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Summary
The Problem: Plant owners can experience roadblocks when figuring out the best way to keep plants healthy and happy. Whether they have a new plant they are unfamiliar with, or they're new to the world of plant ownership or working with an unfamiliar breed of plant, finding information on care can be difficult to find.

Our Solution: SOLi was designed to help plant owners, ranging from beginner to advanced green thumbs, maintain healthy, thriving houseplants. SOLi does this by providing reminders, advice, and care direction through a user-friendly mobile app.

Role: UX Researcher, UI Designer
Tools: Adobe XD, InVision, Google Drive, Trello
Time: 3 weeks

Presentation
Research Data
Before starting our research, my partner and I believed users who typically forgot to take care of their plants would want notifications. However, after conducting user interviews and collecting survey data, we discovered users who remembered to take care of their plants wanted notifications and those who forgot to take care of their plants did not want notifications.

Survey Data:
52% - Never forget/Don’t usually forget to water
56% - Definitely want/Prefer notifications

Interview data:
Users want notifications as a backup
Those who did not want notifications said “If I forget, I forget”
User Persona
Annie Snowdon
Annie was born and raised in the Midwest. She grew up hiking, fishing, and taking road trips across the country with her family. While she loves the creative and lively nature of her job, sitting at a computer all day can be a drag. Luckily, she finishes around 5:00PM each day and spends her evenings with her girlfriend relaxing at home.

Wants & Needs
  • Liven up her space at work and at home
  • Get outside her bubble and try a new hobby
  • Be closer to nature
Pain Points
  • Her girlfriend often forgets and misplaces things
  • Annie is often burnt out from work and wants to get away from the computer
Competitor Analysis
After researching our competitors, we found users still wanted...

  • The ability to adjust care based on climate or weather
  • A way to take notes on each individual plant’s health
  • Usability for plant owners of every experience level
  • Browse plants by category filters
  • Ideas and general tips from experienced plant owners
User Flow
  • New user onboarding involves learning about the user to present them the best experience
  • Lots of ways to learn about plants including browse and discover pages
Paper Wireframes

Lo-Fidelity Wireframes

Usability Tests & Iterations
  • Better indication of the user's location on the app

  • Ability to view completed notifications/tasks

  • Colors used were too light

  • Change the heading font
Hi-Fidelity


Opportunities & Future Thinking
  • Incorporate other devices (e.g. Amazon Echo)

  • Add a store for users to buy directly off of our app

  • Partner with professionals or garden stores to produce daily/weekly blog posts & tips as well as promote local garden events