Round Trip Planner for TomTom's GO Ride App

The project originated from an analysis of our Mixpanel data, where we noticed a significant drop in users right after onboarding.

After several ideation sessions to address this issue, I explored user requested features from our Intercom integration. A round trip planner was highly requested, and I hypothesized that many users were downloading the app while at home or during idle moments, not immediately ready for a ride.

A prominent roundtrip feature on the start screen could encourage them to engage and explore the app’s core functionalities.

What I did

Interaction Design
UI Design
Components and Interaction Specification
Technical feasibility explorations in collaboration with developers

Main outcomes

The feature was successfully implemented and well received by users, who appreciated the ease of planning a round trip. Making it the most used feature of the app (other than navigation)

Purpose

The primary goal was to retain users by offering an automatic and easy way to test the route planning experience, acknowledging that most users download the app at home rather than when planning a ride.

Design challenge

Problem statement
The main challenge was to find a feasible way to develop the Round Trip Planner feature using existing technology while designing the entire user flow, defining parameters like trip length, planning process, and error handling, as well as creating the necessary UI components.

Goals and Objectives
1 Develop a user-friendly Round Trip Planner feature.
2 Ensure the feature could be implemented with existing or new feasible technology.
3 Enhance user retention by providing an engaging and easy-to-use route planning experience.

Process overview

1 Initial Wireframes
2 Proof of Concept with Developers
3 Variations on Interaction Design Flows
4 First Proposal: Interaction Flow and Visuals
5 Final Flows and Specifications

1 Initial Wireframes

Created low-fidelity wireframes to map out the user flows, possible component layouts and the basic parameters needed to calculate the route. Focused on defining the basic structure and functionality of the feature.

2 Proof of Concept with Developers

Engaged with developers early to explore the feasibility of the feature. The initial challenge was the perceived need to use third-party APIs, which would make the team drop this feature. However, after I showecased the required functionality to some eager developers, an internal API was identified. This API, initially used for calculating the range of electric vehicles, was adapted to generate points for a round trip based on user input.

Collaborating with developers to ensure the feature could be built using existing technology. Overcame technical hurdles through creative problem-solving and leveraging internal resources.

3 Variations on Interaction Design Flows

Interaction Design
Developed multiple variations of the interaction flows to find the most intuitive and efficient user experience.Conducted competitive analysis to benchmark best practices and draw inspiration.

4 First Proposal: Interaction Flow and Visuals

Proposal
Combined interaction flows with visual design elements to create the first comprehensive proposal. Conducted feedback sessions with stakeholders and users to gather insights and suggestions.

Iterating to simplify
Based on feedback, simplified the interaction flows to enhance usability and reduce complexity. Iterated on the design to ensure a straightforward user experience.

5 Final Flows and Specifications

Final design
Developed final user flows and detailed specifications for implementation.
Created a clean and intuitive interface, allowing users to easily input their desired trip distance, choose a direction and receive an automatically generated round trip route.

Contributing to the Design System
Designed new components and integrated them into GO Ride's existing design library.
Ensured consistency with TomTom’s brand guidelines and overall design system.

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Results & Reflections

Outcomes
‍The feature was successfully implemented and well received by users, who appreciated the ease of planning a round trip.

Metrics
Unfortunately, the impact on user retention could not be accurately measured due to limitations in the analytics setup. An A/B test would have provided clearer insights into the feature's effectiveness.

Learnings
The project underscored the importance of cross-functional collaboration and creative problem-solving in feature development. Ensuring clear communication with developers and leveraging existing technology can lead to innovative solutions. Plus, sometimes we just need to insist a bit more until a viable solution is found.

Future improvements
For future projects, planning for robust analytics and A/B testing from the outset would provide more accurate measures of success. Additionally, continued user feedback and iterative design improvements would further enhance the feature.