Establishing a web presence for a commercial cleaning company to increase their marketing reach.
DURATION
October to November 2022
MY ROLE
UX Research, UX Design, Web Design
MY RESPONSIBILITIES
User research, wireframing, prototyping, usability testing, web design, website build
Problem
Elite Cleaning Services (ECS) is a company that wants to gain more customers but has virtually no online presence. Potential customers have no way to learn more about the business.
Goal
To gain more clients and provide a great client experience.
Hypothesis
By empathizing with people trying to hire a commercial cleaner, finding out what their needs are and creating a website that highlights how we can meet those needs, ECS will gain more leads/clients.
UNDERSTANDING THE USER
User Research
I conducted user interviews with 6 people, 4 were clients of Elite Cleaning Services and 2 were other business owners that had hired commercial cleaners .
INSIGHTS:
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Facility owners/managers are looking for 3 main things: regular communication, quality work and reliability of staff. This was reflected in competitors' customer reviews as well.
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Managers feel that the cleanliness of the facility is reflection of their business
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Managers are very busy: searching for a cleaner needs to be simple/easy
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It is stressful when poor quality work adds to their workload
Pain Points
Finding a Cleaner
Busy business owners/managers don’t have a lot of time to search for a cleaner, and they need the person they hire to be trustworthy.
Quality of Work
It is stressful when the cleaning has not been done properly - it reflects poorly on the business and the owner/manager. They feel embarrassed when customers see an untidy facility.
Communication
The owner/manager doesn’t have time to waste trying to reach the cleaning company about issues.
Customer Journey
INSIGHTS:
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it is time consuming to research cleaning companies
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it is embarrassing for the owner/manager for customers to see an untidy facility.
Competitive Audit
OPPORTUNITY:
Create a bright, professional website that is easy to navigate and highlights Elite’s track record for excellent communication.
STARTING THE DESIGN
Paper Wireframes
I knew I wanted to have a single page website to help direct users through the site in a specific flow, since I had carefully chosen the content based on user research.
I planned out the general outline, and then drew wireframe options for each section.
Digital Wireframes
DESKTOP
In my competitive audit I noticed that the most appealing websites had a bright hero image and incorporated a lot of white space.
My user interviews revealed there are three main things the target audience is looking for in a commercial cleaning company, so we wanted to highlight them near the top.
MOBILE
I designed wireframes for the mobile version of the website to make it responsive. The biggest challenge for both versions was how to make the “Services” section fit since there are several headings and corresponding body copy (see mockups for solution).
Low Fidelity Prototype
Click here to view the low-fidelity prototype on Figma.
Usability Study Findings
I did 2 rounds of usability testing, with 5 and 4 participants, respectively. Round 1 was moderated via online video chat. Round 2 was a mix of moderated and unmoderated testing. Sessions were about 15 minutes long.
Round 1 Findings
1. The “3 steps” section is a bit confusing
2. The services section had too many pop-up boxes
Round 2 Findings
1. The about page should have a link at the top (not just the footer)
2. There should be another "quote" button after the "3 Steps" section.
3. Confirmation message on contact form is too subtle
REFINING THE DESIGN
Edits Based On Usability Study Findings
For the Services section, usability studies found that clicking on each button (left image) and then reading and closing each pop up was too tedious. I didn’t want to link the buttons to new pages (I want the user to stay in the flow down the page) so the solution was to create a dropdown for each category.
The “3 Easy Steps” section was edited to make the purpose and the steps more clear. A “Get a quote” call to action button was added below it, rather than a “Contact Us” link.
Accessibility Considerations
1
Provided access to those who are vision impaired by adding alt text to images for screen readers.
2
Used icons to help make navigation easier.
3
Used headings with different sized text for clear visual hierarchy.
Launched Product
Click here to view the final product.
Going Forward
Impact
The business has greatly increased their marketing reach due to the traffic to their website, and potential customers now have a way of learning more about the company.
Our target users are finding the website simple and easy to navigate, and love how easy it is to get a quote and start the process.
"I would definitely consider hiring this company."
- Test user, facility manager
Learnings
Explaining the research and testing that went into design decisions builds trust with the stakeholders and gives them greater confidence in the product.
I researched marketing strategies to be able to attract people for user interviews, such as: including another person on the email (peer pressure), using their name a few times (more personal), offer specific dates and time ranges rather than asking them to let me know when they are free.