Project 2022
Booktopia
Project Overview
Challenges Faced
Booktopia is collecting data on the most popular books. Takinginspiration from goodreads.com, Booktopia is redesigning its user interface, incorporating features and functions that make it easier for people to use.
Booktopia app will track everything a book lover owns, the books they have read, what books they plan to read next, etc. Apart from these general features, Booktopia will also provide a few features of its own, such as utilizing the camera to register books in a more automated way via optical character recognition (OCR), sending notifications to users to keep them engaged, tracking their progress on reads (potential gamification), etc.
Project Scope
End-to-End Mobile App, Branding
Tools
Figma, Adobe Illustrator, InVision, Zeplin
Role
UX Designer (Research, Visual Design, Interaction Design, Usability Testing)
Objective
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Design the mobile app for Bhuku that is user-friendly and easy to use with a clean design
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Design a Logo for the company that aligns with Booktopia's brand value
Team
Self Directed, with feedback from the mentor and peers
Duration
2 Weeks (80 Hours)
Design Process
1 Research
Research Plan
By conducting research, I am able to unearth my understanding of users not only their immediate frustrations but also their hopes, fears, abilities, limitations, reasoning and goals. This provides the groundwork for designing solutions in later stages.
To ensure the research stays on track and better guide the responsive website design later, it is important to create a research plan before diving into the research phase. I listed research goals, research questions, assumptions, methodologies, participants, and timeline in my research plan.
Research Goals
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Understand the market of platforms related to books
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Identify the target audience of Booktopia
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Learn about how the main competitors of Booktopia are catering to customers’ needs, as well as their strengths and weaknesses
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Get to know how people are managing their book list
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Uncover people’s experience of finding the books they want to read
Assumptions
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Book lovers are the main users of book inventory platforms
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Book lovers are willing to manage their book inventories
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Despite the digitization of books, physical copies are still popular among book lovers
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People are willing to use digital platforms to organize their activities around reading
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People are expecting a similar experience of reading a digital book to that of a physical book
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People are constantly looking for new books to read
Methodologies
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Secondary Research (Market Research, Competitive Analysis)
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Primary Research (User Interview)
Secondary Research
Market Research
​It is important to get a big picture of the market by starting with market research - to get a sense of what we know and don't know yet, who the audience is, as well as what the recent trends or news are. The insights gathered from market research will help me frame provisional personas and ask meaningful questions in primary research.
Book Industry & Platforms
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Overall: the Indian book industry has remained a greatly influential and promising field, and e-reader apps and apps for an e-book store are popular.
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Over the years, the book industry has remained a massive, greatly influential global consumer market, with the Indian publishing market is estimated to be approximately INR 500 billion in 2019. India is the third-largest publisher of English language books, with industry participants estimating a 10 – 15% share of foreign publishers in the market. (EY-Parthenon)
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Print books currently dominate(90%) the publishing landscape in India. According to industry participants, digital formats account for a very small share i.e. 8-10% of the market. (EY-Parthenon)
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In India, 90,000 books are published annually and China with 440,000 books a year is the market leader.
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E-books and audiobooks are expected to be critical growth drivers and have a promising future in the industry.
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According to a survey conducted among Indians in May 2019 about their digital lifestyles, it was found that a vast majority of people read books on digital devices. 71 percent stated that they download e-books and read them offline in contrast to 29 percent of the people who purchase physical copies of the books.
The impact of coronavirus
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The book industry has been affected on a global scale due to COVID-19. Many bookshops have been forced to shift their business online, while the publishing industry itself has taken a huge hit. (Geediting)
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The global pandemic and subsequent lockdowns and social distancing have caused 35% of the world to read more, with 14% saying they read significantly more. (Geediting)
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When we take a look at exactly who is reading more, it’s pretty evenly spread across the field. The Millennials are taking the lead, followed by Gen Z, Gen X and the Baby Boomers.
Reading Habits
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India as the country that loves reading the most if the time spent doing so is taken into consideration. Indians clocked 10.4 hours of weekly reading, as per the list. On an average, that’s around one and a half hours of reading in a day.
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After India, Thailand and China are placed second and third on the list, clocking 9.24 hours and 8 hours respectively.
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In terms of reading time, adults over the age of 65 were the most avid readers, and full-time employed consumers spent an average of 0.15 hours reading every day. (Statistica).
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Users discover books in multiple ways, with personal recommendations from family members, friends, or co-workers fominate book recommendations. (Pew Research)
Book Consumption
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Overall: Printed books still have a place in the market.
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E-books have not replaced printed books in 2017. Sales of e-books have been decreasing in 2016, while the sale of print books have increased. 65% percent of Indians have read a print book in the last 12 months. For E-book and Audiobook, this number is 28% and 4% respectively. (Geediting)
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In terms of choosing between purchase and borrow, a majority of print readers (54%) and readers of e-books (61%) say they prefer to purchase their own copies of these books rather than borrow them from somewhere else. (Pew Research).
Competitive Research
To further develop my understanding of the strengths and weaknesses of these firms, I want to study companies that lead in the market of platforms related to books, as their solutions to similar problems can give me a better sense of their strengths and weaknesses. Booktopia may address any gaps identified from these insights. I studied 3 direct competitors, who are trying to solve the same problem as us, as well as 3 indirect competitors, who solve a part of the problem extremely well. Complete competitive research can be viewed here.
