Yap Politics
UX | UI Case Study
Background
Yap Politics is a mobile app designed to foster political discussions and engagement among young adults, aiming to create a vibrant community centered around political discourse.
However, the app faced challenges as users weren't engaging as anticipated. After conducting UX research, it was discovered that unfamiliar icons caused confusion, leading to a disruption in user flows and ultimately hindering engagement.
Project Objectives
- Redesign YapPolitics current app design
- Create intuitive user flows to increase user engagement
- Restructure Yap Politics current hierarchy
Project Challenges
- App Creators did not want us to directly communicate with current app users
Process
1. Determine Requirements
2. Research
3. Planning and UX Design
4. UX/UI Design
Research
- During our user research phase, we aimed to conduct user interviews with the app's current users. Unfortunately, access to these users was not provided by the creators. As an alternative solution, we devised an interview plan outlining a script for the creators to follow and record their responses. Although direct recording of the interviews wasn't feasible, the creators were able to convey the essence and tone of the discussions. Their paraphrased insights played a crucial role in informing our app redesign process.
- In addition to the paraphrased insights, we recognized the significance of obtaining direct responses from our target demographic. Therefore, we proactively engaged with the app's intended users, specifically young adults encompassing high school and college students. We designed an interview to gauge their present perspectives on political debates and their willingness to engage in such discussions. Additionally, we prompted users to engage with Yap Politics' current design, performing tasks to uncover any design-related frustrations or challenges they encountered.
- As part of our desk research, we conducted competitive analysis to explore platforms already meeting the demand for political debates among users. This valuable information served as a guide in identifying strategies to enhance YapPolitics.
Research Key Findings
Engagement Dilemma
- YapPolitics' current users refrain from engaging in political discussions due to a lack of active participation or engaging activities from other members. Consequently, they feel hesitant to initiate conversations themselves.
- Prospective users typically avoid engaging in political discussions on social media platforms.
Navigational Challenges
- During the exploration of Yap Politics' existing design, it became evident that the user flow was unclear. Users encountered difficulties in understanding how to interact with others, such as 'liking' or 'commenting' on a post.
Design Approach
Increase Participation
User Problem
- Users express discomfort initiating debates or discussions.
- Users exhibit hesitation towards engagement.
Approach
- Review the utilization of the 'Yap Rooms' feature for optimization.
- Simplify and streamline the user journey for creating a post, ensuring an intuitive and seamless experience.
- Recommend Yap Groups, users, and trending topics to encourage user engagement and interaction.
Reconstructing User Flow
User Problem
- Users encounter confusion regarding interaction methods with others within the app.
- Users experience frustration due to the steep learning curve associated with app navigation and understanding.
Approach
- Conduct a reassessment of user pathways and navigation.
- Revamp and restructure app content for enhanced user intuitiveness in locating desired information.
- Revise icons to align with familiar social media platform standards
Prototyping of Main User Flow
The prototype showcases the primary functionalities of Yap Politics, demonstrating user interactions, post creation, and joining Yap Rooms.
Outcome
We conducted usability tests on the revamped Yap Politics app to evaluate the impact of our improvements on user navigation and interaction. Following the redesign, we observed a substantial 90% surge in successful task completion, a significant improvement from the initial 30% success rate for the same tasks. Additionally, user feedback indicated a shift towards interest in engaging with the app to explore current events and political matters rather than solely focusing on debates.
Reflection
While our iterations of YapPolitics showed substantial success and promising potential, it was regrettable that the creators did not further develop or invest in the app, leading to the project's discontinuation.
Throughout the design process, I found immense satisfaction in crafting the user experience for a social media platform and the importance of user flows. This journey increased my admiration for young adults actively raising awareness about social and political issues.
UX case study created in 2021
Nicole Hernandez