Interaction Design - Year 2
Oh my goodness. I blinked, and summer was over.
This week marks my return to classes in Interaction Design at DCU. I can’t wait for it. I already checked, and the topics for this semester look promising: from Research with Interactive Technologies to... wait for it 🥁... Python. Yes, Python! 😅 I'm excited!
Meanwhile, in my spare time, my project, Funky Monkey, is still in progress, although at a very slow pace. Between my work at Squarespace and the demands of family life, time has been scarce. To get things moving, I decided to try out Lovable to help with the party booking page. The idea is to speed up the process, and I was suggested to integrate it with other AI tools, like Stitch.
I wanted to take this back-to-school opportunity to share some projects from last year that I'm proud of (and that were a ton of work!!!).
1. UX Research Plan for a Real Estate Site
I created a UX research plan for a real estate company that wanted to understand how users find and rent rooms. The plan included competitor benchmarking in Ireland, analysing company KPIs, and gathering insights through surveys and interviews. My deliverables were a proto-persona and a customer journey map. I built a low-fidelity prototype and tested it with classmates. I had 12 minutes to present everything in a video! 😁
2. Persuasive Design: Engaging the "TikTok Refugees"
Here, I examined how knowledge of persuasive design and trust-building can enhance engagement on social media apps. I decided to analyse RedNote and how the platform could attract the wave of "TikTok refugees". It was really cool to realise how the platform uses design knowledge like visual rewards, the effectiveness of short videos for behaviour influence, stimulating content creation, and network engagement to persuade the users and keep them engaged. While conducting this project, I realised how a certain language learning app is also very persuasive!
3. Designing for Remote-Based Teams
The brief was to analyse how design could benefit remote teams. I couldn’t imagine only one issue for a remote team and start from that, so I conducted an in-depth interview with an ESG manager at a multinational company to understand her team's practical challenges and opportunities. The results were super interesting and brought unexpected outcomes that expanded my analysis. The team faced problems with trust, micromanagement, privacy concerns, and limited collaboration tools, but was also already seeing efficiency boosted by AI. Again, it was all synthesised into a recorded 15-minute presentation. It’d be interesting to explore solutions for this team, like a centralised channel of communication and deeper integration with AI tools to facilitate staff performance.
So, if you ask me what my main hope for this new academic year is, my answer is simple: “I hope that DCU doesn't make me record so many videos staring at the walls of my house!” 🤞
Redesigning the Booking Flow
In my spare time, I’m working on redesigning Funky Monkey’s booking page. My goal isn’t to change the visual identity, since usability tests have shown that users enjoy the current style, but to streamline the booking experience, which is more complicated than it needs to be.
Key Pain Points from Testing
In tests (where users booked a party for 12 kids and had to request food intolerance accommodation), it became clear that:
CTAs didn’t look clickable (poor affordance).
Layout made it hard to compare packages (prices/included services weren’t scannable).
No progress bar or summary cart left users disoriented.
First Iteration
I kept the visual identity but:
✔ Added a progress bar for clarity.
✔ Simplified the initial form (# of kids, location, date/time, theme).
✔ Included a summary cart at the top for selected items.
✔ Listed packages below with visible pricing and services.
But… the flow still felt off.
Current Adjustments
Now, I’m testing a new approach:
Show packages upfront, side by side, with clear pricing and services, so users start by comparing options before filling details.
Still working on it, but each tweak gets us closer to an intuitive flow. Have you ever faced something similar in a redesign?
Let’s book a party…
At some point in parenthood, you’ll need to book a party for your child at an indoor playground, those kids' spots where little ones run wild. I’ve attended some parties at Funky Monkey, and that was before trying to book a party and discovering how impossible this can be. If your child has dietary restrictions (like celiac disease or lactose intolerance), prepare for a frustrating journey through the website first to find food options, and second, in requesting accommodations.
To confirm it wasn’t just me, I conducted five usability tests with friends. Unfortunately, the issues weren’t only with me. These are some of the main issues of the site:
Overwhelming Layout: The first step in the booking process bombards users with excessive information, making navigation difficult.
Unclear Buttons & Labels: Low affordance and ambiguous labelling made it hard to understand button functions or the next steps.
Confusing Calendar Interaction: Delays, lack of status visibility, and poor system feedback left participants unsure if their actions were registered.
Location Ambiguity: The design fails to help users easily identify leisure centres by location or compare offerings.
Dietary Restrictions = Dead Ends: Finding gluten-free options led to frustration. Users clicked unnecessarily, landing in irrelevant sections (FAQs, Café) without answers.
Let's be real, parents (hey there, multitasking moms!) booking parties don't have time. So let’s help them:
Streamlining the booking process with fewer steps and form fields.
Redesigning the search page with a more scannable layout to avoid overwhelming users.
Adding a progress bar to reduce frustration.
Adding a cart with instant visual feedback when items are added.
Fixing the calendar; no glitches, no lag.
Making key information more visible:
Location details with map integration
Party package options
Food menu selections
I got a lot more to talk about, but this is a chat to have over a coffee.☕ I’m still working on the solutions.