Better Weather
User Research
USER INTERVIEWS
To really get an understanding of what people needed from a weather forecasting app I conducted user interviews with four participants aged 23 to 50.
Two out of the four participants were not technologically savvy, three out of four commuted to work during the week and all of them had several weather compromised activities to attend to during the month.
INSIGHTS
The main takeaways from the interviews conducted is that participants are looking for accurate information that they can easily access while commuting (by foot, while driving or in the train where the internet connection may be compromised). Information should be detailed but also easy to understand and concise, so as not to overwhelm the user.
The main priority for users was the accuracy of the information shown and their main motivations for checking the weather is to prepare and plan forthcoming events and activities (from going to work on a monday morning, to scheduling their vacations) and knowing what clothes to wear.
EMPATHY MAP & PERSONAS
Based on the results of the user interviews conducted previously, I developed an empathy map and after that my first two personas were created.
Emma Jones, an english teacher who commutes to Portadown everyday and lives in Armagh, Ireland. She needs an app that notifies her about weather changes in both her hometown and Portadown, because she forgets to check the weather forecast for both locations and is often unpleasantly surprised by rain when commuting.
And Lucas Sanchez, a scuba diving instructor based in Jávea, Spain. He needs an app that allows him to access detailed and accurate forecasts for areas nearby, because often this information changes overtime without notice, and Lucas is left unable to surely schedule future appointments with clients.
After researching users and understanding their main needs, pain points and motivations, I created a map of important characteristics and main features this app should include. I also created some possible user flows based on this map.
Lo-fi Prototype & User Testing
Upon gathering all the information aquired in the research phase of the project, I started preparing some low-fidelity prototypes for user testing, to determine the usability of the app and its features and user satisfaction.
Taking the feedback given by users while navigating the app and narrowing down their main pain points, I identified the key changes that needed to be adressed and sorted them by order of priority.
After ordering these insights by priorities, the prototype was updated with P1 updates right away.
LOCATION FEATURE
The location feature was relocated to the top of the “clock” feature to make it easier for users to localize it. Upon tapping on location, users are able to change their current location easily via search engine, instead of being redirected to location settings.
WEEKLY FORECAST FEATURE
Weekly forecast is now located in the main screen through a slider, as well as in the calendar menu. Upon tapping the user is redirected directly to the complete forecast for that given day.
HOME SCREEN
The home screen was cleaned up, unnecessary features were erased, and overly complex information was simplified. The clock feature is now much more simple and encompases much more information in a easier way. Different ways to display information using cards and sliders save space and keep users engaged.
Priority 2 updates were tackled in the final prototype or left for future releases (easy relocation in map feature, improvement of calendar feature, custom notification based on selected weather conditions/location/day of week/time of day etc.)
