site enhancement
Enhancing an exisiting site for more engagement.
Role: UX Research, User Testing, and Design
Time: September - December 2024
Tools: Figma, AdobeXD
Organization: UC Davis Energy Conversation
site enhancement
Enhancing an exisiting site for more engagement.
Role: UX Research, User Testing, and Design
Time: September - December 2024
Tools: Figma, AdobeXD
Organization: UC Davis Energy Conversation
Final map design
thermoostat experience
To submit feedback, you answered a few questions about the building, time, how the room felt, and if you had any further comments.
Opening screen.
Opening screen.
After submitting feedback, you were taken to a campus map showing all the previous feedback given. This is where the TherMOOstat experience ended and we wanted to continue it.
Campus map - end of the current experience.
onto the new features
When I began working on this project, the new map features were in hi-fi stages. I had concerns about the structure of the features.
pick your adventure
After submitting feedback, you select one of three cows. Each character represented a different version of the campus map.
First screen after hitting submit.
User screen after selecting a character.
lack of clarity
After selecting a cow, you were taken to one of three versions of the map showing campus-wide feedback. To me, this seemed to lack a clear mental modal.
validation testing
We tested with 20 UC Davis students to validate our designs.
20
Total Testers
4
Tasks
task 1
map Markers
Map markers are the colorful circular icons indicating the majority comfort vote for each building.
Note: Map marker size correlates with total vote amount.
task 2
Vote Breakdown Graph
60%
said the breakdown graph aided their overall understanding of data.
“This helps me see the degree of the temperature and where data leans.”
task 3
map filters
60%
said the breakdown graph aided their overall understanding of data.
task 4
success stories
An feature showing how past feedback led to more comfort and energy efficiency.
Rating of 4 or 5 = the story taught me something about heating/cooling
85%
Rated their story learning 4 out of 5 or higher.
"The story tells me changes happening to improve student comfort through our votes."
bonus!
Hypothesis Testing
I noticed users with more experience in heating and cooling systems were less engaged in the content and wanted to investigate this further.
Null Hypothesis
The amount of exposure to cooling & heating systems does not affect the level of engagement with the site.
alternative Hypothesis
The amount of exposure to cooling & heating systems decreases the level of engagement with the site.
results
We can say with statistical significance that more industry exposure to cooling & heating systems/TherMOOstat correlates with lower engagement with the site.
15.6
seconds for experience
24.6
seconds for little or no experience
next steps
Map Designs
Iterate on the current designs to minimize user confusion with map markers.
TherMOOstat Stories
Test and finalize the development strategy for creating TherMOOstat Stories.
Heating & Cooling Experience Relationship
Investigate what drives the negative relationship between experience and site engagement and understand how to optimize for all users.
Interactive Map Redesign
A UX redesign that engages users and supports energy conservation.
role
Design & Research
Timeline
Sept-Dec 2024
Tools
AdobeXD
Organization
Davis Energy Conservation
Interactive Map Redesign
A UX redesign that engages users and supports energy conservation.
role
Design & Research
Timeline
Sept-Dec 2024
Tools
AdobeXD
Organization
Davis Energy Conservation
Interactive Map Redesign
A UX redesign that engages users and supports energy conservation.
role
Design & Research
Timeline
Sept-Dec 2024
Tools
AdobeXD
Organization
Davis Energy Conservation
Setting the scene
Educate & Conserve
TherMOOstat is UC Davis' crowdsourced tool for gathering campus heating and cooling feedback to improve energy efficiency and comfort.
Our goal is to expand the site's purpose beyond data submission to motivate users to learn about energy efficiency and show that feedback makes a difference. We targeted the map features for increased engagement.
thermoostat experience
The original TherMOOStat experience allowed users to submit quick feedback about room comfort, time, and location. Once submitted, users were shown a campus-wide map with all previous feedback. However, the experience ended there.
User journey screens during feedback.
Campus map - end of the current experience.
Users could view data but not interact with it. Our goal was to extend this experience by redesigning the map to encourage engagement, exploration, and continued participation.
proposed designs
When I began working on this project, the team had developed proposed interactive map features. I had concerns about feature structure, it seemed overwhelming and lacking substance at the same time.
pick your adventure style
After submitting feedback, you select one of three cows. Each character represented a different version of the campus map.
First screen after hitting submit.
User screen after selecting a cow.
lack of clarity
After selecting a cow, you were taken to one of three versions of the map showing campus-wide feedback. To me, this seemed to lack a clear mental modal. I decided to see what others thought.
informal testing
I had 5 target users navigate through the proposed screens to get a sense of what was and wasn't working. I made a quick affinity map to organize the information.
Affinity map of initial testing.
Key quote
“Why are there three of them? … It seems like you’re trying to create something other than a database.”
what it all means
The designs fell short on education and impact. Because navigation was confusing, the interface didn’t read as a coherent journey. As a result, users didn’t explore energy-efficiency content and couldn’t see how their feedback led to change.
presenting findings
At our next team meeting, I presented my findings and was asked to come up with a redesign that dealt with the issues found.
my proposed goal user experience
designing with empathy
In order to have a site that has repeat visits, it needed to fit into user's day-to-day routine smoothly. I created 2 personas that guided design decisions along the way.
content synthesis
I conducted a synthesis of all the information in the new features to understand what should be prioritized.
