The Solution — Move Buddy

Existing smartphone apps were taken into account when considering potential features for the Move Buddy app, including calendar-based pricing displays, reminders, checklists, visual comparisons, and the ability to use a smartphone as a measuring device for large items of furniture.

Additionally, a visual checklist feature was considered, from which the user could select common, large, household items that could be used as a guide to provide a more accurate estimation of the cubic capacity required of a removal vehicle.

It is clear that to provide all of these features in a first prototype would lead to a serious case of feature bloat! I produced a paper prototype of the key features required to provide Ece with a list of removal companies.

Testing the first iteration of the paper prototype proceeded well until Ece reached the stage at which the house contents was introduced. It became obvious that the original idea of entering the details of all rooms to be moved on one screen was confusing and not a user friendly experience.

In response to the test stalling, I made the decision to try some iterations “on the fly”, in an attempt to provide Ece with some visual cues that would make the app screen understandable. However, it became clear that this did not address the major problem with the screen, which was that it was overcomplicated.

The third iteration was a rethink of the process that the user is led through in order to obtain moving options. I introduced a more conversational interface which led the user through the questions and included predetermined answers.

Although this spread the process over a greater number of screens it simplified it. User testing revealed that this made the process far more intuitive. Visually, Ece could see progress through the steps, and the swiping action from screen to screen made this process more dynamic than the previous iteration.