Interviewee statements translated into use cases
Anton Stout
UX Strategist | Product Designer | Product Manager
Startup Goal®
A goal tracking tool with expert mentors providing daily check-ins to keep startup founders and employees accountable and supported as they progress through each milestone.
What is Startup Goal?
A web app for founders and freelancers to keep themselves accountable but paired with expert mentors in their particularly industry or area of challenge, to help support them to reach their startup goals.
What makes it unique?
Robust daily check in system, clear focus on business and startup related challenges, mentors available in a range of industries and a tough succeed or pay model.
Roles and responsibilities
Lead Designer/Product Manager
Assemble/manage the team
Undertake research
Create prototype
Test prototype
Deliver all visual assets
Create functional specs
Manage production team
12
Duration (weeks)
100%
Delivered
420%
Activation lift
GOAL
Prototype & validate the mentor support flow in order
to monetise the app
Prototype & validate the mentor support flow in order
to monetise the app
RESEARCH
User Requirements
Interviews with users helped us understand the bottlenecks and missing elements with the existing accountability tracking tool.
Engaged directly with existing users to interview them (remotely and 1-on-1 for in-depth interviews) to conduct a range of tests; unmoderated, moderated, and expert interviews.
Insights were translated into use cases and verified with key stakeholders. Use cases would be used later to give more weight to the userflows and functional specifications.
Key Takeaways
Early stage founders struggle identifying what to focus on and staying focused
The majority felt they lacked the technical and to a lesser degree non-technical skills to start
Concerned over the viability of their business and constantly sought validation
Lack of access to mentors in the field was a major issue
Mentoring along with goal and task accountability, as a concept, was well received
Skills and cost was the main reason founders outsourced but struggled to hire well
SYNTHESIS
Open card sort and sitemap draft
Architecture
Once the use cases had been pulled from the interviews with founders, employees and mentors, userflows were assembled.
Using Trello to conduct a remote open card sort with users then a closed card sort with members of the team.
Developing a sitemap based data/insights from the card sorting activities and use cases.
Ensuring we captured use cases data into the userflow ensured every step/page was justified.
Process:
Open card sort - conducted via Trello cards remotely
Closed card sort - conducted with the team workshop
Tree test - conducted remotely via Treejack
Sitemap - final sitemap delivered
PROTOTYPE
12
Usability Tests
50+
Design Tweaks
8
Major Redesigns
89%
Final SUM
Usability Testing
With Founders being our primary users, it was essential we knew how they moved through the wireflows.
Contacting multiple partners, universities and startup groups across Melbourne, I conducted usability tests to assess the time it took to complete tasks (ToT), error rates, completion rates and satisfaction (SEQ).
I refined the prototypes in order to improve SEQ and SUM scores on our tests. From 82% to 89% (SUM) with multiple new subflows added and greater ToT offset by higher confidence (SEQ) and satisfaction scores.
I drafted functional specifications in Jira for the engineers, who were setting up pre-prod/canary environment and CICD pipeline for the production flows.
Key Takeaways
Challenges: Users were reluctant to input credit card details and wanted a chance to trial the mentors or, at least, communicate with the mentors. I needed to reduce the number of steps involved for users to set a goal. With the additional of the mentor feature, I needed and hiring a mentor from 8 steps down to 3-5 steps.
What failed: I quickly found out that building the messaging function, between users and mentor, as it was in concept state was going to be a costly and a time consuming undertaking.
What worked: Several other goal setting tools and mentoring services we're assessed to identify key issues, I user tested 3 platforms with 5 current users to get insights into what was/what was not working, prioritised and refined the communication board features down to three key features as part of phase 1 build: Messaging, upload file, Profile views. This made the build viable.
What happened next: I needed to take a step back to the drawing board and redefine may of the userflows and wireframes to adjust to the multiple subflows. Once we had signed-off, I moved to mid-fi UI for A/B testing.
TESTING
36
Interviews
42
Usability Tests
8
Iterations
Refinement
Registration/payment flow was only one of multiple flow requiring redesign and testing.
In-product experience also required an overhaul including mentor registration flows, mentor dashboard and subflows, communication board (between user and mentor), admin dashboards and subflows, account management update and notifications/EDM updates.
Major refinements:
Challenges: I needed to reduce the number of steps involved for users to set a goal. With the additional of the mentor feature, I needed and hiring a mentor from 8 steps down to 3-5 steps.
What failed: I quickly found out that building the messaging function, between users and mentor, as it was in concept state was going to be a costly and a time consuming undertaking.
What worked: Several other goal setting tools and mentoring services we're assessed to identify key issues, I user tested 3 platforms with 5 current users to get insights into what was/what was not working, prioritised and refined the communication board features down to three key features as part of phase 1 build: Messaging, upload file, Profile views. This made the build viable.
What happened next: I needed to take a step back to the drawing board and redefine may of the userflows and wireframes to adjust to the multiple subflows. Once we had signed-off, I moved to mid-fi UI for A/B testing of subflows.
UI DESIGN
Landing page for Mentor registration flow
Mid-to-hi fi
Key flow included User Dashboard, Mentor Dashboard and Admin Dashboard views. All flows had undergone Usability testing and A/B testing on sign-up flows (User and Mentor).
SPECIFICATIONS
Functional specifications draft example
Hand-off
Functional specifications along with clear naming conventions around the DSL where developed to communicate and manage functional requirements with the development team. Exports were clean and easy for the engineers to track and deploy.
I worked with the developers to unpack each epic, define stories, assign time against each task, once the sprint was defined, I’d co-ordinate and remove impediments through to delivery.
Acquisition, Activation, Retention, Referral and Revenue Metrics all improved!
Key takeaways
Several key challenges emerged throughout the process that caused issues with both time and budget.
Challenges: Improving retention metrics in the app required that we go back to users to find out ‘what else’ we could add to the basic accountability tool. Adding mentor support was the key.
What failed: We assumed that ‘business coaches’ would be able to support users. However, they saw the solution as a lead generation tool, essentially aiming to take users offsite.
What worked: Creating a clear incentive geared towards ‘mentors’ - those with relevant industry experience looking to ‘pay it forward’ were motivated by reciprocity rather than money.
A/B testing variations of the key flows saw Acquisition (1+ page view) +32%, Activation (# New Goal) +422%, Retention (# Goals P/U) +180%, Referral (User Invites) +66%What happened next: Product when to public beta, increase in Revenue (CAC/MSPC) -34%/+210%)