Client kick off meeting

We used the initial kick off meeting as a briefing session to answer questions about the goals, ethos, USPs, successes and pain points. Given the time and budget constraints, we then filled in a Lean UX canvas using Figjam.

The conversation uncovered that Kumo were open to any and all feedback and improvement of their product and branding. In that sense, it was a blank canvas that could be refined into the ultimate study product which allowed me to use a combination of my UX, marketing, branding and project management experience.

Heuristic evaluation and testing of the plug in functionality

An indepth heuristic evaluation of the website and the plug, paired with initial user interviews supplied by Kumo showed a lack of consistency in language and messaging used throughout,  a lack of trust in the credibility of the current site with people people hesitant to download the product and issues with functionality and navigation within the plug in tool. 
 

Understanding the Current User Journey and User Research and Testing

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Given our time constraints and that we were supplied multiple user interviews and testing data from Kumo, we decided to create and send a combined survey with a separate comprehensive user testing section that was able to be carried out remotely via Google Forms. This provided us with qualitative data about the current product.

We then merged the data received from Kumo Study with our own research and survey to collect data on student experiences and aspects of Kumo Study performance.

We then analysed this data through affinity mapping to determine if there were commonalities that impacted multiple users.

We also reviewed this hand in hand with our customer journey mapping to identify problematic points as opportunities for improvements in the current experience.

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Affinity Mapping and Research Analysis

After receiving the feedback, our UX team worked together in Figma to affinity map and identify the key successes, preferences and pain points they had experienced using and interacting with Kumo Study.

After a comprehensive affinity mapping process, we then mapped the key themes, both overarching and specifically for the plug in tools and collated a list of key feedback based on each Kumo Study tools.

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Comparative and Competitive Analyses

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We completed a competitive analysis of similar productivity tools in the market, focusing on key features, usability, pricing strategies and USPs, assessing these strengths and weaknesses relative to Kumo Study.

This helped us find possible opportunities for growth regarding the pain points highlighted in the user feedback and also helped us understand what Kumo is currently doing well and what could be improved.

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Identifying Kumo’s USPs

Based on our user testing, research, analysis and competitive and comparative analyses. The tema and I came up with a finalised list of Kumo’s key USPs that would inform our design decisions and thinking for the remainder of the sprint.

All-in-One Functionality: Kumo combines a study assistant, site blocker, bookmarking tool, and task manager in a single platform (Most other productivity tools only have one function)

Affordability: It offers a free version that maintains most functionalities of the paid version.

Simplicity to minimise distractions: to avoid overwhelming users with ADHD. 

Academic Focus: Kumo is academically focused, providing a distraction-reduced environment for enhanced concentration.

Bookmarking and Citations: Ability to bookmark web and journal articles into folders and convert them to references.