Project Introduction:
Flashcard App

To practice my research and testing skills, I decided to go through the early development phases for a simple a simple study aid app where users could create, organize, and review flashcards. The focus would be on surveying the current market; observing and interviewing potential users in an effort to understand their behaviors; synthesizing and analyzing my findings; and testing a simple prototype.

In preparation for designing a flash card app, I conducted competitor analysis on four similar apps, all free on the App Store, and used them to get familiar with features and functionality currently in the marketplace. Here are the two that seemed the best to me.

Of course, it doesn’t matter what “everyone” is doing if they’re not meeting the needs ― stated and unstated ― of the users. I conducted surveys with four different learners from around the world to find out more about their study habits in an effort to develop a more complete picture of real student behavior, which would then lead to understanding how best to serve them.

After the interviews, I synthesized my results into a single individual in order to focus on the real problems my users would face, as well as the context in which they would face them.

Although my focus in this project was user research, I still needed to see how learners would interact with a real product like the one I was imagining. I brainstormed in Procreate and iterated on the designs I like, and then made a rudimentary hotspot prototype in Marvel.

You can visit the working app prototype here: https://marvelapp.com/9994243

I presented the app to a few friends and asked them to complete a set of tasks. While they did so, I observed their progress, allowing me to see how the reality of interactions stacked up against my expectations. After the tests, I also asked them for their feedback, which provided plenty of useful information about what my next steps in development would be.

The actual research finished, I compiled a list of improvements and fixes that I would implement if this were a real project. I used the Nielsen Error Rating System to prioritize them for my hypothetical development team.

Through the process of this research I gained a number of insights on UX research, UI design, and development in general.

- Iterate. Keep iterating.

- Keep the main goals in mind.

- Make sure users always have a way out. 

- Keep navigation available no matter where the user may be.

- Prioritize the organization of app features based on users’ goals.

- Don’t assume users will know what I’m thinking about the app I give them.

- Always keep track of new ideas for features, fixes, and improvements, no matter what phase of development I’m in.

- Keep it simple.

Over the past few months, I have moved forward by incorporating these into my workflow.