Dog walking App Research & design
WOOF is a dog walking app that connects busy dog owners with dog walkers for hire.
Skip to Hi-Fi
❗Problem
With the increasing number of dog owners in Armenia, many struggle to find time to ensure their pets get regular walks due to busy schedules and commitments. There is a growing need for a solution to assist them in taking care of their pets.
👑 My Role
Conduct research, facilitate workshops, design, prototype, and conduct usability testing for the dog owner's flows and accounts on iOS.
⚙️ Process
Based on the research questions, company goals, constraints, and other important topics discussed with my stakeholders, I was able to define the process I will be working on.
🔎
Discover
Kickoff
Competitive research
Persona hypothesis
Survey
User interviews
🎯
Define
Key Findings
How might we
⚙️
Develop
Sketches
🚀
Deliver
UI kit
High fidelity design
😇 Kickoff
I conducted semi-structured interviews with stakeholders to understand their involvement, responsibilities, goals, and how the project idea originated. I also identified who I can ask for help and when, and assessed their expertise.
Additionally, I explored other company resources available. These interviews helped shape the project scope, timeline, and process
Screenshot from Stakeholder Interview diagram, translated from Armenian.
🎯 Research Goals
The stakeholder interview gave me a good start with my research, helping me understand where to focus, what to investigate, and what research methods I should use.
Understand how do dog owners currently address their dog walking needs.
- What are the highs and lows of their experience?
Understand the preferences do dog owners have regarding dog walking services?
- How users think and feel about the experience of finding a dog walker?
Discover the main pain points and challenges for dog owners?
👽 Persona Hypothesis
We have two perspective for this project: dog owners and dog walkers. As part of our Minimum Viable pProduct approach (MVP), we've chosen to integrate a third-party solution for managing the functionality related to dog walkers profile.
Currently, our focus is solely on the dog owners' perspective.I developed three persona hypotheses based on Woof's value proposition and problem statement.
Mariam, the busy professional: Relies on a dog walker to keep her energetic pup active during workdays.
Michael, the frequent traveler: Needs a dependable dog sitter for extended absences.
Sophie, the new parent: Sophie relies on a dog walker during the unexpected and urgent moments that come with caring for her newborn.
Mariam
The busy professional
• 30-40 years old
• Lives in Yerevan
• Busy proffecional
"How can I trust my dog to someone I don't know?"
Story
Maria works full time and struggles to find a reliable dog walker when they are working, for their dog Bailey.
Core needs
Needs to find a reliable person to hire frequent basis.
They need someone trustworthy to ensure their dog gets regular exercise and attention.
Maintain focus on work without worrying about Bailey's well-being.
Behaviour
They seek recommendations from their social circle and research online, prioritizing reliability by reading all the reviews.
Maria keeps an eye on their phone to ensure they don't miss a call or message from the walker.
They prioritize their list of dog walkers, reaching out to their favorites first before moving down the list if needed.
They experience anxiety at work, wondering how Bailey is doing and if the dog walker is following their instructions.
🧐 Competitive Research
After extensive online research and discussions with friends and local pet shops, it's clear there are no direct competitors in the market. Currently, there are minimal online options for finding a dog walker, with only a few small Facebook groups and Instagram pages offering this service. The only competitor we found, Petbacker, has limited options of walkers in Armenia. This raises questions about whether there's an untapped market opportunity or if word-of-mouth referrals suffice in Armenia.
I found many products with same or similar value propositions in different markets. While they're not our competitors (not yet at least), they serve as excellent models to learn from. I explored their app store reviews, Reddit, Quora, Facebook groups and whatever I could, hunting for pain points and patterns.
A small portion of my massive review board on Figma.
❓ Survey
Even modest research efforts, like our 157-response Twitter+Linkedin survey, offer valuable insights.
💬 User interview
we conducted 5 semi-structured interviews with dog owners. Below are key takeaways from our qualitative research.
❓ Can you share any specific scenarios or situations when you would need a someone to take care of your dog?
