplish?
The user flow shows the expected path a user would take to find a product dupe starting them on the home screen. I also thought that users may want to know where to buy the product dupes however, I needed to remind myself of the the main goal: assist budget-conscious individuals discover cost effective skincare alternatives.
Design
The main objective is to allow users to discover cost-effective skincare alternatives. I tackled this process by identifying the most effective screens that enable users to achieve this goal.
Low Fidelity Wireframes
I always start my design process with the Crazy 8’s exercise, which involves delving into my mind and fostering divergent thinking within a limited time constraint! I sketched out screens for Home Page, Finding a Product Dupe, and Viewing Other Product Dupes.
Mid Fidelity Wireframes
Home Screen
Straightforward home screen that prioritizes the most essential CTA, conveniently placed front and center, for users: finding a skincare dupe!
Product Dupe
Selecting the searched product takes you the core purpose of the app: the dupe. Additionally, users receive the key information of why the suggested product is considered a dupe.
See Other Dupes
Users can view all the possible options to consider. Each dupe is accompanied by a calculated, quantifiable percentage that indicates its similarity to the searched product.
Branding
What does Super Duper represent?
fun, playful, empowering, engaging
The psychological aspect of the color pink is often linked to beauty whereas orange exudes playfulness, thus the harmonious pairing helps enforce Super Duper’s personality, values and mission of being approachable and full of energy.
Usability Testing
After conducting some usability testing, I extracted a lot of impactful data on things that went well and things that needed some improvements and iterations. One of those being an unexpected screen popping up after participants clicked on a CTA to find the product dupe.
Participants expected that after clicking the Dupe button, they would be taken to the product dupe page directly, not the searched product screen.
Iteration 1: Unexpected Screen
Original Path
Solution: The search needs to be more intuitive so let’s have a search product selection dropdown!
Participant Feedback
“Love the layout and design, along with the colors and branding. Pleasant app experience.”
“The similarity matrix is a really cool and useful thing to have!”
Final Product
Log In
Home
Product Dupe
Other Dupes
Key Takeaways
One challenge I faced was effectively prioritizing the diverse pain points of users and crafting a solution that addresses the majority of their needs. Often, I found myself wanting to tackle every pain point mentioned! I had to recognize when to take a step back and approach the problem from a fresh perspective through taking a breather. This approach proved fruitful as I am extremely excited about the final product, and the user feedback has been positive. They pointed out an important aspect (addressed in “Usability Testing”) that I had overlooked, which highlights the immense value in seeking multiple perspectives.
So, what’s next for Super Duper?
Building out the Community and Glossary feature
Community: Fostering an empowering skincare community is vital, as it encourages a sense of belonging for users to engage in learning and sharing their skincare goals and interests, and most importantly, their own skincare dupes!
Glossary: Newer users of skincare products expressed uncertainty about the functions of the many skincare products on the market. The glossary can provide concise information to effectively guide users in learning how to take care of their skin.
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