Navigating Municipal Services Shouldn't Be Hard.
I designed an app for the municipality to streamline citizen interactions and improve access to services. By conducting usability studies and implementing user feedback, I enhanced the digital platform, increasing efficiency, user satisfaction, and adoption rates.
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TL;DR.
Problem.
The municipality offers digital services, but most interactions are handled through the call center, complicating issue resolution. The new “My Digital” website for mobile and computer use provides a personal area for residents to access municipal services. However, residents face difficulties using the interface efficiently.
Solution.
- Conduct a usability study for the municipality’s prototype interface.
- Enhance the digital platform based on the usability research findings.
My Role.
During the project, my roles included recruiting users from resident databases, conducting SWOT analysis, creating personas, developing guiding principles and research questions, performing usability testing, facilitating Design Thinking workshops, mapping the customer journey, building wireframes, and creating high-fidelity prototypes.
Problem Space.
First of all, how can we improve the usability of the “My Digital” platform to ensure residents can efficiently access and utilize municipal services?
The municipality noticed that most resident interactions were managed through the call center, leading to inefficiencies in resolving issues. A new digital platform, “My Digital,” was developed to streamline access to municipal services. However, residents found the interface challenging to use effectively. This highlighted a need for improving the usability of the digital platform to enhance user experience and service accessibility.
Usability Testing.
I decided to write the customer journey maps to helps me during this stage.
Key Insights.
Here’s what I discovered.
1. Usability Challenges.
Although many residents are digital natives and regularly use municipal websites and apps, the “My Digital” interface presented significant usability challenges. Residents struggled with navigation, orientation, and operation, which led to frustration and decreased willingness to use the platform..
2. Personalization Gap.
Residents expected a highly personalized experience, including interface customization and tailored information. However, the current platform did not meet these expectations, offering limited personal adaptation and customization options.
3. Strengths in Operational Areas.
Despite overall usability issues, the interface was praised for its convenience, simplicity, and speed in operational areas such as property tax, parking, and payments. These areas were found to be more efficient compared to alternative solutions.
4. Integration and Continuity Issues.
The transition between “My Digital” and external sites/apps was problematic. Users found it cumbersome to navigate back to the main platform, which disrupted the continuity of their experience. This led to a perception that “My Digital” is not fully mature and fails to serve as a central, seamless interface for residents.
Key Quotes.
“Instead of calling it “Profile,” I would name it something more personal, like “Your Account” or something similar”.
“Switching between ‘My Digital’ and other sites is a hassle.”
“I expected more customization options.”
“”Profile” feels less personal to me. It should be something that displays my details, like “My Names,” “My Nickname,” or “My Name,” you know? Something that shows my details in a more personalized way. Calling it “Profile” seems too generic.”
UX Phase.
Making ideas more tangible.
Here are some of the questions I asked myself during this stage.
- How can we improve navigation and orientation within the interface to reduce user frustration?
- What additional personalization options can we introduce to meet users’ expectations for a customized experience?
- How can we enhance the transition between external sites and the main platform to maintain continuity and a seamless experience for users?
UI Phase.
The Solutions.
Here are my some solutions as they related to the discovered core problems.
Challenge No. 1:
What additional personalization options can we introduce to meet users' expectations for a customized experience?
- Personalized Dashboard: Create a customizable dashboard where users can add, remove, and arrange widgets based on their interests and frequently accessed features.
- Custom Notifications: Allow users to set and customize notifications for various updates, choosing how they receive them (e.g., SMS, email, in-app notifications).
Challenge No. 2:
How can we improve navigation and orientation within the interface to reduce user frustration?
- Simplified and Intuitive Layout: Designed a clean, uncluttered interface with clear labels and intuitive icons, making it easier for users to quickly find and access key features.
- Consistent and Internal Navigation: Implemented a consistent navigation bar that remains visible across most pages and included internal navigation links within each section of information (e.g., “Click for Services”), allowing users to easily navigate between services and information.
Challenge No. 3:
How can we enhance the transition between external sites and the main platform to maintain continuity and a seamless experience for users?
- Integration of External Sites within a Pop-Up: Navigating to external sites is done within a pop-up that opens from the main application. This way, users understand that they are still within the same environment and not in a different browser.
- Consistent Design and No Need to Re-enter Details: I maintained a consistent design between the main application and external sites, ensuring that users feel they are still within the familiar environment and do not need to re-enter details with each transition.
Key Insights.
Visual Design.
In the context of my project, I aimed to create a user experience that felt both friendly and professional, mirroring the values and identity of the city.
Here’s how I did that:
- Typography: I selected a serif font, Lora, for its warm and welcoming feel to provide a clear and approachable structure.
- Colors and shapes: I chose a color palette featuring navy blue and darker blue shades. These colors were selected to align with the city’s branding and image, while also complementing external sites related to the municipality. The design emphasized ample white space, rounded corners, and subtle shadows to create a clean and modern look.
1. COLORS
