Zeit
A case study for a responsive time travel ecommerce site.
Brief
Generate a responsive ecommerce site and brand identity for Zeit, a hypothetical time travel tourism company, over the course of 6 weeks at Designlab.
Roles
User Research
UX/UI Design
Wireframes
Prototyping
Hi-fidelity Pages
Background
Zeit is a truly unique travel service; here to ask the customer not just where, but when.
Zeit aims to safely and responsibly provide an unparalleled time travel experience for those with an adventurous spirit. Currently, customers can choose from 289 destinations all over the world, from prehistoric time through today. All of this will be channeled through an ecommerce platform; allowing customers to easily access, categorize, and choose a trip option.
Research
My initial research revolved around competitive analysis as well as user interviews and surveys. For the purpose of this case study, the bulk of my goals concerned understanding how users currently book travel online, identifying existing preferences and problems, and gaining insights to current perceptions of time travel.
Competitive Analysis
Card Sorting Results Diagram
Findings
Based on my research, I identified some of the existing problem spaces and what opportunity they each present:
How might we educate and reframe the idea of time travel? How might we showcase the positive impacts?
How might we curate and provide unique, thoughtful travel experiences?
How might we establish a trustworthy relationship with users and instill confidence when booking trips?
I also used my research to develop user personas and archetypes: “The Explorer,” “The Knowledge-Seeker,” and “The Influencer.”
Personas
Information Architecture
Before starting a site map, I ran a virtual open card sorting exercise - providing 30 trip options and allowing the participants to categorize and label as they saw fit. The results showed some clear emergence of patterns: Time Periods, Destinations, and Experiences/Events were the most consistent among participants. There were some outliers indicating a potential fourth category of “People,” however, considering the functionality and trip options (and the fact that most participants also associated an individual with a certain era or event), that category was absorbed into the rest.
Using my site map, research findings, and personas, I began developing task and user flows - allowing me to really define the journey I wanted to convey through these pages.
Task Flow
User Flow
Brand Identity
The brief for Zeit outlined that the brand should be modern and fresh, clean and historical. Zeit aims to reflect a modern technology with a deep link to the past.
Keeping these goals in mind, I utilized iconography such as circular forms that have a deep sense of identity and representation across many cultures and time frames. Deep, dark colors reinforce the idea of space, endless exploration, and vastness. A mix of modern imagery and vintage photos were used to express this blend of ideologies and eras in time.
Logo Iterations
Brand Guidelines
Responsive Wireframes & Prototyping
Starting with several sketches, I began iterating on the three pages which I would be developing in this case study: a homepage, a category page, and a product page. After several rounds and edits, I then translated the wireframes into a mid-fidelity format to begin fine tuning the designs.
My mid fidelity designs were used to create a prototype for usability testing.
Mid-Fidelity Wireframes
Hi-Fi Design
Using the insights from usability testing, I was able to resolve priority revisions and generate high fidelity designs of the responsive design.
Mockups
