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JUNTO
Junto is a new breed of social media founded to rebalance our relationship with technology. As a community-driven, nonprofit organization, Junto aims to provide users with a space where they can interact with each other in a much healthier, authentic and conscious manner.
THE TASK
Improve mobile user experience and implement a new app feature that encourages greater community building amongst Junto users by allowing them to share gift-economy Needs and Offerings.
THE PROBLEM STATEMENT
How can we improve the overall usability of JUNTO while also implementing a community-exchange feature that allows for more meaningful and valuable interactions amongst JUNTO users?
MY ROLE
Lead User Researcher
Information Architect
Project Manager
DELIVERABLES
Research Plan
Competitive Analysis
User Journey
User Flow
Participant Recruitment
User Survey
Discussion Guide
User Interviews
A/B Usability Testing
TOOLS
Figma
Zoom
Miro
Google Forms
Google Sheets
PowerPoint
THE PROCESS
I.HEURISTIC ANALYSIS
In order to begin trying to solve this problem, I needed to gain a better understanding of how Junto works. I conducted a heuristic analysis of the Junto app, and tested all the capabilities and features currently in place. One thing that I struggled with was understanding the Junto terminology. I quickly recognized that in order to properly tackle this problem, I first needed to put Junto's lexicon into terms that I could understand. I created a “Glossary of Terms”, using Facebook terminology to draw parallels between Junto's functionality and that of Facebook. I then confirmed that my interpretations were correct with the client, and upon receiving the green-light, I was ready to continue on.
GLOSSARY OF TERMS
II. COMPETITIVE SWOT ANALYSIS
For the competitive SWOT analysis, I looked at user reviews for Vero, a direct competitor of Junto, as well as Facebook and Instagram, two indirect competitors.
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Users felt they were able to quickly and easily create posts
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Apps were intuitive and self-explanatory
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High levels of engagement where creating posts were concerned
PROS
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Cognitive overload while engaging with feeds
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Users felt they easily got distracted by all of the comments on posts
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Ads felt very invasive
CONS
III. USER SURVEY
I continued my research by conducting a 13-question user survey of current Junto users in order to gather both qualitative and quantitative research findings. The survey consisted of 8 general social media-related questions, as well as 5 Junto-specific questions. My goal was to discover the reasons why Junto users post on social media, whether or not they’d be interested in a community-building feature where you can set “intentions” of needs and offerings, and whether or not they would find “expression flags” useful- a feature which would spotlight their intention posts and make them noticeable to other users on the Junto app. Lastly, I wanted to find out where current users could imagine these posts living - displayed on a separate page in the app, or within specific Junto communities.
USER SURVEY INSIGHTS
*Percentages based on 30 responses
74%
Share posts on social media because it's important to them
69%
Share posts on social media to attract attention to a specific cause
62%
Would seek out people on Junto in need of help
55%
Would seek out people on Junto offering help
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50% of participants said they would like to see posts about community Needs and Offerings in established communities (i.e., packs, groups, collective)
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50% of participants said they would like to see posts about community needs and offerings in a separate area on app, specifically designated for Needs and Offerings
IV. USER INTERVIEWS
To gather more information and better understand users’ behaviors, I conducted 5 interviews with Junto users. From this, I was able to gather key insights on Junto users’ experiences with current social media platforms, what their pain points are when using other social media apps, and how they feel about Junto.
"I started using Junto because it seemed like a good place to be if you're someone who's looking to do good and make a positive impact in the world."
"Facebook has degenerated into a political mosh pit where people are going at each other in comments."
"I hate how current social media seems work against you."
"Junto sounds like a better, less superficial way to engage with other people online."
V. USER STORY
Taking all of my research findings into account, I was able to put together a user story that prioritized certain tasks that Junto users might accomplish. Because the client had expressed in the initial kickoff meeting that they were only interested in understanding the behaviors and attitudes of current Junto users, I created a user story that reflected this prerequisite.
VI. USER PERSONA
Thanks to the user story and data that was collected from the user research, I was able to create a user persona that was representative of what the end-user might look like. Keeping the goals, needs, motivations, and fears of the end-user in mind, I knew that the design and functionality of Junto's new "Needs" and "Offerings" feature would have to include solutions for users like Brian.
