miyuki nozawa

RESEARCH

DEFINE

IDEATE

PROTOTYPE

TEST

NEXT STEPS

Resto

Dining App in Japan

A mobile app that simplifies restaurant discovery and reservation management for travelers in Japan.

Role: UX/UI Designer

Type: End-to-end application

Timeline: June - Aug 2024

View Hi-fi prototype

INTRODUCTION

Background

After the pandemic, travel has become more accessible, allowing many people to explore various countries. According to a World Economic Forum report, Japan is one of the best tourist destinations for 2024, with 9.62 million foreign tourists visiting in 2023. Many people look forward to experiencing Japan's food culture, but for those unfamiliar with the language and culture, finding and booking suitable restaurants or cafes can be challenging. Additionally, organizing all the reservations and saved restaurants across different apps can be disorganized and sometimes difficult.

Problems

Travelers often face difficulties in discovering suitable restaurants in Japan and managing their reservations efficiently.

Solutions

Developing an app that allows travelers to search for restaurants that match their preferences and manage reservations easily, without being hindered by language barriers.

Design Process

RESEARCH

Competitive Analysis / Survey / User Interviews

Competitive Analysis

Survey

User Interviews

DEFINE

Affinity Map / User Personas / Problem Statement / Project Goals

Affinity Map

User Personas

Problem Statement

Project Goals

IDEATE

Feature Ideas / Card Sort / Sitemap / Task & User Flows

Feature Ideas

Card Sort

Sitemap

Task & User Flows

PROTOTYPE

Wireframes / Branding / Prototyping

Wireframes

Branding

Prototyping

TEST

Usability Testing / Iterations

Usability Testing

Iterations

NEXT STEPS

Learning / Different Approach

Learning

Different Approach

RESEARCH

Research Goal

Understanding what users prioritize when searching for restaurants as well as their experiences and issues with reservations despite language barriers.

Identify what users prioritize in choosing restaurants when traveling

Understand how people plan their trips and what kind of information is required for them

Discover the key factors and challenges users face when searching for and selecting restaurants

Understand how users manage their desired destinations and planned locations

Understanding the Competition

Before diving into the interview, I compared two direct competitors (Japanese reservation apps) and one indirect competitor (a well-known American reservation app) to understand what features are available in existing apps. I compared their target users, focus, and trends to identify which features address specific needs.

Gurunavi

A reservation app in Japan

For people who are looking for casual restaurants

Points system

COVID-19 safety display

No cancellation fee

Introduces food-related culture

Multiple steps are required to modify reservations

Only partial English support

Tabelog

A reservation app in Japan

For people who want to discover new places and want to see reviews

Occasion based suggestion

Incorporates user reviews

Nationwide restaurant listings

Only allows booking of course menus

Multiple steps are required to modify reservations

Resy

A reservation app in the United States

For people who want to make reservations and discover new places

Waiting list (Notification)

Introducing trendy spots

Able to send special requests to restaurants

Cannot make more than one reservation at the same time

The direct competitors excel in search and restaurant details but has not focused on the reservation system, making it confusing for users who are not familiar with it. On the other hand, the indirect competitor, an American site, does not provide as detailed restaurant descriptions but has an excellent reservation system and incorporates the latest trends.

Key Features

Simple reservation system

Flexible reservation methods

User-friendly search function

Guide to popular spots and culture

Exploring Travel Dining Experiences

Survey

To understand travelers' interests and priorities regarding the importance of dining and travel planning, I conducted a survey to gather quantitative data from a diverse group of travelers. The survey included 17 participants aged 18-34, all of whom had travel experience, with 12 having traveled to Japan.

Key question

How important is dining out while traveling to you?

Response

“Dining at restaurants is a priority, but I want to avoid calling them for reservations due to language barriers.”

Participant 1

Key question

How do you search for restaurants during your travels?

Response

“I decide restaurants based on reviews from locals or Google. I usually want to go to restaurants that are famous among both tourists and locals.”

Participant 2

User Interview

Then, in order to collect qualitative data on users' specific thoughts and personal experiences, I conducted user interviews with 5 participants aged 23-68. To better understand their experiences traveling to Japan and the unique aspects of Japanese culture, I interviewed 4 participants who had visited Japan and 1 Japanese participant.

Key question

How was your experience when searching for and deciding on restaurants while traveling in Japan?