👩🏼 Participant 1
“If I have unexpected overtime or need to make last-minute changes to my schedule, the app could help me find available dog walkers quickly and efficiently.”
🧔🏻Participant 2
"I might have wedding preparations or events to attend, and having a reliable dog-walking app would be invaluable during those times when I am unable to take care of my dog personally."
👩 Participant 3
”When I go back home to visit family, I need someone to watch my dog, at least feed him, and take him for a couple walks each day.”
👱🏻 Participant 4
"My work hours are fixed, and it can be challenging to find someone available during those hours to walk my dog."
👱🏻 Participant 5
“When I travel, the app could help me find temporary dog walkers in my new location, so I don’t have to worry about my pet."
❓ What are the main challenges you face in finding and hiring dog walkers for your pet?
👩🏼 Participant 1
"I often struggle to find reliable and trustworthy dog walkers for my bull dog."
🧔🏻Participant 2
"It can be challenging to find someone who is available during my work hours
- Would they be a good match for my dog?"
👩 Participant 3
"I have concerns about the safety and security of my pet when entrusting them to someone new.
- I am worried that the process is not going to be smooth and I will spend lot's of time waiting the walker to accept my request, then they might be late, it's Armenia, and then I have to go get the dog.... too much hassle"
👱🏻 Participant 4
"The lack of transparency and assurance regarding the quality of service.
- I hate that there is app for everything now days and I am spending lots of time on my phone figuring out how this or that app works, I will hate another buggy and difficult app.
- My dog is allergic to certain food, what if the walker feeds her those products?"
👱🏻 Participant 5
"I have concerns about the compatibility between the dog walker and my bull dog's personality and needs.
- Will it be too expensive, it’s hard finding things I can afford.”
❓ What specific features or functionalities would you consider essential for a dog-walking service to meet your needs and expectations?
👩🏼 Participant 1
"I want to be able to contact them, and get updates during walks, like the route taken and when they’ll be back.
-Reviews are a must”
🧔🏻Participant 2
"It would also be helpful to talk to the person who’s going to walk my dog… I want to give specific instructions, like with route to take and what to feed my precious."
👩 Participant 3
"I should be able to talk to someone, and get to choose somebody who I trust, maybe get a recommendation, understand their experience and if they’re reliable.”
👱🏻 Participant 4
"If I could schedule walks in advance and ensure that my dog receives regular exercise and attention, that would be great.
- Maybe a calendar? If I wnt to schedule walks?”
👱🏻 Participant 5
“One essential feature would be real-time tracking of the walk, so I can see where they’re at.”
❓ What factors do you consider when evaluating the trustworthiness of a potential dog walker, and how could these concerns be addressed?
👩🏼 Participant 1
“I guess the amount of experience they had… or some rating system?
- Trust and reliability are crucial when selecting a dog walker.”
🧔🏻Participant 2
"A review and rating system would be great."
👩 Participant 3
"I value references or testimonials.
- Can I see if they have certifications or training they may have."
👱🏻 Participant 4
“I would like to know that there is some sort of test or some thing, you know? I would hate to know that everyone can be a dog walker As soon as they open an account.
-Reviews of other dog owners would definitely help me to trust the walker, someone with 4.5 star rating from 200 people can definitely be trusted.
-It would also be beneficial to have background checks or verifications of the dog walkers' qualifications"
👱🏻 Participant 5
“What if I want to check on my dog?"
By reviewing the comments left under existing Dog Walking apps, we got a better idea of what users want
🧐 key findings
We analyzed the qualitative research conducted to identify common themes and patterns that emerged from the data. Then, we compiled a list of pain points and desires to address in our app.
Users want a feature to save the date in google calendar (Users of competitor's apps)
Research participants don't trust people they dont know
Participants are worried about the cost
Participants are worried that they might not find an available walker
The amount of notifications can frustrate the user (Users of competitor's apps)
Interview participants are concerned about the right care of the dog
Users complain that it's not easy to contact the support (Users of competitor's apps)
Interview participants want real time updates from dogs
Participants are worried that the app will take too much time
Participants are worried that everyone can become a dog walker right after signing app in the platform
Participants want to always be in contact with the walker
🦉 How might we…
We gathered together for some brainstorming with team members and stakeholders by conducting a “how might we” session. The diverse perspectives helped us find the most realistic solutions to each of the issues we previously identified.
