Mobile App
App Store
UX Design

Walking with a dog

A mobile app that helps pet owners and pet sitters to communicate easily and effectively.

Timeline

Jun 2022 - Sep 2022

Scope of work

UX UI Design | Product Design

Tools

Adobe Creative Suite, Figma, and Trello

Team

1 Product Manager, 2 Product Designer, 2 Developers

Walking with a dog(San-cheack-hal-gae) is a platform where pet owners can search for pet sitters to entrust their pets.

My Contribution

Working as a product designer with 29 Labs, I collaborated with stakeholders to bring the product to market from its concept to launch. Working with a senior product designer, we started with research and defining the design concept. Design process was based on active communication while building user flows, wireframes, and prototypes.

Project Summary
Goal

Creating a platform that connects pet owners and pet sitters while establishing a reliable local pet-sitting culture

Solutions

1. Detailed information

2. Verify pet sitters’ education level

3. Enabling the choice comparison

4. Real time interaction between pet owner and sitter

Impact
90% +
of repeating customers
8% ↓
on customer support service expenditure
↓ 10 mins
on decision-making time consuming
Process
ProcedureUX ResearchResearch SynthesisDesignUser FlowIAWireframeDesign SystemIterationsFinal Design
Procedure
DEFINE
UX Research
Market Research
To gain valuable insights into the current market industry trends of leading pet-sitter services, we conducted comprehensive market research and user interviews. This approach allowed us to gather in-depth information about the industry's landscape and pros and cons of the products.

Wayo

Pros
· Pet sitter’s quality moderation
· Real-time video updates during the service
‍
Cons
· Expensive
· Limitation on using service for multiple pets
· Limited option choices

Miso

Pros
· Connection to different services such as home cleaning service
‍
Cons
· No quality verification on the sitters
· Scheduling conflicts and availability
· Limited option choices

Rover

Pros
· Pet sitter’s quality moderation
· Real-time video updates during the service
‍
Cons
· Expensive
· Limitation on multiple pets
· Limited option choices
User Interview
User interview was conducted in remote conditions via e-mail and phone call, because our target users are busy people who don’t have enough time to spend their time with their pets.
The key insight we gained was the distinction in their roles between pet owners and pet sitters on our platform. Pet sitters act as informants and employees, while pet owners serve as employers who hire pet sitters based on reliable information. The main problems identified by pet owners were the lack of information and concerns about reliability when entrusting their pets to sitters. Conversely, pet sitters experienced minor inconveniences due to insufficient information, but no major issues were reported.
Persona
Based on Interview analysis, we made persona of target users in two flows: Pet-sitter and Pet-owner. Thanks to personas we could gain an empathetic perspective and recognize users’ needs. We also got an insight into the expectations of the end-users.
DEFINE
UX Research
Market Research
To gain valuable insights into the current market industry trends of leading pet-sitter services, we conducted comprehensive market research and user interviews. This approach allowed us to gather in-depth information about the industry's landscape and pros and cons of the products.

Wayo

Pros
· Pet sitter’s quality moderation
· Real-time video updates during the service
‍
Cons
· Expensive
· Limitation on using service for multiple pets
· Limited option choices

Miso

Pros
· Connection to different services such as home cleaning service
‍
Cons
· No quality verification on the sitters
· Scheduling conflicts and availability
· Limited option choices