Response

“It was difficult because there were too many choices, and I didn’t know how to choose the right one.”

Participant 1

Key question

Are there any struggles or difficulties you encounter when managing your restaurant list?

Response

“I wish Google Maps had a filter for location, showing food types or price ranges.”

Participant 2

Key Findings

Local tips & reviews

can be the deciding factor when choosing a restaurant

Language barriers

can make dining at restaurants challenging

Restaurant discovery

can be difficult

Reviewing & managing bookings

can be a struggle

DEFINE

Gaining a Deeper Understanding of User Needs and Pain Points

I recorded the points and ideas obtained from the surveys and user interviews on individual sticky notes. Then I grouped them by interview topics, further categorized them into patterns, and created an affinity map.

How was your experience when finding restaurants or cafes?

What criteria do you use when selecting restaurants?

View the Affinity Map

Key Findings

72% of participants

believe that choosing dining options is important during travel

62% of participants

decide on a restaurant based on reviews or ratings

59% of participants

faced challenges in choosing a restaurant, even though they valued dining on their trip

Many participants

find that the language barrier is the biggest challenge when making reservations

Transforming Insights into Personas

After conducting research, reviewing the findings, and organizing the data, I created two personas in the early stages of the design process to deepen my understanding of specific users and user needs.

Persona 1

Matt Kim, a 30-year-old product manager from San Francisco, loves traveling to Japan and exploring local dining spots. He faces challenges due to the language barrier, making it difficult to find and reserve restaurants popular among locals. His main frustrations include the time-consuming process of translating Japanese information and the difficulty of making phone reservations.

Persona 2

Sarah Laine, a 26-year-old interior designer from New York, is planning her first trip to Japan with friends and is excited to explore Japanese cuisine. She faces challenges managing and sharing restaurant reservations among her group and is worried about keeping track of them amidst a packed schedule. Her goals include visiting many tourist spots and sticking to their travel plan.

View the Personas

Exploring and Clarifying Solutions for User Needs

To clarify the solutions needed to address specific user needs, I created two POV statements based on the personas. Among them, I selected the POV focusing on the language barrier and managing restaurant lists, as these were identified as significant challenges for many users.

POV (Point Of View) statement

I’d like to explore ways to propose a streamlined and functional reservation system catering to travelers who face challenges with language barriers during restaurant booking or encounter issues managing reservations.

Then, I took the problems into clear questions that help find creative and practical solutions.

HMW (How Might We) question

How might we design a reservation system that easily accommodates people facing language barriers, ensuring smooth booking experiences?

Establishing Balanced Goals for Project Success

As a step to generate ideas to solve the personas' problems, I mapped out project goals based on the research findings.

View the Project Goals

IDEATE

Prioritizing Features that Align Business and User Needs

I brainstormed key features that address the intersection of business and user goals, while also considering technical feasibility to ensure both are met.

Filter

Map

Notification

Reviews & Ratings

Utilization of icons

Language Option

Simple Reservation

I conducted an open card sort using feature keywords with 28 cards, targeting 8 participants, to identify how users categorize them. When the participants categorized the cards freely, most of them fell into 6 categories. This helped us understand which content people want to see under each menu.

Designing the App Structure with a Sitemap

Based on the results of the card sort, I designed the app's structure and created a sitemap while referring to the research, which showed that travelers tend to struggle with searching for restaurants and managing reservations.

View the Sitemap

Refining Key Design Decisions

I created two task flows to clarify the steps necessary for users to achieve specific goals and promote a user-friendly approach.

Discover restaurants or cafes and make reservations those tailored to your preferences

Check the reservations and the saved restaurants to plan your dining schedule during the trip

View the Task Flows

Mapping out User Needs and Goals

I created a user flow to understand user needs and identify potential issues or confusing elements that are related to “search” and “reservations”.

Discover restaurants or cafes and make reservations

View the User Flow

PROTOTYPE

Exploring Ideas from Low-Fi to Mid-Fi

I created specific design layouts based on the user flow, the task flow, and observations of how users prefer to search and prevent duplicate reservations. Starting from low-fidelity sketches, I developed more detailed layouts, digitizing them into mid-fidelity wireframes to make the designs more tangible.

