Flip’s Platter App

Case Study - UI / UX App Design

Flip's Platter: Mobile Ordering App

Flip’s Platter is a local food truck gaining popularity by serving authentic filipino food within the metropolitan area. Flip’s platter’s target customers are busy, and young professionals who oftentimes visits food trucks or order food to go ahead of time.

November 2021 - April 2022

My Role and responsibilities

My name is John Linsangan and I am a UX designer in charge of designing the Flip's Platter mobile ordering app. My responsibilities includes the following: conduct research and interviews. Create paper, digital wireframes. Create low and high fidelity prototypes. Conduct usability studies and ensuring accessibility and iterations of the design.

The Problem

Busy professionals who often have limited amount of time during lunch time to order food from a food truck.

The Solution

Design and app for Flip’s platter that allows users virtually check-in and be in line to order with no need to physically be in line of a food truck to place an order. Also, the ability to place an order ahead of time.

Research

User Research: Summary

I conducted a series of interviews and created an empathy map to help me understand what type of users I am designing for and their needs. What I learned from my research, a primary user group are working professionals that are in a time constraint and often visits nearby food truck to order food multiple times in a week.

This primary user group shares a common frustration and that is the lack of resources available to them at any given time. Not everybody have an access to a home printer to print their resume, so a solution will be getting them printed professionally in a print shop. But small / local print shop are often ignored and most users will go directly to a big franchised print shops which most of the time have a negative experience.

Pain Points

Time

It often takes a lot of time waiting in line and placing an order. Some users have limited amount of time available during lunch time.

Lack of information

Food trucks lack enough information for new customers to understand their menu.

Online Ordering

Most food trucks doesn’t have an option to place an order online or ahead of time for pick-up.

Persona

User: Jessica

Jessica is a small business owner who needs An easier way to place a food order without waiting. A lot of time is wasted just waiting in line to place an order.

User Journey

Mapping Jessica’s journey clearly shows that being a busy professional will benefit her using a dedicated app from Flip’s Platter.

Competitor Audit

Competitive Audit Goal

Compare features and feel of the competitors app

Key Competitors

Food Truck Pub

Free app for food truck owners to manage and allow online orders.

Grubhub & Uber Eats

Highly popular food ordering apps that allows users order a large variety of food types from local restaurants.

What are the type and quality of competitors’ products?

Food truck pub offer a simple process of ordering from food trucks and even placing future orders. The website / app also offers events and maps where the food truck will be and when. Although those features seem great, the website or app is confusing to use as there are mix options for food trucks owners and customers in one website or app.

How do competitors position themselves in the market?

Food truck pub is not very well known, and not every food trucks are in the list of food trucks using the app.

How do competitors talk about themselves?

Food truck pub markets itself to food truck owners rather than the customers of the food truck. It is more like a tool for food truck owners than a dedicated food ordering system.

Competitors’ strengths

Map of food trucks available in the area
Events calendar

Competitors’ weaknesses

confusing to use
Marketed more for the food truck owner

What are the type and quality of competitors’ products?

Grubhub and Uber eats are very well established apps and a very popular app to order food.

How do competitors position themselves in the market?

Grubhub and Uber eats are just two of the top mobile food ordering apps in the market. Both app offers food delivery or pick up from local restaurants within the proximity of the user / customer. Uber eats also offers grocery service available locally.

How do competitors talk about themselves?

Grubhub and Uber eats engages with its user by highlighting nearby restaurants available for pickup and delivery.

Competitors’ strengths

A lot of options of restaurants available in the area
Coupons available
Ordering ahead of time
Order tracking
Grocery is a plus

Competitors’ weaknesses

No food truck options

Ideation

Scenario

Creating scenarios on how the app can be used or may look like helps me visualize

Affinity Diagram

During the ideation process I've created an affinity diagram based on my user research. I used an online tool called miro to help me organize what I've learned during my research. This helped me a lot on deciding on what and what not include in the design of the app.

User Flow

During this process I've decided to create a user flow to help further understand how the app should be used.

Sketch

I decided to use my iPad to create a digital sketch of the app to quickly come up with ideas of the layout and most importantly the look and feel of the app.

Wireframe

Low Fidelity Wireframe

I decided to use my iPad to create a digital sketch of the app to quickly come up with ideas of the layout and most importantly the look and feel of the app.

High-Fidelity Wireframe

After conducting a few rounds of usability study and gathered more important information. I now able to create a high-fidelity wireframe and prototype of what the app is going to look like when launched.

Finish Product

Take-Aways

Impact

Flip’s platter’s app helps users save time while ordering from a food truck. An innovative alternative to the traditional way ordering from a food truck. Not only it will help the customer save time, it will also increase the food truck’s sales over time.

What I learned

What I learned about designing the mobile ordering app for Flip’s Platter is how much research and iteration needs to go into designing an app for a food truck. It is not like it’s a brick or mortar restaurant, you have keep account that the food truck menu may change from time to time and may be in a different location.

*This case study is part of my entry to Google Career: UX Certification. Flip’s Platter is a made up food truck and stock images are from www.unsplash.com