Learning Design Thinking
Nowadays we have many apps to consult maps or find how to go anywhere. Citymapper is an urban transport app that people use to move effectively through public transport. Depending on the destination you select, it offers you several routes combining different transport such as train, bus, metro, bicycle, etc… Citymapper isn’t only maps and routes, you can also check schedules, incidents or other mobility information.
How do you organize yourself when you have to buy more than two tickets? The problem of buying a lot of travel tickets through different channels or platforms causes people to run into problems online or in a machine. Many times this can be annoying due to the malfunction of the machines or apps that are not well prepared for the user.
To find a solution to this problem, I interviewed several users (different people who have lived in Belgium, London , Germany or Norway). At first it was difficult to find the correct questions, since each person gives you a totally different answer than the previous one and you don’t always get the information you need. After analyzing and modifying some questions several times, I was finally able to make conclusions.
I have divided the difficulties of the users into three categories: lack of information, outdated technology, and personal preferences. The main category is the information, where there are topics such as: confusion when it comes to getting the correct ticket, waiting times between one transport and another one, lack of notifications, reliability of the app… Secondly in the category of technology, are details about machine errors, interface problems, QR errors… Finally, an example of personal preferences is the interest for having a physical or digital ticket.
To solve the main problem and the user suggestions appeared, I have tried to group all my solutions into one and simplify.
The proposal would consist of facilitating the user’s purchase process, either online or physically. For our user, their time is very important, so the more facilities we give them to immediately have what they are looking for, the more satisfied they will be.
When you search and obtain the desired route, you will find a label where you have the total price of the trip and you have the option of making the total purchase of the tickets you need. As the user may not want to buy all the tickets, there’s an option to choose the number of tickets and the transport you need. Once the tickets have been selected, you will obtain the option to pay directly from the app with your favourite payment method (ending the operation with a personal code and being able to download a document as an online ticket) or by making a reservation to be able to pick it up at established points and you be able to pay it directly in person (places such as a train station or transport offices). This way, we facilitate the task for users who prefer to do it online and want to have everything digitally, as well as those who like to pay physically, make last minute changes or consult any questions with other people.
In the same way, the idea of adding certain information or verifications within the application will help users to solve the rest of the problems, or simply keep the systems and functions updated according to the technologies that exist nowadays.
Finally, this is the first time that I carry out this process, so I find it curious that i was trying to solve a problem and at the same time discovering and solving another ones. It’s also difficult to know what exactly to ask users to get the answers you need: Is what I am asking ok? Is this answer going to help me? Am I explaining properly? Finally you end up understanding that everything is a process of constant trial and error, so the more you try and correct, better result you will get.
