ASTRO

• CANNABIS

OVERVIEW

A delivery site that intuitively informs users about Cannabis product stats while also offering enticing promos and deals. Charts are available to clearly convey the complex combinations of cannabis effects, flavors and terpenes.
The delivery service gives specific delivery windows while also providing live updates and a map that tracks the location of the arriving delivery when it is one hour away from the delivery location.

Role

UX/UI Designer
UX Researcher
App Design
Icon Design

Tools

Figma
Photoshop
Maze

Time Span

year 2021
4 Weeks

Home Screen
Products are featured under categories like New Arrivals, Selling Fast & Top Rated. Additionally, products are suggested based on recommendations from experts “Weedtenders” where the product is described & all of its stats are displayed by (Feeling/High type) & (Terpenes/Flavors).
Product Screen
Comprehensive charts & metrics are available to convey the types of high the cannabis provides & what its Terpene/ Flavors are. Reviews are available to provide star ratings & the experience other users had when using this product.
Checkout
Users can easily select the day & time that they would like their delivery to be placed. The delivery screen also displays the delivery status as it is being prepared & brought to the user’s address.
• Process Overview •

01 •

RESEARCH

User Interviews.

I interviewed 5 participants with the goal of understanding what their key motivations are when they purchase Marijuana as well as what their perspectives & experiences are on delivery services in general (Why & when?). I also wanted to understand what reasons prevented them from using Marijuana delivery services.

///   Research  001   ///   user  interviews   ///   competitor  analyses   
///   Research  001   ///   user  interviews   ///   competitor  analyses   
///   Research  001   ///   user  interviews   ///   competitor  analyses   
///   Research  001   ///   user  interviews   ///   competitor  analyses   
///   Research  001   ///   user  interviews   ///   competitor  analyses   
///   Research  001   ///   user  interviews   ///   competitor  analyses   
Motivation
(When & Why?)
• To have weed delivered to you where ever you are.
• Avoid waiting in long lines at dispensaries.
• If there are promotions & or deals available.
• To learn more about weed strains & their effects.
• To read articles & learn about events.
User Pains
(Why not?)
• If deliveries costs too much
• Want to see & smell the weed in person.
• Like to consult w/ weed-tenders in person.
• If delivery times are inaccurate & delayed.
‍
Primary Goals
(List of goals)
1. Enhance their mood.
2. Save money.
3. Save Time.
4. Convenience.
5. Try new Strains.
6. Become informed on strains & effects.
7. Read articles & learn about events.
• Competitor Analysis •
Competitor
Summary
Current popular delivery services such as Leafly, Weed Maps & Eaze all offer vast selections with detailed stats & reviews for the different strains of marijuana. Leafly from what I have seen has done the best job in representing the unique stats (Terpene, strain, feelings/high type) of each marijuana strain while offering more in-depth descriptions & user reviews.
 
I did further research & found that these delivery services struggle to keep afloat as they only offer the delivery service but they do not grow or produce their own in-house marihuana products. This means that all of their profits are split between themselves & the dispensaries. 
Currently, some of these delivery companies like Eaze are working to solve this by acquiring marijuana farms & dispensaries so that they can become a vertical company. Then they can produce, sell & deliver their own product without having to split profits. 

02 •

Synthesize

Insights from Research

I establish the essential design goals & key features based on the research data gathered from my interviews & competitor analyses. These will become my focus points when planning the designs for this project.

///   synthesize  002   ///   key features   ///   User needs   ///   user motivations   
///   synthesize  002   ///   key features   ///   User needs   ///   user motivations   
///   synthesize  002   ///   key features   ///   User needs   ///   user motivations   
///   synthesize  002   ///   key features   ///   User needs   ///   user motivations   
///   synthesize  002   ///   key features   ///   User needs   ///   user motivations   
• Key Features •
Needs
• Site displays strain info & properties. Describes the type of high.
• Offer descriptions of the THC & CBG levels, smell & flavor.
• Have a large varied selection of different weed strains & products. 
• Suggest similar products, especially if one is out of stock. 
• Have promos eg. Late night promo, first-time purchase promo. 
• Sale offers on “Shake” weed. Shake is a dried-up weed that is no longer fresh but still gets you high.
• Offers a membership & rewards program. 
• Have links for weed events. Have articles.  
• Offer many delivery time windows. 
• Show a live delivery status map like in Uber Eats (users can then be better prepared to show their ID).
Motivation
• It’s fun to sing Disney songs that I love.
• Great option for parties & hanging out with friends.
• Connect friends who are far away or meet new ones on the app. 
• Practice singing skills. Great for keeping kids entertained. 
• Great game for families to sing together.  
• Can motivate new Users to become Disney Plus subscribers.
• Can discover new Disney movies.

03 •

IDEATE

Acquiring & Structuring Data

I conducted a card sorting test on 9 participants to determine what the optimal alignment of main categories & subcategories should be for this E-Commerce site. These category / subcategory alignments along with my key features list is what I used to create a site map & user task flow.

