Din Tai Fung Case Study (Paper Prototype Reservation App)

Behance: https://www.behance.net/gallery/65107817/Din-Tai-Fung-(Reservation-App)

Project Details

UX/UI Group Project
Team Size: 3
Time: 2 weeks
Location: Costa Mesa, CA
Tools: Sketch, Adobe Illustrator, Adobe Photoshop, InVision
To view more of my work, please go to Behance!

Summary

Din Tai Fung is a popular restaurant chain specializes in xiao long bao (soup dumplings), and it’s founded in Taipei, Taiwan.

The problem that customers are experiencing is the long wait time. Typically, the wait time is around 1–3 hours. However, sometimes the wait time can pass the estimated time, and the only way to find out is by going back to the restaurant in-person, which can be inconvenient. Furthermore, currently customers need to be in a “registration line” just to have their names and phone numbers on the wait list. Once they registered, they will receive a welcome text message to inform them that they should return to the restaurant once they receive the next message.

Having the problem identified, my team and I decided to create a reservation app for Din Tai Fung to solve the problem and improve the overall experience. With a reservation app, customers can cancel and make a reservation without standing in the line, so it’s more convenient and time-saving. Customers can also receive notification for live update regarding the wait time. The app can possibly improve the quality of the service as well by preventing the waiters/waitresses feeling pressured and frustrated by all the customers waiting.

The registration line in front of Din Tai Fung at South Coast Plaza (Costa Mesa, CA).

Research

We started our project with online research, user research, and on-site observation. Before we dive in to research, we already know that Din tai Fung is infamous for the long wait time.

Through Yelp, we found 2,049 reviews mention the word “wait” out of a total of 2,970 reviews. Within those Yelp reviews, a majority of them were negative comments about the long wait time.

After online research, we went to Din Tai Fung to observe, distribute surveys, and conduct interviews. While we were at Din Tai Fung, the first thing we noticed was many customers were confused about which line they should be in because there were three different lines: one line for wait list registration, one line for waiting for seats at the bar, and one line for customers who already received the “table is ready” text message. We also noticed the line for wait list registration is long, which was about 15 minutes wait. This being said, customers need to wait before they can be on the wait list, and once they are on the wait list, they wait even longer for a table. On top of this, customers need to wait again inside the restaurant to be seated, after they receive the text message.

Below are some observation photos that were taken while we were there.

Left: current reservation and wait time estimate system

Left: the text message that customers receive when they reserve a table / Right: the line for customers who’ve received the second text

In order to have a better understanding of customers, we created a survey through Google Survey, and we asked several customers to complete it, which includes basic demographic questions, questions regarding wait times, and the overall experience. We also interviewed some customers while they were waiting. Most customers said they really like the food and the service at the restaurant. The only downside is the long wait time and the inconvenient method for reserving a table.

Our survey data (everyone who took the survey answered “yes” for using an app for the wait list registration).

User Persona

After research and discussion, we decided to have a female (Cindy), who is a foodie, in her late 20s as our user persona. You can find a more detailed description of our user persona below.

With our user persona, we thought about what Cindy needed the most and how we can solve her problem and/or improve her experience. The insight statement for Cindy was that “a millennial foodie wants to have a new, authentic, and high quality, experience trying authentic asian cuisine at a prominent restaurant, because her measure of success relies on appreciation of different cultures and a breadth of novel experiences.”

Story Board

With our user persona and insight statement, we created a story board:

Cindy’s foodie friends have been pestering her for weeks about a hot new restaurant called Din Tai Fung. Tired of being the only one who hasn’t tried it, today she’s decided to experience Din Tai Fung for the first time.

Cindy always takes her boyfriend along on her foodie adventures, so she fills him in on the plan. Having been there before himself, her boyfriend suggests she use the Din Tai Fung mobile app to help them quickly and easily get a table.

Cindy downloads the app on her phone, finds the closest location, and adds her name to the reservation waitlist.

The app allows her to keep track of average wait times, as well as monitor her place in the queue, so she can easily keep track of when it is her time to eat. The app also allows her to browse the menu and decide what she may want to eat; which she does as she waits.

She receives a notification from that app that her table will be ready in 20 minutes, so she heads over to the restaurant. Shortly after arriving, she receives another notification that her table is ready.

As she walks in to be seated, she notices long lines for the waitlist and the bar, and feels instant relief that she circumvented the need to stand and wait in any long lines.

User Journey

Next, together we worked on our user journey map to have a better understanding of how customers feel and which area(s) need(s) improvement.

Paper Prototype

With our paper prototype, we included features such as location, weekly specials, reservation, to-go order, and menu. Our main focus was to guide users through making a reservation. First, users need to choose a location (in this case, it’s Orange County). Then users can choose to make a reservation, which will ask for their name, date, time, and party size. Once users click on “confirm,” a confirmation page will show, and users can choose to make another reservation, check their current reservation, or go back to home page. If users want to cancel a reservation, they can either go to “My Reservation” on the home page or “Check My Reservation” on the reservation confirmation page.

Click here to view the project `Din Tai Fung Mobile App`

Future Iteration

With further development and more time, the next step would be creating high-fidelity digital prototype so that we can carry out a more accurate user testing and receive feedback for improvements. Also, we would like to add more features to the reservation app that will fit customers’ needs.

To view more of my work, please go to Behance!