Beside is an AR software that creates a friendly environment for elderly individuals to learn using phone apps and receive help when needed.
Skills
UX Design UI Design Motion
Team
Solo
Timeline
Sep - Dec 2021
Advisor
Brian Boyl
Making apps easier to use.
“Can you help me look at this?” Says grandma...
Legibility is creating obstacles for elders, where fonts and buttons are too small to read.
Seniors are 43% slower at using websites*
New navigations are hidden and hard to learn... This requires more time to figure out. *Data originated from Nielsen Norman Group. Seniors refer to users aged 65 and older.
Beside, the best app to build confidence in the app world.
Challenges that stop seniors from a smooth mobile experience.
How to navigate through complex apps?
Visualized Tutorials
How to find a nearby helper every time?
Family LIVE Mode
How to avoid getting lost inside apps?
Path Detecting
Visualized Tutorials
Simplifying professional terminologies to make it intuitive and clear.
With system-generated tutorials, users can follow step-by-step instructions to navigate through apps, eliminating the need to memorize complex steps
Family LIVE Mode
Combining different media to create seamless interaction
Get help from family members and friends remotely and follow their guidance.
Path Detecting
App navigation made easy, no more wandering.
The system continually detects to ensure users stay on the correct path. If they become lost, the system generates a new tutorial to guide them back.
And so much more
Visual Design
Designing for seniors' mindset
Make interface easy to understand
Based on comprehensive research and usability test results, we have optimized the type and layout to provide seniors with the best possible experience.
Tutorials are easy to understand
What I Learned
The need of your audience might vary from what is trending.
My key takeaway from this project stems from shaping my design language. In today's design landscape, icons often turn abstract, and interfaces grow complex for aesthetics. While studying seniors as my audience, I came to recognize that their knowledge base differs significantly from our own. What's obvious to us might not resonate with them, even basic phone concepts. I've learned to avoid assumptions and prioritize clarity by asking, "Will my audience comprehend this?" Together, let's create an inclusive internet for all.
Seniors often struggle to remember the steps for using complex applications, limiting their use to basic functions like dialing and texting. Family members face challenges when trying to teach them how to use the phone and often have to repeat instructions multiple times. The most common solutions are either hand-drawn instructions on paper or avoiding the use of complex applications altogether.
Let’s provide help for different scenarios
Senior Supportive Tools Market Landscape
Market research has revealed that numerous products designed for seniors tend to be specialized for a single scenario or require complex setups. Following this research, I positioned "beside" as a user-friendly product that offers intuitive usability and provides instant assistance across various scenarios.
Connecting family members
Persona
The interaction centers on seniors in need of assistance and family members endeavoring to teach and support them. For my project, I chose a mother and son to represent my target audience.
Opportunity lies in providing instant feedback
User Journey Map
By observing my grandmother, I constructed a user journey map to illustrate a day in my persona's life. This enabled me to delve deeper into their pain points and identify design opportunities.
Here are users' challenges
How to navigate through complex apps?
How to find a nearby helper consistently?
How to avoid getting lost inside apps?
Addressing challenges with AR overlay
Design Solution
After comparing different devices, I opted to implement my system on AR glasses. Given the limited screen size of a phone, using AR glasses ensures that information is displayed clearly. Additionally, this helps seniors in distinguishing the supportive information from the content on their phones.
Wireframe Flowboard
Brand Concept “Companion”
Concept & Identity Development
The word "Companion" is my chosen brand keyword. I aim for seniors to sense support and assistance through it. This idea gave rise to the brand name "beside," signifying "stay beside elders."
Practicability is more important than trends
Icon Test
To comprehend the seniors' familiarity with forms and to avoid using icons that may be unfamiliar to them, I conducted two rounds of icon tests with my grandparents. The results revealed that clean line art and representative forms are more easily understood and friendly to them.
Inteface should deliver clear message
Usability Test
I designed various instruction styles and tested them with my grandma to determine which one was most effective for her. The insights I gained assisted me in choosing a visual language that clearly conveys information. I subsequently applied these visual principles to my final designs.