///   ideate  003   ///   card sorting   ///   site map   ///   user task flow    
///   ideate  003   ///   card sorting   ///   site map   ///   user task flow    
///   ideate  003   ///   card sorting   ///   site map   ///   user task flow    
///   ideate  003   ///   card sorting   ///   site map   ///   user task flow    
///   ideate  003   ///   card sorting   ///   site map   ///   user task flow    
///   ideate  003   ///   card sorting   ///   site map   ///   user task flow    
Card sorting results
Dendogram analyses
Based on my competitor analyses & list of user goals I created 7 categories & 30 cards. How these cards are arranged w/in the categories informs me on how to structure my site map.

Based on the Popularity Matrix chart some cards were placed under two categories at a high frequency which tells me that the card's subject can be used for multiple browsing purposes.
Creating a Blueprint
Site Map
Based on the popularity matrix of my card sorting exercise I created this sitemap that reflected how my participants would expect categories & subcategories to be connected on this E-Commerce site.
Predicting the Flow
user Task Flow chart
Next I created a User Task Flow Chart that emphasized important features such as filtering based on Cannabis strain & Terpene flavors. After further research into competitor weed services I noted that additional search criteria such as “Search by Feelings” will be needed for users interested in searching for Cannabis based on what type of high they want to have. This also called for the creation of a chart measuring system that can quickly convey this kind of information quickly at a glance. 

04 •

UI Design

Generating Sketches & Prototype

The logo is designed to evoke a sense of having a delicious selection of treats to chose from like a colorful fruit bowl. I wanted the esthetics to be fun to look at while also stepping away from the expected "stoner" tropes that we often see in cannabis marketing. This then informed me on what colors & fonts I wanted to use in my design. I then created low-fi sketches based on the above site map & user task flow.

///   ui design 004   ///   logo design   ///   low-fi sketch   ///   style tile   
///   ui design 004   ///   logo design   ///   low-fi sketch   ///   style tile   
///   ui design 004   ///   logo design   ///   low-fi sketch   ///   style tile   
///   ui design 004   ///   logo design   ///   low-fi sketch   ///   style tile   
• Logo Design, Low-Fi Sketches & Style Tile •

05 •

testing

Testing PROTOTYPE Remotely

Using Figma I created a prototype based on the task flow of finding & purchasing the “Star Platinum” flower bud under the “New Arrivals” category. 

Due to the limitations of Covid-19 I administered my testing remotely using Maze. Maze is an online prototyping tool that syncs with Figma & measures how the test participants interact with the prototype. It helps to identify navigation patterns & where users have the most miss-clicks. 

During the first round of testing only 60% of participants completed the prototype. After reviewing the data & making corrections the completion rate was 100%.

///   testing  005   ///   testing groups  ///   interactive prototype   ///   fINAL SCreens   ///   Conclusion   
///   testing  005   ///   testing groups  ///   interactive prototype   ///   fINAL SCreens   ///   Conclusion   
///   testing  005   ///   testing groups  ///   interactive prototype   ///   fINAL SCreens   ///   Conclusion   
///   testing  005   ///   testing groups  ///   interactive prototype   ///   fINAL SCreens   ///   Conclusion   
• Interactive Mobile Prototype •

• Final Screens •

Home Screen
This is designed to highlight key features such as New Arrivals, Selling Fast & Top Rated. Selling Fast & Top Rated are product categories that the current consumers are responding to the most. These benefit sales by both sustaining & building on the momentum of high selling products. Additionally, products are suggested based on recommendations from experts “Weedtenders” where the product is described & all of its stats are displayed by (Feeling/High type) & (Terpenes/Flavors).
Product Screen
This page addresses the following needs: Comprehensive charts & metrics are available to convey the types of high the cannabis provides & what its Terpene/ Flavors are. Reviews are available to provide star ratings & the experience other users had when using this product.

Items that are similar in terms of high/feeling & terpene/flavor are also suggested. This is especially useful if the original item is sold out & the user needs to find a quick alternative option to purchase.

Checkout
For these screens, I wanted to make it easy to chose what day & time the user would like their delivery to be placed. The available times for a day are displayed as a side-scrolling carousel so that this information does not occupy too much of the screen. At the top of the screen, you can also choose to pick up your product instead of using a delivery service. The delivery screen offers a chart that breaks down the delivery timings & steps as it is being prepared & brought to the user’s address.

Conclusion

Creating this E-Commerce design for a Cannabis project has been both challenging & exciting. There was a huge learning curve I had to overcome to understand the product & all of its intricate features. The almost endless combination of strains, flavors & the highs they produce made it crucial to provide the users with a wide array of filtering options while also proving users with non-overwhelming selections. It was also a joyous challenge to present these many factors & options in a visually pleasing format. I loved designing the multiple measurement graphs as they provided me with opportunities to play with lots of fun colors & symbols. Overall this has been an invigorating project & I am excited to see how far this Cannabis industry will grow & how it will reshape our lives with its many beneficial products.     
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