Overview
Petfinder is a platform that helps potential adopters browse through adoptable pets in their area.
For this project, I focused on redesigning the search results of Petfinder to help increase adoption rates.
Role
Product Designer
Type
Personal Project
Tools
Figma
Duration
2 weeks
Stakeholders
Current map and design of Petfinder’s search results
To understand the direction of the redesign, I interviewed five Petfinder users about their experience on the app. Most of the concerns brought up were related to:
Finding the “right pet”
Lack of info on the pets
Slow application process
Our conversations led me to ask
How might we profile pets to increase matches with potential adopters?
How might we layout search results to make searching more effective?
How might we make the process of applying simple and fast?
Exploring Solutions
With these three HMW questions, I decided to focus this project targeting around the design and layout of the search results.
Rough Sketches
Inspiration:
The idea to profile pets in a more personalized way was inspired by the kennel cards I saw on my trips to the animal shelter. The stories behind each pet was intriguing and pulled my heart.
I focused on how I could design the search results in a way that was easy to view and navigate while still giving each pet a personalized profile to increase their chances of adoption. This was the most promising direction because it provided a solution to navigate pets quickly while increasing matches.
3 Part Sketches
For both potential solution sketches, the profiling of pets in the second and third steps were kept the same. I wanted to implement the concept of including their story or personality beside their photo to appeal to the pathos of users.
Potential Solution 1: List View
The first potential solution was putting the search results in a list view for quick scrolling and navigation. Besides each photo was a short description.
The only drawback was the photos being too small.
Potential Solution 2: Gallery View
The second potential solution was putting the search results in a gallery view with the short description underneath their photo.
The second solution was the winner due to larger visuals.
Features:
Longest Residents: (home)
I also decided to place pets that have been at the shelter the longest on the top of each search results in order to give them more visibility.
Quickview: (2nd step)
The quick view feature would lead users to click on more pets to read their story. This would increase the chances of each pet getting adopted.
Split Screens: (3rd step)
Instead of placing all the information on one screen, I divided them in to three: basic info, story, and apply. This would allow easier navigation.
Storyboard
Our user’s journey began with downloading the application from the app store and ended with applying for the pet. Other important moments included:
Looking through the longest residents.
Clicking on different pets to read their story.
Going through all the screens in the full view.
Bringing the Solution to Life
Search Results
Initial search results
Quick view with story
Full view with split screens
Testing and Evaluating
I recruited 5 Petfinder users to conduct user testing and received high quality, unbiased feedback. Interviews were 30 minutes long.
The three hypotheses I tested were:
Users will acknowledge the longest residents at the top of the screen.
Users will utilize the quick view feature to read stories of multiple pets.
Users will navigate through the different screens in the full screen view.
Key Takeaways
Users are interested in reading pets’ background stories.
Users tend to look at what is placed on the top of the screen.
Users like quick view features for fast, informed navigation.