Digital image of content synthesis.
After conducting the context synthesis, I discussed it with my team and we determined 2 key ideas.
past data
The most valuable feature was the past data of buildings, so that must be the priority in hierarchy.
familiarity
To encourage users to explore the map after submitting feedback, it must be easy to navigate. Users can use their prior experience with Google Maps to navigate the map.
mid-fi
one central map
A single, central map simplifies the experience and prioritizes the key info of campus-wide building data.
KEY FEATURES
A sidebar that shows relevant building data.
Success stories are a section of the sidebar.
One comfort tip on the sidebar, trend dependent.
FEEDBACK AND SUBSEQUENT IMPROVEMENTS
After a meeting with my team, we decided that there needed to be more hierarchy with the sidebar information. The building success story was made to look more like a story and the tip was removed entirely.
mid-fi
one central map
A single, central map simplifies the experience and prioritizes the key info of campus-wide building data.
KEY FEATURES
A sidebar that shows relevant building data.
Success stories are a section of the sidebar.
One comfort tip on the sidebar, trend dependent.
FEEDBACK AND SUBSEQUENT IMPROVEMENTS
After a meeting with my team, we decided to add a vote breakdown graph to help users visualize the data and make it that there needed to be more hierarchy with the sidebar information. The story was tip was removed.
hi-fi
final design
A single, central map simplifies the experience and prioritizes the key info of campus-wide building data.
A graph breaking down voting data for each building.
An interactive feature showing how past feedback led to more comfort and energy efficiency.
validation testing
We tested with 20 UC Davis students to validate our designs.
20
Total Testers
4
Tasks
task 1
map Markers
Map markers are the colorful circular icons indicating the majority comfort vote for each building.
Note: Map marker size correlates with total vote amount.
task 2
Vote Breakdown Graph
60%
said the breakdown graph aided their overall understanding of data.
“This helps me see the degree of the temperature and where data leans.”
task 3
map filters
60%
said the breakdown graph aided their overall understanding of data.
task 4
success stories
An feature showing how past feedback led to more comfort and energy efficiency.
85%
said the story taught them something about heating/cooling.
"The story tells me changes happening to improve student comfort through our votes."
hi-fi
final design
A single, central map simplifies the experience and prioritizes the key info of campus-wide building data.
A graph breaking down voting data for each building.
An interactive feature showing how past feedback led to more comfort and energy efficiency.
validation testing
final design
We tested with 20 UC Davis students to validate our designs.
20
Total Testers
4
Tasks
task 1
map Markers
Map markers are the colorful circular icons indicating the majority comfort vote for each building.
Note: Map marker size correlates with total vote amount.
task 2
Vote Breakdown Graph
60%
said the breakdown graph aided their overall understanding of data.
“This helps me see the degree of the temperature and where data leans.”
task 3
map filters
60%
said the breakdown graph aided their overall understanding of data.
task 4
success stories
An feature showing how past feedback led to more comfort and energy efficiency.
Rating of 4 or 5 = the story taught me something about heating/cooling
85%
Rated their story learning 4 out of 5 or higher.
"The story tells me changes happening to improve student comfort through our votes."
bonus!
Hypothesis Testing
I noticed users with more experience in heating and cooling systems were less engaged in the content and wanted to investigate this further.
Null Hypothesis
The amount of exposure to cooling & heating systems does not affect the level of engagement with the site.
alternative Hypothesis
The amount of exposure to cooling & heating systems decreases the level of engagement with the site.
results
We can say with statistical significance that more industry exposure to cooling & heating systems/TherMOOstat correlates with lower engagement with the site.
15.6
seconds for experience
24.6
seconds for little or no experience
next steps
Map Designs
Iterate on the current designs to minimize user confusion with map markers.
TherMOOstat Stories
Test and finalize the development strategy for creating TherMOOstat Stories.
Heating and Cooling Experience Relationship
Investigate what drives the negative relationship between experience and site engagement and understand how to optimize for all users.
bonus!
Hypothesis Testing
I noticed users with more experience in heating and cooling systems were less engaged in the content and wanted to investigate this further.
Null Hypothesis
The amount of exposure to cooling & heating systems does not affect the level of engagement with the site.
alternative Hypothesis
The amount of exposure to cooling & heating systems decreases the level of engagement with the site.
results
We can say with statistical significance that more industry exposure to cooling & heating systems/TherMOOstat correlates with lower engagement with the site.
15.6
seconds for experience
24.6
seconds for little or no experience
next steps
Map Designs
Iterate on the current designs to minimize user confusion with map markers.
TherMOOstat Stories
Test and finalize the development strategy for creating TherMOOstat Stories.
Heating and Cooling Experience Relationship
Investigate what drives the negative relationship between experience and site engagement and understand how to optimize for all users.