In the age of Coronavirus, water bottles have become a vessel for sickness. To avoid further transmissions, Prime Academy needed an alternative gift to welcome their incoming students. Not only are water bottles a basic and impersonal gift, but there are more unique gifts to make a great first impression, while being useful to the student and promoting Prime Academy’s values of practicing empathy.
I conducted two studies to help find answers. The first was a Heuristic Analysis to identify problem areas and the second was Fly on the Wall observations to come up with better solutions.
According to our Heuristic Analysis, cleaning the bottle is the most violated task and biggest failure of the current water bottle gifted to students. However, that wasn’t the ONLY pain point, it was also:
- Basic & impersonal
- Mouthpiece leaks
- Handle is made of cloth, can get wet/smelly
- Top locking is too many steps
- Straw is redundant, can’t even get the last bit of water
- Too large to transport on common bike water-holder
- Bottle is too long to clean bottom
- Bottle has small opening, can’t fit hand inside
- Doesn’t fit well into standard dish washer
- Annoying to fill in shallow sink
Next I observed the work spaces of full-stack Prime students so I could develop a better sense of what is important to them. The average full stack student spends about 80+ hours a week in their workspaces. Many of them have multiple screens, plants, pictures, and chachkis. One of the most recurring themes was the desire for comfort and calm ambience. Below are my findings by category.
After my initial research was complete I moved onto my favorite phase... The design concept! Since Covid restrictions are loosening a bit, some institutions are opening their doors once more. Prime welcomed back their first cohort in 15 months in September 2021.
Prime Academy is located right in the center of Minneapolis,MN. A state known for its extreme winters. What better way to welcome new students back to class than a durable pair of gloves or a warm winter hat? You know, since Minnesota has 9 months of winter! It’s a wonderful way to let students know that Prime values their commitment to education by braving a harsh commute. This way Prime is not only upholding its value of fostering community, but also keeping their students minds and hearts warm with a stylish and usable gift.
The third design was for the folks who still are working remotely. This is the design concept that I think best exemplifies showing empathy, a core value at Prime. The Night Light is a clever lighting cube that does several things at once. It is a soft, teal lighting source that creates a soothing ambience in any room it resides. It also doubles as a striking conversational piece that happens to be the literal representation of the Prime logo.
After some more consideration, I decided that the Prime Night Light would be the best product to pitch to the client based off of the user information I compiled.
We conducted a second evaluative interview series. Click here to check out our script. These were out most important insights:
-Minimalist design brings users comfort, pillows, blankies, ambient lighting, as well as friends, affirmations, and hugs
-First Impressions: looks like the prime logo, beautiful, simplistic modern design, and color is soothing
-Stands Outs: logo, unique shape, would be a great statement piece/talking point in a room
In conclusion, Prime does a wonderful job of preparing their students for a career in the UX, fostering connections that last a lifetime, and thrives at growing community. With the Prime Night Light, Prime could be gifting their students a piece of comfort to soothe their stresses while providing a light to guide them to a better tomorrow.