Betterway
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Overview
Ever wanted to send a kayak interstate? Or get a couch picked up across the country and brought to you? Yes? No? Well lots of people have, and Betterway's founder Riki saw that gap in the market and decided to do something about it. The idea was simple: to connect people wanting to send big, awkward-shaped things that were difficult and expensive to post, with other people who were already driving that way, have space in their car or on their roof racks, and are wanting to make some extra cash for their journey.
With a soft spot for simply yet revolutionary ideas, I connected with Betterway back in April 2022 to breathe life into it in its very early stages (when it was still called Lonelyseat and only existed as a basic website/MVP). I ended up working closely with Riki on strategy, branding and design, on a voluntary basis in exchange for some on-the-tools experience.
With a soft spot for simply yet revolutionary ideas, I connected with Betterway back in April 2022 to breathe life into it in its very early stages (when it was still called Lonelyseat and only existed as a basic website/MVP). I ended up working closely with Riki on strategy, branding and design, on a voluntary basis in exchange for some on-the-tools experience.
Responsibilities
Strategy
Foundational user research
Personas
User journeys
Sketches & wireframes
Prototyping
User testing
High-fidelity design
Foundational user research
Personas
User journeys
Sketches & wireframes
Prototyping
User testing
High-fidelity design
Timeline
April - June 2022
Team
Riki Manarangi - Founder
Deliverables
1x native mobile app design
Assessing the problem and persons involved
Riki had a pretty clear idea of who his key users were – I helped him get these down on (digital) paper. This helped us identify key pain points and value propositions.
The sender's biggest pain point is the current high cost of sending large items via freight. Cost is the biggest driving factor for them.
The driver's biggest frustration is the cost of fuel these days. They're money-savvy and always looking to save (or earn) where they can. With Betterway, the sender gets to save money while the driver gets to make money for a journey they were planning to take regardless. Win-win!
The sender's biggest pain point is the current high cost of sending large items via freight. Cost is the biggest driving factor for them.
The driver's biggest frustration is the cost of fuel these days. They're money-savvy and always looking to save (or earn) where they can. With Betterway, the sender gets to save money while the driver gets to make money for a journey they were planning to take regardless. Win-win!
Digging deeper into their psyche and putting it down on paper
I dug deeper into the psyche of our personas by leading discussions around what they say, do, think and feel. The sender currently resorts to posting on Facebook groups. This is how they try to connect with drivers willing to transport their stuff, but it feels like a shot in the dark and its unsuccessful more times than not. The driver is not only budget-conscious, but also community- and climate-minded. They're always on the lookout for ways to save, but also help their neighbours or reduce their carbon footprint.
User stories and needs
Next I led discussions around the stories of each key user and what features these stories indicate they desire. Key features included: Price estimate for sending an item. Driver reviews & profile to build trust. Direct communication between partiesInformation about the item needing to be transported (dimensions). Exact pick up and drop off address and time requirements.
Our adversaries
Next I assessed the websites of Mainfreight, Toll and NZ Couriers to work out what their strengthsand weaknesses are from a user perspective.Brand recognition: The question was – how might we convince users to use a brand new service instead of a well-known company like Mainfreight? Would lower prices and faster delivery times be enough?The gap widens: It was noted that some competitors actually don't send large packages, and some were focused on delivering for large businesses and not individuals.
Basic branding
ReseaI moodboarded how the brand could feel, thought of a new brand name, before presenting the complete kit to the founder, to a very positive response. Key values were: witty, trustworthy, genuine, diverse and human, and this informed the direction.rched apps that performed similar functions (plant identification) to understand common design patterns.
Chatting with users
Mapped out the user floIt was important before going any further to chat to potential users. By this time, Riki had rallied up some non-biased interviewees from his extended circle that saw themselves being either a sender or a driver. The insights gleamed were invaluable and led to tweaks and additions to the founding research on our users.ws of the entire app, before presenting these to stakeholders. The response was hugely positive, but as always it still sparked important discussions that led to tweaks here and there until we landed on a complete and final flow.
User flows
Nailing the functionality of the app was now my key focus. I looked at ride-share apps like Uber for inspiration, and decided that map-based functionality was important for both senders and drivers to visualize their journey. There was vast room for improvement on Lonelyseat’s site design. It was overly complex, and didn’t give users a clear direction in which to head to use the product. I dreamed up a new sitemap that helped users achieve success in as few clicks as possible.The main user flows centred around the messaging function, this was where the magic happened. I identified what would happen after the user took each action which helped guide my next steps.
Bringing it to life
I looked to current design trends and other successfully designed websites for inspiration. I went wide, before working out which solutions best fit Betterway.I whipped up some quick sketches to illustrate my ideas and pinpoint any problem areas. I translated these ideas into wireframes using Figma and bounced these wireframes off the team. I then created a low-fidelity prototype, using Invision. I ran a series of mini user tests with relatives due to time constraints.
Hifi design
Message based functionality. Betterway functions similarly to Facebook-Marketplace, in that senders and drivers connect through their inboxes. However, Betterway goes one step beyond to guide them through the process and keep everything they need to know along the way in one place.
Profiles for peace of mind
Both drivers and senders have public-facing profiles, with drivers having the option to add a bio. Reviews are displayed front and centre so both parties get to know who they are dealing with, and feel more comfortable engaging with a stranger over the internet. Knowing a little about the person driving away with your valued goods was a key issue identified from user interviews.
Centralised delivery tracking
The status of your delivery, messages with the other party and actions taken can all be found on the same screen, saving the user time and effort.
There's more where that came from.
Check out my other projects today.