Motivating the Flying Community: UX Research Case Study
Project Description
The aim of the project was to design a social and video-sharing platform with VR mode dedicated to drone pilots and enthusiasts. As it’s a specific and relatively small target group, it was crucial to create a website with a strong community building factor. That’s why the design process had to be preceded with comprehensive UX research, presented below.
Objectives
- collect information about the target user needs and expectations
- find competitive advantages over YouTube and generic social media
- create motivational system for the users
Scope
- business analysis
- competitor research
- user research
- user Interviews
- personas creation
- user flow
- wireframing
Business analysis and stakeholder interview
Because of the projects’ complexity and specific target group, it was crucial to understand the whole concept of the future portal. The first step was then a comprehensive stakeholder interview. Since portals ‘originators were drone constructors and pilots themselves, the interview was also our first encounter with the target user. After discussing projects’ objectives, we had a chance to learn more about drones and VR and as a consequence draw first conclusions about the target user characteristics. All the data we’ve collected during the stakeholder interview as well as those we’ve gathered after initial competitor research were systematized on User Centered Design Canvas.
User Research, Interviews and Personas
To adjust the portal to the target user, we had to learn as much as possible about their needs and expectations. Research and analysis of online forums, Facebook groups and other websites for drone pilots were followed by individual Skype interviews with potential future members of the community we were designing for. Based on that, we prepared personas that reflect the main characteristics of the target user.
Motivational System
After joining the community, the user is assigned the first rank. In order to progress, he/she needs to go through succeeding steps, starting from completion of the profile to various ways of active participation in the community. Higher user rank opens new website functionalities for the user.
Challanges
Challenges are another component of the motivational system. Users with higher rank are awarded the possibility to organize video challenges other members of community can participate in. The owner of the challenge sets the task such as drone flip over or slalom between trees, uploads a video as he/she completes it and invites others to do that. After the participants provide their video challenges the owner can approve them. Each completed challenge is visible on the user profile and means the user is moving higher to the next rank.
Badges
Except for the ranks that are indicated by the color of the profile picture frame, the users are awarded badges for their activities on the portal.
From the left: top commentator, super uploader, challenge master, followers’ idol. The badges are visible in the top section of the user profile.
If you want to learn more about the project, check the field study describing the first phase of the research.
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