BRIAN'S GOALS:
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Community-building through volunteering
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Seeking out ways that technology can be used to produce positive outcomes
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Protecting and preserving the environment
BRIAN'S FRUSTRATIONS:
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When local neighborhoods don't maximize their potential for what a united community can accomplish together
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Social media apps that create "noise" instead of promoting positivity
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Social media apps that compromise their users by relying on centralized platforms
VII. USER JOURNEY & USER FLOW
Armed with the knowledge from the user story and user persona, I was able to develop the user journey and user flow. I created the user journey based on Brian's experience with Junto pre-any designated Community Needs and Offerings features. It was here that I discovered the opportunities to address Brian's pain points, as well as the develop the user flow that Brian would engage in once these new Community Needs and Offerings features were implemented.
USER JOURNEY
USER FLOW
VIII. WIREFRAME CREATION
I had reached the point where I had to start thinking about how to bring these ideas to life via wireframes. I circled back with the client, and our discussions led to them wanting to expand the community intentions beyond that of merely Needs and Offerings. Some ideas were to include the intention to ask the community for feedback, collaboration, or to make an announcement. Even with these ideas in mind, I still needed to figure out where exactly on the app users wanted to see these exchanges appear.
PROTOTYPE A
1. Create Expression Screen:
I started by recreating the “Create Expression” screen that was already present in the Junto app. I made the “expression type” options more visible on the screen by aligning them vertically, as compared to horizontally. With this simple update, all expression types became visible in a single-view container as compared to displaying them where the UI required users to slide their finger left to view the additional expression types they could choose from.
Original Junto
"Create Expression" Screen
Prototype A
"Create Expression" Screen
2. "Choose Your Intention" Screen & "Add Expression Flags" Screen:
I added a button on the "Create Expression" page to allow users to designate an intention to their post. If a user chose to assign an Intention to their post, they now had the ability to choose between a "Need," an "Offering," or an "Personal Expression."
Once a user settled on their Intention type, a fly-out menu would display allowing users to add "Expression Flags" to their post. The purpose of these "Expression Flags" is to enable users to provide more context to their post by adding unique identifiers that, hopefully, more users would be able to relate to. Some examples of what these expression flags could be are "lessons," "tutoring," or "volunteering."
Choose Your Intention Screen
Add Expression Flag Screen
3. "Who Can See Your Expression" Screen:
On the "Create Expression" page, when a user clicks the “Collective” button, a new screen displays asking the user to choose where they would like to share the expression. This feature allows the user to decide which community they would like their post to appear in. The options available are the Collective, which is the default selection of where a user's expression would appear, their personal Packs, or their specialized Groups. Once a user makes this selection, both their "Intention" and the Community in which they selected that they would like their expression to be shared become visible as the current selections in the relevant fields on the "Create Expression" screen.
Who Can See Your Expression Screen
Create Expression Screen With Intention and Community Set
4. "Who Can See Your Expression" Screen:
After a user chooses which expression type they would like to use to create their post (for the sake of this example, the user chose the "shortform" expression type), they are then able to type in their unique offering that they would like to share with their Junto community. On this same screen, all of the user's previous choices regarding where they would like their expression to be shared, what their intention is, and what their expression flags are are visible. At this point, in order for a user to share their expression, they simply need to click "Express," where they will then be taken to the Community Needs and Offerings feed for the specific community they chose to have their post appear in. To improve the overall scannability of these posts, I designed color-coded bars that represent the specific intention a user selected for their post.
Purple = Community Offering; Green = Community Need.
Shortform Post Creation Screen
Community Needs and Offerings in Collective Screen
PROTOTYPE B
Prototype B was designed to give users the ability to publish their Community Needs and Offerings within a separate area of the app. I named this area "The Exchange." From the "Create Expression" page, the intention button has been removed, and instead the user must choose a community where they would like to see their post appear. By clicking on the "Collective" button on the "Create Expression" page, a new screen displays where the user can choose the specific location that they would like their expression to appear.
