West 104th Street Block Association User Research Report

Background

The goal of the user research evaluation was to provide an analysis of a specific user population to understand their needs and expectations for a redesigned block association website (bloomingdale.org).

Persona - - West 104th Street Block AssociationThe team identified four target populations, including childless singles and couples living in the neighborhood, resident families, families seeking housing in the neighborhood and resident senior citizens and older adults. The result was a user research report of an assigned target population, including a survey of 5-10 potential website users, two participant observations, two participant interviews, a persona reflecting a typical block association member, and a user scenario describing a specific use case for the website.

Method

Of the four user populations, my target group was Senior Citizens and Older Adults. I employed two user research methods: interviews and observations. Participants included members of the community that the block assocation represents who were selected from personal contacts and on-site, guerilla research at the association’s annual yard sale. I collected demographic information about each participant and recorded feedback. The interviews took place in person and by telephone and followed a standard interview protocol. The observation was open-ended and involved viewing participants as they navigated three competitive websites and taking note of actions and feedback that might suggest potential new content, problems and improvements. Both methods followed a script developed by the group and contained a brief questionnaire and open ended activities that I tailored to the study population. The results provided insight into the interests and motivations of the target user group and information for refining the content and functionality of the current website.

Outcome

This project illustrates mastery of the User-Centered Design. I applied professional User Experience methods to create an in-depth analysis of a typical user population for a website. It not only required advanced research and writing skills, but also personal communication skills and sensitivity toward senior citizens with widely varying computer capabilities.

As a result of the user research study, the West 104th Street Block Association engaged our team to complete the redesign of their website.

Deliverables

User Research Report: Download PDF

User Persona: Download PDF

User Scenario: Download PDF

Sketches: Download PDF

Wireframes: Download PDF

Additional User-Centered Focus Projects

Group Project – Usability Test Plan: Download PDF

Cognitive Walkthrough – Wunderground.com: Download PDF

Heuristic Analysis – Ohiosci.org: Download PDF

Diary Study – Facebook.com: Download PDF

User Test – WebMD.com: Download PDF

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