Rover

Pros
· Pet sitter’s quality moderation
· Real-time video updates during the service
‍
Cons
· Expensive
· Limitation on multiple pets
· Limited option choices
User Interview
User interview was conducted in remote conditions via e-mail and phone call, because our target users are busy people who don’t have enough time to spend their time with their pets.
The key insight we gained was the distinction in their roles between pet owners and pet sitters on our platform. Pet sitters act as informants and employees, while pet owners serve as employers who hire pet sitters based on reliable information. The main problems identified by pet owners were the lack of information and concerns about reliability when entrusting their pets to sitters. Conversely, pet sitters experienced minor inconveniences due to insufficient information, but no major issues were reported.
Persona
Based on Interview analysis, we made persona of target users in two flows: Pet-sitter and Pet-owner. Thanks to personas we could gain an empathetic perspective and recognize users’ needs. We also got an insight into the expectations of the end-users.
DISCOVER / IDEATION
Research Synthesis
Pain Points
Problem Statement
Solutions
DESIGN
User Flow
To optimize the best user experience, we made a user flow, verifying each and every step the user takes, flow from the entry point right through to the final interaction. Our service’s user flow is designed with two paths: Pet owner’s and pet-sitters. Since this project had a short timeline before launching, we proceeded with the process synchronized with developers, adopting Agile methodology, tackled the most essential flows in order.
Information Architecture
Wireframe
Low-fidelity prototype
After structured user flows and information architecture, we designed low-fi prototypes to translate a design concept into tangible and testable artifacts. We presented it to stakeholders to better understand each step while communicating with them. This process allows us to visualize each screen’s layout, test navigation, and experience user flow, ensuring each screen has the correct elements and the user can navigate forwards and backward throughout the flow.
Design System
Before creating High-fidelity prototype, we made a design system to gives a consistent experience across a range of products. We referenced UI Framework created by NativeBase, which is a component library that enables developers to build universal design systems.
Key Design Decisions & Iterations
Accessibility
1. Show All vs. Parts?
Pet owner → @ my info page
Since the research proved that pet owners tend to rebook the same pet sitter when they like the experience with them, we decided to show the match history of pet owners, alongside their current pet profile and matching status.
Before
For first few iterations, we showed show more button at the bottom with a past pet sitting record, assuming the most latest record will have the most effect. However,
What if pet owners entrust their pet with several pet sitters?
What if owner’s prioritized choice has no time to render the services?
What if owners think the latest sitter is not as capable as the one before?
After
Given these questions, we conducted A/B testing and decided to show 3 histories on MVP version before show more button for the better accessibility.
User friendly interface
2. How can we create user friendly process when they are inserting complex information?
Pet owner → @ service info input page
‍
When pet sitters are entering their information, specifically on providing services, there are many things they have to add:
1. Treating pet types: Dog or cat and sizes
2. Available services : Pet walking, visiting, night care
3. Available dates and time on each service
4. Service fees on each service
To decide interface for each element, we went through different reasonings to make a design decision.
1. Treating pet types
size-wise categorization: To provide the optimized service.
2. Available services
Categorize the available services based on the degree of dedication the work requires.
3. Available dates and time on each service
Taking into account limitations surrounding development and user experience, we improved to provide simple and accessible way of choosing dates and times to maximize the usability.
Accessibility
3. Add a chat function on the navigation bar
@ navigation bar
Before
Initially, we presented only two functions in the navigation bar: Home and My Info.
After
Based on user research, we found out that one of the main users’ needs was to get real-time information about their pets from pet sitters consistently. Therefore we add a chat button on the navigation bar, defining the function as a top-level destination that needs to be accessible from anywhere in the app.
Final Design
Select a role
Role selection
Detailed Information
When registering for the service, Pet sitters input their data in detail.

This allows pet owners to get pet sitter’s information under three categories; General information, price, and reviews, so that pet owners can efficiently look into the information they need. Pet owners also can compare the options with a built-in comparing function and edit their choices.
Pet sitter's screen
Pet sitter inputs their data
Information categories
Pet owner's screen
Pet owner gets sitter's information
Pet owner looks for reviews
Pet owner compares the choices
Get Notification
When the matching is requested or happened, both the pet sitter and the pet owner get a notification from the app. Users can see detailed information once they enter the app by clicking a popup notification.
Pet sitter's screen
Pet sitter gets notifications
Modal notifications
Pet owner's screen
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Contact

If you're interested in learning more about my experience, feel free to reach out at

yeunjae.k@gmail.com

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