Improving animal profile & filters for adoption matching
Project Summary
Find a Pet aims to help potential pet parents more accurately find the pet that will best fit their household’s needs, wants, and lifestyle through tailored filters, multiple communication touch points with the animal rescue posting the animal, and transparency in the adoption process.
My goal was to utilize competitive analysis, interviews, and usability testing to determine an MVP that accomplished Find a Pet’s goals.
My Role
I was the sole UX designer and researcher who used the following methodologies: brainstorming, storyboarding, wireframing, prototyping, and usability testing.
The tools I used for this project included Figma, Zoom, and Google Suite (Docs, Slides, Sheets).
The Problem Statement
“I really wanted to adopt a cat but was overwhelmed with choices and understanding how to meet the cat and the adoption process.”
Hundreds of thousands of pets are waiting for their forever homes while individuals are overwhelmed by choices and unsure how to find the best fit for their lifestyle wants and needs.
How Might We…
Connect more potential pet parents with animals that fit their criteria and needs?
Educate potential pet parents about the care needs of certain aged animals?
Connect potential pet parents with the rescues, fosters, and individuals who know the animals best?
Understanding the User
To start the user research process, I created an online survey that attracted over 80 respondents. The survey helped me understand the challenges of the adoptable animal search process and what needs and wants still need to be fulfilled for the user. At the end of the survey, I interviewed 5 of the survey respondents over Zoom. After compiling the survey and interview notes, I then created two personas: Rachel Rescuer and Becca Breeder.
The real-life experiences of pet parents adopting an animal influenced the user stories identified for the MVP of the animal search functionality. Several users shared that they would prefer more information available — filters, keywords, and assets (photos, video, bio). This led me to research competitors (Petfinder, Adopt-A-Pet, and 24PetConnect) and popular search keywords to influence the questions included in the initial search functionality.
Sketches
The animal search functionality was the most crucial screen because it affects the user's first impression, the actions the user takes on the platform, the results of the user journey, and the user's satisfaction. Also, by providing this information to the platform, technology can make personalized recommendations for each potential adopter, reducing the time a user spends searching for animals.
Prototype & Usability Testing
I drafted my wireframes and prototype using Figma. Click the “play” button below to access the prototype on-site.
Usability testing showed a lot of potential around the filtering functionality and connectivity features with the individual or organization that has posted the adoptable animal on the platform. I want to spend more time improving the designs related to organization and filtering of information and doing more user testing to ensure that the MVP is fully functional as well as meeting the user and platform’s goals.
Next Steps
This was my first experience ideating and executing a capstone project. I would like to continue my usability testing and improving upon the design as a side project, as this is a particular area of interest that I am passionate about in my spare time and believe could be quite impactful.