🧐 Trust
Participants don't trust people they dont know
• Review feature, so the user can see the rating of a walker
• Show the amount of walks that the walker has
• Pay after the walk is finished only
• Live chat with app support
Participants are concerned about the right care of the dog
• In the requesting page have a “leave a note” feature
• Have a “my dog” page, where the owners can write important info about the dog
Participants are concerned about the lack of Real-Time Updates
• A dog tracking feature, so that you can see where your dog is
• An instant message system for both dog owner and walker to stay connected
Participants want to be always in contact with the walker
• Direct in app message system
• Reminder notifications to the walker to send update pictures from the dog to the owner
• Once the walk has started have a "call the walker" walker as priority 1 CTA in the launch screen
Participants are worried that everyone can become a dog walker right after signing app in the platform
• Dog walker approval process with face to face talk and test walking maybe?
• Highlight the new walkers profiles with "New" tag
🥱 Time Consuming
Participants are worried about the time they will have to spend in the app
• Keep a history of walks in case user wants to find the same walker
• Make a way to exclude walkers who got bad review from the user
• Be able to filter walkers by reviews, price, availability... etc, to save time in search
• Be able to save the event in the calendar that user uses for everyday use
• Create requiring walks
Participants are worried that they might not find an available walker
• Be able to schedule in advance
• User can set notification "Inform when available"
• Be available to set an open call, so that dog walkers can see and accept
👩 Participant 3
"I have concerns about the safety and security of my pet when entrusting them to someone new.
- I am worried that the process is not going to be smooth and I will spend lot's of time waiting the walker to accept my request, then they might be late, it's Armenia, and then I have to go get the dog.... too much hassle"
👱🏻 Participant 4
"The lack of transparency and assurance regarding the quality of service.
- I hate that there is app for everything now days and I am spending lots of time on my phone figuring out how this or that app works, I will hate another buggy and difficult app.
- My dog is allergic to certain food, what if the walker feeds her those products?"
👱🏻 Participant 5
"I have concerns about the compatibility between the dog walker and my bull dog's personality and needs.
- Will it be too expensive, it’s hard finding things I can afford.”
💸 Expensive
Participants are worried about the cost.
• Show estimated costs based on time, and show the hourly rate
• No hidden costs
• Frequent users get discounts- Discounts for longer time requests
Participants are worried of the last minute cancelations
• Last minute cancellation fees for both sides
• Review feature
✏️ Sketching ideas
I made sketches of possible design solutions generated from the "How might we" session to visualize and explore different concepts. This allowed us to compare various options, iterate, and share designs for feedback.
Last round of Sketching session.
💠 UI kit
I created a sticker sheet, the Figma file works great as a collection of reusable components, patterns, and even entire pages.
Just a few of the components from the Woof sticker sheet created in Figma
✨ High fidelity
I created high-fidelity screens to provide a realistic representation of the app's user interface and experience. These screens helped me showcase and test the app's key features, interactions, and visuals before development.c
The homepage serves as our Search page, featuring dog walkers by their rating score.
Once user clicks on the pin, a card pops up, with more details.
After selecting a dog walker, users choose the pickup location. Once selected, the Continue button activates.
Next, users choose the drop-off location, defaulted to the pickup location.
Users can request immediate or scheduled walks.
Drop-off date must be scheduled, with price calculations displayed after selecting the date.
On this page, users add additional details and notes.
The user then reviews the request overview.
Loading screen during request processing.
Once the dog walker accepts, the user receives a notification and a subsequent reminder, which can be disabled in preferences.
⬇️ What's next
Next, we would like to conduct a series of usability studies to validate the effectiveness of the app's features, navigation, and interface. This will help ensure that it meets the expectations of our target users.