Firstly… What is “Spiel?” 🤔
Everyone loves to provide their input (sometimes when it is not needed or asked). Because of that, Spiel is created. With Speil, users can effortlessly give their spiel a wide range of items, including food, books, movies, and much more, all within a single app. This innovative platform simplifies the user experience by centralizing diverse rating categories, allowing users to share their opinions, preferences, and reviews with ease.
My responsibilities ✏️
My time at Spiel was spent iterating and redesigning past designs to optimize the system's efficiency for users when completing various actions. By meticulously analyzing user feedback and behavior, I identified pain points and areas of improvement within the existing design. Through careful iterations and thoughtful redesigns, I successfully streamlined the user journey, making it smoother and more intuitive.
While I cannot disclose all updates and the process of high-fidelity prototypes I have created, here is a preview of some of the final designs that have been developed and shipped.
Role
Head UI/UX Intern
Team
Sylvie Goldner (Co-founder & CEO, Sabrina Chan (Front End Developer, Aviv Melalud (Chief Technological Officer, Me (Head UI/UX Designer)
Tool
Figma
#1 Create Flow
Before
Pain points in the past create flow 🫣
Confusing Prompt Selection:
Creating a spiel has become overwhelming due to the many prompts users face. Instead of simplifying things, these numerous choices often confuse users. They're uncertain about which prompt to choose, which can discourage them from continuing. Moreover, the lack of customization options prevents users from sharing thoughts in their own words, reducing engagement even more.
Non-Intuitive Process:
The current system for creating spiels has unfortunately become counterintuitive. Instead of providing a smooth and straightforward experience, the system introduces unnecessary complexities. Users should be able to easily share their opinions, but the convoluted process makes it feel like an uphill battle. It's comparable to trying to solve a puzzle with mismatched pieces – the end result is confusion rather than clarity. This lack of user-friendliness ends up hindering user engagement and satisfaction.
Error Navigation Hassle:
Mistakes can happen while creating a spiel, turning the process into a challenge. The system's error correction isn't straightforward. Users need to navigate through various pages to find and fix errors, which takes away from the main goal of creating the spiel. This navigation inconvenience can be frustrating, making users spend more time on corrections than on expressing their thoughts.
Our Solution
How we addressed the issue 🙌🏻
Streamlined Creation Page:
To tackle these challenges, we introduced a comprehensive creation page that centralizes all necessary steps in one place. Now users can effortlessly perform every step – from finding the item and rating it to describing it, adding photos, and including it in a list – all on a single page. This streamlined approach empowers users to correct any errors they may encounter without the hassle of navigating through multiple pages. This enhancement simplifies the user experience, ensuring that the entire process remains cohesive and efficient.
Reduced Page Navigation:
Recognizing the need for a more intuitive process, we've minimized the number of pages users have to navigate. This redesign significantly streamlines the process of creating spiels and submitting reviews and ratings. By reducing disruptions in the user journey, users can now effortlessly share their thoughts and experiences. Fewer pages to navigate mean less friction and a smoother flow from start to finish. This approach aims to enhance user engagement by allowing them to focus on expressing themselves without the unnecessary distractions of excessive page transitions.
#2 Cataloguing Flow
Before
Pain points in the past cataloguing flow 🫣
Inaccessible Rating and Review:
Users face difficulties when attempting to rate and review items directly from the home page. Instead of a simple process, they are required to search for the item through the create screen, involving multiple steps. This inconvenience significantly dampens engagement, as it disrupts the natural interaction users have with other people's content. The need to navigate through extra steps detracts from the seamless browsing experience, impacting the overall engagement users have with spiels.
Lack of Categorization:
Users lack the ability to effectively categorize the spiels they encounter on their home page. The absence of a system to differentiate between items they want to bookmark for later and those they have already engaged with creates disarray. This disorganization often leaves users puzzled when they want to revisit an item to provide a rating or review. The lack of a clear organization mechanism makes it challenging for users to efficiently manage their interactions with spiels, leading to frustration and confusion.
Our Solution
How we addressed the issue 🙌🏻
Addressing the Issues:
Simplified Rating and Review: To address the challenges you've highlighted, we've revamped the rating and review process. Users can now conveniently rate and review items right from the home page. We've eliminated the need for users to navigate through the create screen, streamlining the process and making it more accessible. This enhancement ensures that users can engage with items seamlessly and provide their feedback without any unnecessary barriers. By reducing the steps required, we aim to enhance user engagement and encourage more interactions with spiels.
Introducing Categorization:
We've introduced a categorization feature to enhance user organization and ease of navigation. Now, users have the flexibility to save spiels for later by marking them as "to-do." When users come across a spiel on their homepage that they'd like to explore further, they can simply mark it as "to-do." This action allows users to input the spiel into a personalized list for future reference. Additionally, we've made it effortless for users to promptly rate and review items by introducing a "done" option. When users encounter an item they're ready to rate, selecting "done" will seamlessly take them to the rate and review page, streamlining the process and saving them time.
This categorization feature empowers users to manage their interactions effectively, enhancing the overall user experience. When revisiting items for rating or review, users can effortlessly locate them in the appropriate category, eliminating confusion and frustration. These enhancements not only provide convenience but also promote a more organized and user-friendly engagement with spiels.
Reflection 🥳
Spiel has taught me the importance of being part of a supportive and driven community. Although I primarily belonged to the design team, I actively engaged in cross-functional collaboration with developers, student ambassadors, and the founder, constantly seeking their input and feedback. This collective effort exposed me to a wealth of diverse knowledge and expertise, expanding my skillset and inspiring me with fresh and innovative design possibilities.
Throughout my journey, which began a month after the Spiel beta app was launched to the public, our team encountered various challenges—from addressing numerous user complaints to enduring countless design iterations. However, we always persevered, determined to overcome every obstacle that came our way.
What’s next for Spiel?
The Spiel app needs a lot of work, a reality that we all acknowledge. The shortcomings in our current beta system haven't escaped our attention, which is precisely why we're embarking on a comprehensive app remodel.
We're initiating a step back to thoroughly reassess the core essence of the Spiel app. This involves redefining its purpose, target audience, and brand objectives. This process aids us in aligning our objectives and refining each design element to ensure they are in harmony with the app's intended function. Additionally, we're meticulously identifying and addressing the existing shortcomings that have compromised the user experience.
With that being said, I am continuing my work at Spiel by becoming their head of product! This decision comes from my strong belief in our team's abilities and our shared goal of improving the app substantially. Drawing on the knowledge we've gained from overcoming challenges during the beta phase, I am confident that our app remodel will solve the mistakes, errors, and frustrations we (and our users) may have with the current Spiel beta app.