Iggy

ROLE

Research, UX, UI, branding

TIMELINE 

2.5 weeks

OBSERVATIONS

Why this problem

Houseplants are back in fashion and often make a strong statement in modern homes and public spaces. If you don’t agree just scroll through some of the influencers’ Instagram accounts or visit a trendy restaurant. While the growing fashion is making our environment more friendly and aesthetically pleasing, plants are difficult to take care that can cause a lot of frustration. Being one of the people who experienced that on my own, I decided to dive deeper into that problem.

Instagram 

RESEARCH

Interviews: Plant Owners

I have spoken to a group of people aged 24-45, both males and females who live in GTA. I got to know their views on keeping plants at home.

95%

of the responders own the plants but have no idea about their species and maintenance routine

0

of the responders took an effort to search what their plants need or look for help 

95%

of the plants' owner got at least one of them as a gift

100%

of the responders finds plants' maintenance problematic and tedious

20%

of the interviewees would like to know of the plants' impact on the air quality 

Interviews: Plant Sellers

Apart from the interviews I researched the market and got in touch with some local plants stores. I found out quite a number of apps that offer various solutions to some of the users' pain points but nobody seemed to know about them.

Competitive analysis

Despite the fact that none of the responders knew of any, there is a number of apps available in the market with functionalities design to help the plants owners.

Flower Checker - identifies plants from photos

PlanetNet Plant Identification - identifying plant species from photographs, through a visual recognition software (for Android only)

NatureGate - identifies not only plants but also birds, fishes and butterflies

Smart Plant - identifies plants (sends photos to experts who identify plants), sets up notifications, gives personalized advises and ability to ask experts a question.

My Garden - user provides preferences for the type of gardening they want to do and the app pulls the information about the local weather conditions and provides step by step plan for growing the plants.

Koubachi - an app that tracks the maintenance schedule and sends notifications to the users (low rating)

I discovered many local Facebook communities like Bunz Planting Zone Toronto (very active one) where the most common type of posts were help requests in identifying and curing the plants.

Bunz Planting Zone Toronto 

DEFINE

Personas - who am I designing for

People who enjoy aesthetic and mental benefits of growing plants/People who receive the plants as gifts from others and want to keep them at home but have no knowledge and struggle with their maintenance need a simple, fun and easily accessible solution that will provide them with information and guidance they need.

APPROACH

Journey mapping

In order to identify key pain points and create a comprehensive solution, I mapped the entire experience of taking care of a plant. Later on, through ideation, I came up with app functionality and features. Research findings and a solid understanding of the process that the users are going through help me prioritize and create an end-to-end experience.

Design direction

DESIGN 

User Flow

I decided to focus on the aspects that the majority of people I spoke to found the most frustrating and create an adequate set of features that cover the entire journey and address all the issues user car run into on the way.

Sketches & wireframes

DESIGN DEVELOPMENT

Prototype, test, iterate

Throughout the entire process, I was testing and gathering feedback based on which I was iterating the design and taking to a more detailed stage. The example below demonstrates the initial challenges of creating an empty state that will clearly communicate functionality and efficiently encourage users to add their first plant. I came up with several options and conducted A/B testing of the best ones.

The initial approach was a conventional error state design before exploring other options. The solution seemed to meet all the goals however did not tie well with the idea of digital garden home screen idea.

The second option was huge CTA in the middle on the screen that familiarizes the users with add button functionality incorporated in a populated state. This solution turned out to be preferred during testing - users found it very satisfying to hit the large button and enjoyed the animated interaction.

FINAL RESULTS

High fidelity

IDENTIFY PLANTS

Users receive simple instruction during first-time use. Identify functionality utilize machine learning technology to detect plants’ species and provide key information.

TAKE CARE

The database provides users with the necessary steps required to maintain their plants. In the app, they have the ability to adjust the activities to their personal schedules and synchronize them with other plants plans. Users can also share the duties with each other.

CURE

AI technology is also used to identify the issues and recommend treatment. Users have also the ability to share their concerns on social media or, as a long term plan for the app, with Iggy community.

Beyond practicality

Nobody likes doing things they have to do. In designing the app I took a step further and tried to research the solution that will allow me to build a more meaningful connection between plants and people. Iggy has a set of features that 'humanize' the plants so their owners treat them more like pets or even friends. Through sharing functionalities and plant profile data, the app enhances and continues the connection between the person who gifted it (if there was one). 

PERSONALIZATION

Iggy allows users to name their plants. Apart from botanical information, each plant is associated with a person that gifted it to the user or any other memorable moment that helps deepen the connection. 

Notifications are presented not as dry instructions but personalize messages from the plants.

FURTHER OPPORTUNITIES

Additional research findings 

However the objective of the project was to help people take better care of their plants and make the maintenance more enjoyable, research has surfaced another issue that was often leading to the core problem. The majority of the plant owners received at least one of them as a gift and because of that had no idea not only about the maintenance routine but even what kind of species they own. 

There was also an interesting contradiction in people behavior - all of them admitted that require support to better maintain the plants but none of them has researched for solutions that are already available.

All plants I have I got from my sister. When she runs out of space

or doesn't know what to do with them, she just brings them over.

- Aliya, 29

I take my plant everywhere with me cause I got it from my girlfriend

but I don't know what type it is or how to water it. 

- Ashan, 33

DISCOVERY

Identifying another problem

It turned out that the majority of people make uninformed decisions about plant purchases (mainly for gifts) which is causing plant owners not to be aware of maintenance routine and other details about their plants. I decided to expand my project to take care of the problem.  

APPROACH 

Mapping the holistic experience

Enhancing the opportunity

Going deeper into the research findings I was able to identify another group of potential users - gift buyers. That discovery uncovered an opportunity to bridge the gap between plant owners and solutions they need but do not look for.  

Idea

I decided to create a website for Iggy that would answer users main internet search queries and direct them to the app.  

The interviews gave me a broad set of aspects that people care about while buying plants. Based on those I came up with categories that became website pages. Each of them was presenting a set of plants suitable for what a user was looking for and complimented with a suggestion for adding Iggy code to the gift. 

DESIGN

Site Map

FINAL OUTCOME 

High fidelity

The solution allows users to buy thoughtful gifts and make them more personal. At the same time, the new plant owner is equipped with an app that eases the maintenance.   

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