View the Low-Fi Wireframes

View the Mid-Fi Wireframes

Ensuring Users Understand the Design Layouts

After creating the mid-fidelity wireframes, I conducted a quick usability test with 6 participants to check if users understood the design layouts and if they found the interface user-friendly.

Refining Designs through Iterated Mid-Fi Wireframes

Based on the results of the mid-fi usability test, I iterated on the design to make it more user-friendly and help users achieve their goals.

Building a Strong Brand

To create a user-centered product, it's essential to build a brand image that attracts users. I established brand values that align with my vision of making searching for and booking restaurants less difficult.

Colors

Primary

EE722B

C65310

953B1D

Secondary

B8AE94

F4F0E0

DFD5BD

Neutral

F9F9F7

FFFFFF

Logo

Icons

Typography

H1 - Manrope SemiBold 24px

H2 - Manrope Medium 20px

H3 - Manrope Medium 18px

B1 - Manrope Regular 16px

B2 - Manrope Regular 14px

Button Text M - Manrope Medium 16px

Buttons

Default

Reserve Now

Add filters

Disabled

Reserve Now

Add filters

Applying Branding in Hi-Fi Wireframes

I incorporated all branding elements into the wireframes to create high-fidelity designs.

View the Hi-Fi Wireframes

TEST

Enhancing Design for Better Usability

To confirm whether my high-fidelity wireframes can achieve my user goals, I conducted usability testing with 5 participants, including men and women in their 20s to 60s.

Task Flow 1

Search for restaurants that have an English menu

Participant 1

“I like filtering and narrowing down the options if there are many displayed on the map.”

Participant 3

“The only thing that slowed me down in the process was finding the right tag. I guess I would like to type it if that’s possible.”

4/5 were able to complete the task easily.

Task Flow 2

Choose a restaurant that is popular among locals

Participant 2

“Location icon colors look similar and I didn’t realize that they are different colors and have different meanings.”

Participant 5

“I want to see a list of restaurants instead of checking everything on the map.”

3/5 had difficulties to find out which one is popular.

2/5 didn’t use the filter function to narrow down the options.

Task Flow 3

Search for restaurants near a famous landmark

Participant 3

“I think this was pretty straightforward and a great feature.”

Participant 4

“This was very easy, and it’s helpful for finding restaurants when my schedule is packed.”

5/5 were able to complete the task without any issues.

Task Flow 4

Make a reservation without scheduling conflicts

Participant 1

“I want to see the notification before the completion page. Otherwise I have to go back to the previous page to select a different time again.”

Participant 5

“It would be better if a notification appears when clicking on an available time slot if there is already another reservation.”

4/5 were unsure about another reservation until the end.

3/5 wanted to see the notification when choosing the time slot.

Iterating Designs for User-Centric Solutions

Based on the usability testing, I refined the design of the app to make it easier for travelers to book and manage restaurant reservations.

Final Prototype

Resto - Dining App in Japan

A mobile app that simplifies restaurant discovery and reservation management for travelers in Japan.

A search function that allows users to search based on their needs

Reduce the difficulty of making reservations due to language barriers

Make restaurant selection smooth and easy

Clear and trustworthy reviews help users effortlessly choose their ideal restaurant

Offer a more authentic local experience

Assist in the discovery of hidden local gems

Searching for restaurants near landmarks helps users quickly find dining options

Make trip planning easier

Choose restaurants based on sightseeing locations

A seamless reservation system empowers travelers to plan smooth journeys

Eliminate double bookings for a perfectly organized trip

View Hi-fi Prototype

NEXT STEPS

Learning

Throughout the process, from research to design, it is essential to understand users' pain points and consider how to enhance the user experience in order to create a better product. Since everyone has different travel purposes and preferences when choosing a restaurant, it was crucial to identify the problems that diverse users face and what they desire. Throughout this project, I came to understand the importance of user feedback and the necessity of collecting valuable insights through research.

Opportunities for Enhancement

Search Function

While RESTO's current search function allows users to explore restaurants from multiple angles, there is room for improvement by incorporating an AI-powered recommendation system. This could suggest restaurants based on users’ search history, favorite lists, or automatically find similar options, leading to a more tailored and efficient search experience.

Multilingual Support

Currently, users can find restaurants with English support and make reservations without worrying about language barriers. However, by expanding language support and incorporating translation features, RESTO could offer a more inclusive experience, making it easier for non-English speakers to navigate the platform and make reservations seamlessly.