Provisional Persona
In light of the results of the market research, I created provisional personas to represent certain types of users who may end up as potential Booktopia users. These personas will help me screen appropriate candidates for interviews.
Primary Research
User Interview
Having gained a general understanding of the market and our audience, I was now able to reach out and connect with users directly, in order to gain direct insights into their needs.
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I created an Interview Guide to facilitate the user interview process, with 10 open-ended questions listed to invite the participants to share their experiences and stories.
Assumptions Validated
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Book lovers are the main users of book inventory platforms.
Not Validated. 4/5 participants said they haven’t used digitized platforms to organize their inventory.
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Book lovers are willing to manage their book inventories.
Validated. 3/5 users expressed that they would like to manage their book in some way.
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Despite the digitization of books, physical copies are still popular among book lovers.
Validated. 4/5 participants said that they prefer physical books to e-books.
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People are willing to use digital platforms to organize their activities around reading.
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N/A. Apart from social media sharing, not enough participants mentioned other aspects around reading.
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People are expecting a similar experience of reading a digital book to that of a physical book.
N/A. While participants detailed their reading of physical books, not enough participants mentioned that of a digital book.
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People are constantly looking for new books to read. Validated. 5/5 users get the knowledge of new books in different sources, including friends, relatives, colleagues, website recommendations, etc.
Research Synthesis
Empathy Map
To synthesize the qualitative data gathered from user interviews, I created an empathy map to identify patterns across users, uncover insights, and generate needs.
Insights
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Users get book recommendations from people they know well.
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Users look at reviews before they decide to read a book.
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Users take notes in multiple ways while reading.
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Users share their reviews of books on social media.
Needs
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Users need to know they can trust the source of recommendation.
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Users need to know it is worth spending their time reading the book.
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Users need to better digest what they are reading.
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Users need to connect with other readers.
User Persona
Using user personas, I represent key audiences segments since I possess knowledge about their goals and needs. This enables me to deal with the most pressing issues – to address the major concerns of the most important audiences.
Let’s meet Anusha, an Interior Designer in Chennai. She treats reading as a way to take a break from work, enjoys sharing great books with her friends. It is both fictional and realistic.
Let’s meet Aimee, an Interior Designer in Boston. She treats reading as a way to take a break from work, enjoys sharing great books with her friends.
02 Strategy
How Might We...
To define the problem I am going to solve, I create Point-of-View (POV) Statements that allow me to ideate in a goal-oriented manner, and How-Might-We (HMW) Questions to frame the ideation in the brainstorming session for solutions. The statements and questions are generated based on the insights and needs I gathered in my Empathy Map.
I then brainstormed solutions around these questions. I spent 3 minutes on each HMW question and moved on to the next HMW question when the time is up. I then did a second round for each question, and finally arrived at my brainstorming results.
Product Goals
With HMW questions and brainstormed solutions, I decided to list project goals that will both serve as a guide for the future development of the product and rubrics for determining what features to include in Booktopia's mobile application.
I summarized user goals from my user persona and empathy map and established business goals based on the project brief.
Product Roadmap
I then started to put the solutions I brainstormed into a list of product features to create a comprehensive product roadmap. These features were sorted into four categories, including Must-have (P1), Nice-to-Have (P2), Surprising and Delightful (P3), and Can-come-later (P4) features. They were sorted based on how well they can help achieve business goals and user goals.
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Product Roadmap not only infuses the project goals into our product but also ensures we prioritize the most important features in the development cycle.
Application map
After setting up the product goals and deciding what features to include, I want to continue building up the structure of Booktopia using the application map. An application map helps me to visualize the relationship between the content and examine the hierarchy.
03 Design
Task Flow
To assist the users to navigate through the application better and identify the main flow of users when they are completing a task, I created 3 task flows centring on the key features of Booktopia. In this way, I was able to decide what I am designing, think through the necessary steps and examine the user experience in detail. Below is the flow for 1 task, and a complete diagram of the task flow can be viewed here.
User Flow
Building on the task flow, I mapped user flows whose scenarios correspond to the established tasks. This process helps me walk in an individual user's shoes, and think through different scenarios that this user might encounter. Below is the user flow for Aimee when she wants to mark a book as "Want to Read". A complete user flow can be viewed here.
Wireframe
After creating an UI Requirement Document with a to-do list for designing the key screens identified in the task flow and user flow, I started sketching low-fidelity screens. I can capture my ideas by pen and paper quickly by sketching. It also enables me to examine my ideas before putting everything in the daunting process of digitizing.
Mid-Fidelity Wireframes
Once I had a visual direction of the layout, I started to add more details and precisions to the sketches by turning them into mid-fidelity wireframes. Creating mid-fidelity wireframes helps me focus on the visual consistency and hierarchy before applying styles. In these wireframes, I tried to incorporate common design patterns that have been tested on our competitors' products, or included elements that directly address users' goals, needs, frustrations, and motivations.
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Because I am designing an app for iOS system, I referred to the Human Interface Guidelines of Apple in the design process.
