Help remote workers find great coffee shops to work from
PostUp is a new startup where freelancers and remote workers share tips and advice. PostUp's coffee shop search feature utilizes location-based services, showcasing nearby coffee shops on maps. With intuitive filters, users can easily refine their options and access a list of amenities tailored for an ideal working environment in coffee shops.
ROLE
Wireframing
Visual Design
Interaction Design
Usability Testing
TOOLS
Figma
FigmaJam
DURATION
1 week Design Sprint
BACKGROUND
Increasing conversations on identifying suitable public spaces for remote work
Recently, PostUp has received significant feedback and discussions regarding the challenges of finding an ideal coffee shop or public space for remote work. Freelancers and remote workers often express a preference for a public environment over their homes, and some of them might have a few hours between meetings and require a conducive place to stay focused.
Prototype Preview
PROBLEM STATEMENT
Assist remote workers in effortlessly identifying their ideal work spot
Hunting for a work spot in public places can be time-consuming. You scroll through various coffee shops, clicking into pictures and scrolling through reviews to determine if the spot has everything you require. However, the available information is often insufficient for a confident decision. PostUp aims to provide a quicker and more straightforward solution for users.
RESEARCH
USER INTERVIEW
Each worker has individual requirements and expectations when it comes to working in coffee shops.
Note: Due to the specific goals and tight timeline of this design sprint project, the company has already conducted the user interviews, and my work begins from that point.
User needs on working in a coffee shop
Persona
- On the go a lot, doesn’t know where to go between meetings
- Spend too much time finding where to go and get disappointed
COMPETITOR ANALYSIS
Competitors lack the information of working amenities
There are limited tools dedicated to the specific task of finding coffee shops suitable for working. This functionality is more commonly integrated into broader restaurant review or mapping applications such as Yelp or Google Maps. While these apps offer comprehensive information and have reached a level of maturity, they tend to focus on general details such as food and service, rather than providing specific insights into the environment and amenities served for productive working in a coffee shop.
Maika
Map with nearby cafes, bars, and restaurants.
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Show each store's ratings and reviews about amenities including food, wifi, and outlets.
Airbnb
Strong filter system, allow users to filter out choices by location, type of house, number of people, or just popular houses, plus a map together with the list of houses.
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Allow users to find specifically what they want
Google Maps
Offers overall info on coffee shops, but doesn't specifically provide info about the working environment.
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"Popular Times" feature: Help users decide if the place is crowded.
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It has filters in review, but not fixed filters, automatically generated based on review key words, focusing on coffee and food.
Yelp
Similar to Google Maps, offers overall info about coffee shops, but not specifically about if it's suitable for work.
It has filters in review on specific topics like coffee, seating, and work.
"Ask a question" feature to get information that isn't provided yet.
TITLE OF THE CALLOUT BLOCK
IDEATION
DEFINING THE STRUCTURE
End-to-end experience of finding a coffee shop to work from
Prioritized features in the app’s main flow
SKETCHES & WIREFRAMES
Low fi sketch & wireframes
DESIGN SOLUTION
Splash Screen
A simple CTA button lead users to explore nearby coffee shops
Maps and Filters
Show nearby coffee shops with filters on the top for picking the right place for users.
Different View
List-view of coffee shops, or click on the location marks for a coffee shop
Shop Profile Page
Detailed information about the shop, including star ratings, open hours, and amenities specifically for a working environment, catering to the needs of users who plan to use laptops or stay for long hours.
USABILITY TEST
Feedback #1 Ignoring Filters
The filters on the search page are ignored at first. Users have their attention on the list of coffee shops directly. This is different from the purpose of our design, where users could use filters to narrow down the coffee shops nearby.
Feedback #2 Images
When it comes to working in a coffee shop, each user has different needs: parking, bathrooms, food, the noise level, etc. All these factors can be shown in a straightforward method: images. The need toward images of the amenities users care about surpasses the need to see any other information
For the purpose of this 5-day design sprint, I would not be moving forward with this project.
LEARNINGS & REFLECTIONS
When I first considered what people might want in a coffee shop for work, I thought it was pretty basic: a quiet place, big tables, good coffee, decent Wi-Fi, and clean bathrooms. But it turns out that users have different tastes. Some like quiet places for work and meetings, while others prefer a lively, crowded coffee shop – the business helps them focus on their work.
In short, what seemed like straightforward needs ended up being more varied. This shows how important it is for coffee shops to be flexible and cater to different preferences, creating a better user experience.