Overview
Note: This project is hypothetical. I love camping, and I’ve spent a lot of time on various states’ campsite reservation websites. I wanted to redesign Minnesota’s version.
Charge: Redesign the Minnesota Department of Natural Resource’s website for reserving state park campsites. The new site should be easy to use and excite campers about their trip.
Process:
Research
UX/UI Audit
Usability Testing on the Current Site
Requirement Gathering
Wireframes
Prototype
Usability testing on the Redesigned Site
Background Research
According to the 2017 American Camper Report, 40.5 million Americans went camping at least once in 2016. This is an increase of 500,000 in 2015. Tent camping is the most popular type of camping. A significant majority of campers also participate in an outdoor activity while they're camping. Close to home is the most popular factor for campers deciding on a location for camping Amenities is the 4th most popular factor. Typically, camping trips are planned an average of 23 days in advance. However, campsite reservations are often made the day of the trip.
UX/UI Audit
To asses the current website for reserving campsites in MN, I mapped out the workflow and did task-based usability testing.
Flowchart for the Current Site
Usability Testing on the Current Site
The task: You want to go camping near Alexandria, MN. Specifically you'd like to go stay at a backpack camping site. You're planning your trip for September 7th through September 9th (2 nights). Reserve a backpack campsite for these dates at the park closest to Alexandria, MN.
Results Summary: Participants really struggled with orienting themselves on the map. One participant did a variation of the expected workflow and ended up deciding on a park that was 25 miles farther away than the closest option. All participants had difficulty figuring out how to determine if the campground had back pack campsites.
Problems:
- The current site has very little filtering capabilities. There's no way to filter based on activity, which is necessary for looking for campgrounds with certain park and campsite amenities. This is an important need because amenities are a factor when deciding on a campground.
- You can sort by distance but it isn't always clear what the starting point is for that distance. This makes finding a campsite close to home challenging
- The map is not helpful and doesn't zoom to the appropriate level to start
- Pictures of the campsite are minimal and not easily discoverable
Average satisfaction after completing the test: 5/10
Redesign Goals:
Retain all the functionality of the current site
Make the map functionality more relevant
Add a better way to filter by amenities
Get users excited about their trip
Improve the satisfaction score of reserving the campsite
Wireframe
Prototype
View full InVision prototype here.
The Whole Experience
In order to get users excited about their upcoming trip, the prototype starts off with a search page that features a modern large camping image. This new design displays an image alongside each campsite so the user feels more engaged with the selection process. The engagement shouldn't stop after the user makes their reservation. Below is a potential email template for exciting users about their trip. This email could include more pictures of their site, events at the park, or recommendations for gear to bring.
Post-Reservation Engagement Email
Usability Testing on the Redesigned Site
The task: You want to go camping near Stillwater, MN. Specifically you'd like to go stay at a backpack camping site. You're planning your trip for September 7th through September 9th (2 nights). Reserve a backpack campsite for these dates at the park closest to Stillwater, MN.
- I changed the city so participants wouldn't know the answer from taking the test on the current site.
Average Satisfaction after completing the test: 8.5/10 (an improvement of 3.5 scoring points)