UX/UI Design • Web App
5-Day Design Sprint
Empowering homebuyers to make sustainable choices
Client
Local Logic
Duration
4 Months
My Role
UX/UI Designer
Research
User flows
Wireframing
Prototyping
Webby Award
Best Entertainment App
Empowering homebuyers to make sustainable choices
Local Logic
4 Months
UX/UI Designer
Webby Award
Best Entertainment App
The goal of our 5-day design sprint was to explore an innovative approach to help homebuyers make more sustainable choices. We focused on creating valuable insights that brokerages could leverage to guide their clients toward environmentally conscious decisions.
Rather than directly addressing sustainability, we aimed to develop tools and insights that would naturally encourage sustainable behaviors. A key focus was helping people evaluate and choose locations that enable green and active transportation options, making it easier to adopt eco-friendly lifestyle choices.
Through this intensive sprint process, we worked to validate whether providing such location-based insights could effectively influence homebuyers' decisions toward more sustainable living patterns, while adding value to brokerage services.
5-Day Design Sprint Process
Exploring sustainable transportation choices through rapid ideation and prototyping
Understanding
Define & Ideate
Decide & Design
Prototype
Test & Learn
On Day 1, we focused on mapping out the core problem. Through collaborative sessions with stakeholders, we identified a key challenge: while our mission is to build better, more sustainable cities, our current product offerings weren't fully supporting this goal. User engagement metrics showed potential, but we needed to create more impactful features that would genuinely help homebuyers make sustainable choices. Our team set out to develop an innovative solution that would not only increase website engagement but also align with our broader mission of promoting sustainable urban development.
Team Workshop Session - Goals
What is the long-term goal of Local Logic?
Team Workshop Session - Challenges
How could we fail to reach this goal?
We sought insights from our company's experts, Pierre Calzadilla (EVP of Growth) and Audrey Whittington (VP of Sales), to share their knowledge. The primary aim was to minimize risk from the broker's perspective, as they are the ones implementing our solutions on their websites. Here are some of the questions we posed:
This key question guided our design process and solution development
After a discussion with experts, we decided to build a Minimum Viable Product (MVP) to answer the question, "How might we develop a metric that resonates with the lifestyle of most homebuyers?" The ultimate objective is to design a website that helps these homebuyers understand the location of any home, thereby enabling them to make more informed decisions.
MVP Website Prototype
Initial design exploration for location-based property analysis
Journey Mapping
Mapping the user's current experience
On Day 2, we began by examining other market products for inspiration, including Expedia, Hopper, and AirBnB. I appreciated Expedia's transparency and honesty, as well as the text that creates a fear of missing out without being evil about it. AirBnB's strategy of highlighting "gems" to instill a sense of urgency in users appealed to me. I also liked the concept of introducing a new filter to users by dedicating a substantial amount of screen space to it, as seen in Expedia and Hopper.
Collaborative Design Session
Team sketching and ideation workshop
On the morning of Day 3, we began by reviewing the sketches from the previous day, then proceeded to vote on their merits. One idea emerged as the favorite: using tags to identify healthy or sustainable locations. We felt this addressed a problem we'd encountered with our scoring system. Real estate agents were wary of low scores on property listings, fearing they'd deter potential buyers. However, we recognized that a tag differs from a score, it's either displayed or it isn't. We assumed that tags would be less contentious for brokers.
Design Review Session
Team evaluating interface mockups
Around mid-day, we outlined the steps that the user will follow during the test.
Final Design Review
Team alignment on design direction
After determining all the necessary steps, we created a more realistic storyboard to empathize with the user. We agreed that to effectively simulate the user's perspective, the prototype should start from the home page and end when users understand why a listing has a 'sustainable' tag associated with it.
Design Workshop
Team collaboration on sustainable features
On Day 4, we divided the team into two groups. Three of us, including myself, focused on building the prototype. The other three members worked on preparing the test plan in UserTesting. We ensured everything was set for Day 5's test by reviewing the prototype, penning an interview script, and conducting a preliminary test in UserTesting. This was to preemptively identify and resolve any errors or issues before the main batch of 10 tests. The objective of our 'sub-team' was to develop a prototype that was clean, simple, functional, and easy to comprehend.
Figma Mockups
High-fidelity mockup with sustainable features
Since joining Local Logic as a solo designer in August 2017, it was my first time collaborating in real-time with other team members in Figma. Initially, I was concerned it would be chaotic, unsure of what others were creating, modifying, or deleting. "Hey Mitchell, I slightly adjusted the icon you just made, just so you know!" I said. Naturally, there were moments of confusion, but our communication via Zoom was effective and enjoyable. It truly felt like a collective effort, with many brains working together to achieve the best result quickly. This was undoubtedly one of the highlights of this sprint for me. One change I would make now is to the placement of the tags. They currently feel squeezed next to the price, making the header appear cramped. Aligning them horizontally and placing them nearer to the address might be more logical. However, it's vital that they remain high on the page to meet user expectations when we refer back to the tags on the listing page.
Before we knew it, the last day of the sprint arrived. It was time to present our prototype to potential users and assess its functionality. We conducted unmoderated tests on UserTesting with 10 participants. All participants were within our target demographic - individuals aged between 25 and 65+ who have been seeking to buy a home in the last three years.
User Testing in Progress
Remote unmoderated testing session with real users
Results Analysis Session
Team reviewing and synthesizing user testing feedback
"I love how easy it is to see which properties are more environmentally friendly. This would definitely influence my home-buying decision."
- Sarah M., First-time Homebuyer
"The sustainability metrics are clear and helpful. I'd like to see even more detailed information about energy efficiency."
- Michael R., Experienced Property Investor
The process went smoothly, with the team successfully answering the sprint questions. It promoted alignment and motivation, and fostered open expression of ideas. This process also enhanced everyone's understanding of our clients and technology.
The team agreed that the idea warrants further exploration, but its priority and timeline need to be established. Although the short-term revenue potential may not be as high as initially anticipated due to overlap with existing products, the concept is appealing to consumers, developers, and investors.
During testing, we should not be guiding users with our questions. Particularly when testing a concept instead of a user interface (UI), we need determine whether users are drawn to the visual presentation or the underlying insight. For instance, users reacted positively to a clean UI for a real estate website, making it challenging to measure their enthusiasm for the additional insight. To ensure a realistic test environment, prototype should resemble a standard real estate website. Also, we must make sure our test panel accurately represents our main consumer base, excluding, for instance, students.
Strong interest in sustainable living features
Positive feedback on integration potential
Long-term growth opportunity identified
Establish project priority in product roadmap
Define development timeline and resource requirements
Conduct detailed market analysis for revenue potential