Unlike in Prototype A, Prototype B includes this new section of the app entitled "The Exchange" where a user can share their post. If a user selects this option, they are then asked to select their Intention Type. For the sake of this example, the user has selected their Intention Type as an Offering. Like in Prototype A, the user is then prompted to select the unique expression flags that they would like to have associated with their post. This section of the app is easily accessible from a user's homescreen where they can click on the exchange icon and go directly to this Community Needs and Offerings section of the app.
Create Expression Screen
Who Can See Your Expression Screen
Choose Your
Intention Screen
Add Expression Flags Screen
Create Shortform Expression Screen
Needs and Offerings Feed in Exchange
Junto Homescreen with Exchange Icon
IX. A/B USABILITY TESTING
Using Prototypes A and B, I conducted 5 A/B usability tests via Zoom where I had users complete a series of tasks in order to test out each of our designs.
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Firstly, I wanted to understand whether people wanted to see Community Offerings and Needs published in their own established Junto communities, or if they wanted to see them on a separate page of the app. Based on the findings from the usability tests, 4 out of 5 users preferred Prototype B where their Offerings and Needs were displayed in a separate area of the app.
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Because I redesigned the "Create Expression" page and flow, it was important to discover the order in which people went about to create their posts. During the test, 4 out of 5 users first chose which community they wanted to post in, NOT which expression-type format that they wanted to use to create their post. This discovery was significant in that the way the Junto app was currently functioning had it so that a user could only select where it is they wanted to share their post only AFTER they selected the expression-type format they wanted to create their post in.
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Lastly, once a post was published, I wanted to understand if people noticed the distinction between "personal posts" and the color-coded "Needs" and "Offerings" posts. The results from the usability test showed that 5 out of 5 participants DID NOT notice the difference between posts, nor did they notice the color-coded bars beneath Needs and Offerings posts.
GOALS & FINDINGS
WATCH OUT FOR THAT CURVEBALL!
After presenting the user research and findings to the client, it was decided that despite the user's desire to have the Needs and Offerings feature populate a separate area of the app, this approach did not fit with Junto's philosophy. The client said that having a separate space for these specific types of posts felt more like a "marketplace" and that they'd prefer to give users agency over being able to choose which of their communities they wanted to post to, rather than tell them where they need to post something.
The client also decided to merge the ideas of "Intentions" and "Expression Flags," resulting in Intentions that went beyond simply that of just "Needs" and "Offerings." With this new direction in play, I incorporated the ability for users to also ask their communities for "Feedback," "Collaboration," or to make an "Announcement."
While these development may have taken us aback at first, I felt well-armed to move forward with the next steps in a way that would satisfy both the user AND the client.
X. HIGH-FIDELITY PROTOTYPE
After taking into consideration both what the client wanted and what the user research findings indicated, I went on to develop the high-fidelity prototype. When developing this iteration of the prototype, a few changes were made that helped satisfy the wants and needs of both the client and the end-user.
UPDATES TO THE PROTOTYPE
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Added the user's avatar to the screen
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Changed the screen background to white because the gradient background is associated with the main Junto homepage and our client wanted users to feel like they are entering a new space in the app when creating posts.
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Streamlined the full-screen Intentions page and the pop-up Expression Flag screen to just one overlay window
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Added icons to represent each type of intention.
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Added the option to add your location when you choose your expression type and put this in an overlay window.
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One view where users can review all elements related to their expression before they actually share it.
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Intention icons in the upper right hand corner of a post when it is displayed in a user's feed.
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View for hows how a user’s post will look when it’s clicked on from the Collective. (Added the ability for users to see what channels, intention, and location the user added)
XI. HIGH-FIDELITY USABILITY TEST
After making the updates to the prototype, I conducted one more round of usability tests with the same 5 participants that were a part of the A/B usability tests.
1. Users struggled to identify the "Intentions" icons in the upper right corner of posts
2. Users did not know that the three icons on the bottom of a post can be clicked on/interacted with to reveal additional information about a user's post
3. When users selected an Intention that they no longer wanted to keep, their first instinct was to re-click on the already selected radio button in an effort to deselect the choice.
- Given the functionality of this prototype, the only way for a user to deselect their already selected Intention would be to click the "x" button to exit out of the screen, and proceed to go through the whole process again of setting an Intention.
