Context

Some people struggle with getting flowers as a gift. Many florist websites are difficult to use and provide little education for the layperson.

Objective

I wanted to design an app that’s easy for everyone to use, even if they don't know anything about flowers, and makes them feel confident about their gift choices.

Why a florist app?

While job outlooks for florists are trending on a decline, Petal Republic says this is "largely attributed to the growth of online flower retailers and direct-to-consumer merchants." My own research into local florist shop websites showed many sites lack helpful information and are difficult to use, which could be off-putting to the casual customer. Creating a sleek, easy-to-use app could help both local and online florists expand their reach.

11.8%

The percentage of growth in online flower shops from 2014-2019

$57.4b

Projected market for Flower and Ornamental Plants in 2024

34%

Percentage of purchases in the U.S. floral industry involving fresh flowers

Source: Petal Republic Team. (2022, July 7). Floristry and Floriculture Industry Statistics & Trends (2022). Petal Republic. https://www.petalrepublic.com/floristry-and-floriculture-statistics/

Understanding the user

Starting the design throught process...

User journey maps to develop empathy

Moving on to wireframes

User Flow Diagrams & Lo-Fi Prototype

Affinity Mapping

Gathering Feedback

I conducted research via recorded Zoom interviews, taking notes on feedback.

Organizing in Miro

Using Miro, I organized feedback into multiple categories to find themes and insights to carryover into the next iteration of the design.

Summary

Users want more categories to browse
Users want to easily find flower information before choosing
Users want a billing review page
Users want to choose a time and date more easily
Users want images of flowers along with descriptions

A snapshot of Miro sticky notes organizing themes

Incorporating market research into design decisions

An image of the Posy home screen with annotation describing design decisions

Hi-fidelity mockups and prototype

A woman holding a phone screen showing the Flower Wiki screen

Click to View Live Prototype (Figma)

Next Steps & Accessibility Considerations

1

Partner with other vendors in-app such as wedding photographers, event coordinators, and more.
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2

Add accessibility options such as language translation to make the app more accessible to all users.
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3

Include full text or alternate-text descriptions of each image in the app to ensure everyone for those who cannot view the images.

Sources
Campbell, B., et al. Floral Marketing Fund, 2021, Increasing Demand and Satisfaction in the Floral Industry , https://floralmarketingfund.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/10/FMF-Final-Report.pdf. Accessed 25 July 2022.
Carmody, D. P., & Lewis, M. (2006). Brain activation when hearing one's own and others' names. Brain research, 1116(1), 153–158. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.brainres.2006.07.121
‍Iterable. “5 Ways to Improve Mobile App Engagement.” American Marketing Association, 9 June 2021, https://www.ama.org/2021/06/09/5-ways-to-improve-mobile-app-engagement/.
Knuth, M., et al. Floral Marketing Fund, 2021, Consumer Houseplant Purchasing Report 2021, https://floralmarketingfund.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/12/Consumer-Houseplant-Purchasing-Final-Report-2021-For-Public_compressed.pdf. Accessed 25 July 2022.
Krug, S. (2006). Don’t Make Me Think (2nd ed.). New Riders Publishing.

UX Case Study
October - December, 2021
(Revised July 2022)

Role:

Tools used

Context

Objective

Why a florist app?