ZOOPLA
I was asked by Zoopla to redesign their existing tool which would allows users to get a an estimated value for a given property. Although the tool could be used by anyone it was largely aimed at homeowners looking up their home and wanting to view or improve the current value estimate.
The tool needed to be intuitive and hand hold users through the process. Ending with a realistic estimate and practical advice on how to increase the value of the property.
GETTING STARTED
The first thing I did was to create my primary personas using research and insight supplied by Zoopla.
Meet Mark, his goals for using the estimation are:
To establish the value of the property before putting it on the market.
To see if modifications/improvements made to the property have increased it’s value.
To see if planned development within the local area could have a potential to increase/decrease the properties value.
To get ideas and advice on how he can increase the value of the property.
MY PROCESS
The next thing to do was to review the current tool looking at the strengths and weaknesses, keeping in mind Mark’s motivations and needs in mind.
I brainstormed ideas of how I might improve the tool. Some of the ideas included:
The ability to see if planned development within the local area could have a potential to increase/decrease the properties value.
Personalised tips on how users can increase the value of their home.
Automating parts of the journey using Zoopla knowledge and logic.
Notifications/alerts about local developments, transport links, properties bought/sold and rental demands.
THE RESULT
A five step experience where Mark and other users can input data about their home, receive a bespoke estimate and learn what they can do to boost its value.
For the data entry pages I used the content from the existing tool but structured in a much more logical way. I did a group card sorting exercise to determine the category names and hierarchy. In order for the users to receive a realistic and reliable estimate they needed to input rather a lot of information so the challenge was to gather the required information without the user being overwhelmed or dropping out of the flow. To do this I used insights from the card sorting exercise and divided the content into steps. Each step was clearly identified and easily digestible.
The results page posed another challenge due to the amount of numbers on display. I needed to establish a clear content hierarchy and hero only one figure. I also included some additional content from my brainstorming exercise like integration with third parties like mybuilder.com.