Happy Camper is the gear renting app that makes camping easier for everyone. Whether you are a veteran of the outdoors or brand new, Happy Camper provides the necessary resources for you to tackle any terrain.
Role: UI/UX Designer and Researcher
Tools: Figma, Invision, Illustrator, Photoshop, Miro,
Timeline: Feb- March, 2021 (4 weeks)
Category: Passion Project
Throughout this project I conduced research including user interviews, affinity mapping, and competitive & comparative analysis and synthesized data while using several design tools to make low- and hi-fidelity designs such as user flows, wireframes, UI graphics and UI specifications
The Problem
With the Covid-19 pandemic restricting international travel, domestic travel has surged, with camping being especially popular due to its ability to offer social distancing. It is thought that once tried, people will continue to experience the outdoors long after Covid restrictions are lifting. But the camping lifestyle is a very hard one to break into. It can cost a lot of money, take a lot of research, and restricts people with certain disabilities.
The Solution
There are a lot of resources to help make camping easier, but each requires its own app and most don't work once you lose service in the national parks. My goal is to decrease the amount of time, stress and money required to camp by providing all the necessary resources for your trip, with an online and offline version available .
Empathize
Brainstorming
Project Timeline
Brand Strategy
Analyze
User Interviews
C+C Analysis
Persona
Design
Sketching
Wireframes
Prototyping
Evaluate
User Testing
Iterations
Launch
Gear Renting
Happy Camper allows users to rent camping gear or rent out their own gear. The gear is sent right to your home and once you are finished with it you can mail it back.
Trip Planner
Once you have all the gear you need, Happy Camper becomes your camper buddy, helping you plan your trip with our calendar.
National Park Information
Explore national parks by location, campsites, activities or reviews. You can track real timevisitor throughout the day.
Navigation
Once your trip is planned, Happy Camper allows you to plan your driving route so you can take the most efficient, or scenic, journey.
Trail Maps
Get information about specific hiking tails and their distance, weather, terrain, elevation, and more. Download maps or track your movement along the way.
Accessibility Information
We are committed to providing the most up-to-date information about accessibility so users can see what parks accommodate their needs.
Participants Demographics: 6 participants, 3 different states.
Goal: I wanted to gather information about people's thoughts on camping, hiking, planning trips, and their shopping patterns for camping gear and other outdoor equipment. I interviewed people who regularly camp and people who like camping, but would still consider themselves a beginner.
Outcome: From my interview, I found common patterns of concerns, preferences, and interaction habits about gear rentals, no matter the location.
In all national parks, and most campsites across the country, internet service is limited or non-existent. This makes it tricky to access real time information on your phone and resulted in users expressing safety concerns. Happy Camper tackles this problem by allowing the user to download maps and driving routes, as well as using satellite internet to track your movement so users are never lost.
Several users expressed concerns about the process of renting gear. Users suggested that picking up gear from someone's house, similar to eBay or Facebook marketplace, always feels a little dangerous, especially if you're alone. Happy Camper solves this by making a mail only app. Sellers only have the option of renting their gear by mail and campers will return the gear via mail as well. Happy Camper will provide appropriate reusable envelopes and boxes for gear.
Users said they are much more likely to rent gear if they can see people's reviews and shared experiences. Every time you buy or rent gear, you have the option of writing a review and submitting photos. The sellers also have the option of writing a review about the buyer limiting the worry about your gear being damaged or stollen.
There are so many apps to aid you on your trip with users admitting that they find themselves using at least 5 different apps while camping. One for hiking, one for finding open campsites, one to plan the driving route, etc. This is confusing and time consuming so Happy Camper wants to reduce this stress by combining all your favorite outdoors apps into one.
Age: 23
Occupation: Graphic Designer
Status: Single
Location: San Francisco
About Nadia
Nadia is a graphic designer from San Francisco. She loved being outdoors and camping but she lives in a small apartment and can't fit more than a sleeping bag in her closet. She has tried glamping, but a single weekend can cost up to $400 a night.
Nadia's Needs
Nadia needs a cheaper way to camp while keeping her apartment clutter free. She also needs up-to-date information about the national parks and hikes that she is planning on visiting.
"I would love to camp more but it's an intimidating hobby to start. I need a way to try camping without spending too much money."
"I feel limited to the types of camping I can do with the gear I have and I don't want to buy a whole new tent etc. for just one trip."
Key Takeaway: Camping apps exist, primarily for available campsites, and hiking apps tied to the camping community exist as well, mostly for navigation and land information, but there is no app that necessarily ties all of these things together while providing you with the necessary equipment.
I began my ideation process by sketching out different layout options and interaction patterns for the main functionalities.
I created a low fidelity mock-up based on my sketches to ensure that the designs aligned with intended functionality before delving into UI details.
Many interactions were made to the UI to giving more breathing room to the information, establish a strong brand across all screens, and prioritize what features are most important to the users.
Onboarding
With a short and sweet onboarding process, users will pick their favorite interests for a more curated shopping experience.
Curated Rentals
Browse through gear organized by terrain, weather, sale or hand-picked items based on the users interests.
Explore National Parks
Search parks and campsites to find which ones are most comparable with your needs.
Plan a Trip
Once you've picked your park, organize all your stops using the calendar and map feature.
Clicking the screen will take you to the interactive prototype.
Key Takeaways
As this is a subject I am very passionate about, detachment from my own bias was extremely important. Understanding how to analyze and use research data to put myself in the user’s shoes. This let me validate or reject my own assumptions, formulate strong rationale for decisions, and turn feedback into opportunities.
Using a design system saved me hours of medius adjustments and iterations. In the process of using a design system, I was able to establish consistency throughout the app,whether that be with font styles, defining margins, or drop shadows.
Future Work
Because of the limited time and resources I wasn’t able to test the final product as much as I wanted to. I participated in a series of user testing to ensure the quality of the product, but I would’ve liked to conduct more usability testing with professionals in the industry of camping, hiking, and selling outdoors gear.
As Happy Camper grows, there are so many possible directions to take the app. With expansion could come a wider variety of gear being rented like biking, skiing, fishing etc. The hope is one day Happy Camper will provide everything you need for your weekend getaway or cross country road trip.
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