Monterey Bay Aquarium App

Problem Faced - The Monterey Bay Aquarium is looking for a way to engage the public with the exhibits and promote marine life education. Due to the pandemic, there is a need for an app as many visitors want to remain connected with the aquarium remotely.

Solution: Create a mobile app for Monterey Bay Aquarium that allows users to travel around the aquarium, interact with exhibits through livestreams and learn about marine life from the comfort of their own home.

Research

  • Understand user’s needs, goal, frustrations, and behaviors

  • Explore current product; their brand

Define

  • Identify problems and suggest opportunities

  • Analyze features prioritization

Design

  • Ideate sketches and low-fidelity wireframes

  • Create mid-fidelity prototypes and test usability

Deliver

  • Create high-fidelity prototype

  • Reflect process and discuss future steps

My Role

  • User Research: conducted interviews, analyzed findings, persona and journey map

  • Sketches: brainstormed solutions and ideated low-fi wireframe

  • Prototyping: designed and created mid-fi prototype

  • Usability Test: tested overall user flow, identified findings and problems for iteration

Project Plan

I looked on their website to understand existing features and affordances necessary for the application.

  • Logo

  • Exhibits with live cameras, location, more information on exhibits

  • Education Resources: type of animals, plants. (with visual aids)

  • Map

I conducted user interviews with 3 participants. From this we developed the following requirements for the platform:

  • Education Resources Easier to learn information about marine animals

  • Information about seasonal exhibits and activities; live cam

  • Immersive experience of the aquarium remotely

  • Engaging members with the aquarium and community

“I love being able to go through the aquarium virtually from the comfort of my home”
“Increasing education and interaction between visitors and exhibits are beneficial to the aquarium”

Quotes

Research

Current Website Exploration

Interviews 

The Persona

User Story

Hi! I’m Kennedi. I’m 21 year old and attending Golden Gate Univeristy in San Francisco, CA. I like to visit aquariums often during my free time, with COVID-19 it has been difficult to attend in person. I have a strong interest in animal conservation and the types of fish in every aquarium I visit! I want to be able to bring my friends and significant other to them and have them exposed to knowledge about marine life!

Goals & Needs

  • Wants to be able to be connected to aquariums while at home

  • Learn quick information about marine life

  • Find out about current exhibits in aquarium

Kennedi and her college friends plan to attend the Monterey Bay Aquarium during their spring break. Her goal is to inform them about the current exhibits, activities and animals they will see on their excursion. She wants them to be excited for this visit! But Kennedi feels that the website alone does invoke this reaction, she needs to find a more engaging way for herself and her friends to feel connected to Monterey Bay Aquarium.


Low-Fidelity Prototype

With Kennedi in mind, I began brainstorming features and created the outlines for how all this information should be presented. I came up with sketches that then eventually became medium-fidelity wireframes that were tested. 


Usability Testing

I performed five usability tests with our medium fidelity prototype for feedback on functionality and clarity on the prototype. 

  • The “Drop Down Menu” button was too long, too many options and needed something easier for quick access to other tabs. I then decided to “clean up” that section with the most important tabs. 

  • The map needed more specifics for what type of animal was there. Hence, I added a list of animals and their locations on the map for a more concise and interactive portion to this feature.

  • For a more cohesive flow of information, I also added a section below the types of animals titled as “Animals Found Nearby” thus allowing for users to swiftly check them out and visualize the depth of ocean they are in. 

Overall, my medium-fidelity tests showed that the app needed minor changes, that was implemented and was tested again with users. Thus, after many iterations evolved a High Fidelity wireframe and prototype.


Final Prototype

This is my final prototype along with the revisions.

Home

Drop Down Menu

Interactive Map

Exhibit Selection

Deep Sea Exhibit

Exhibit Livestream

Reflection

This was so exciting to do as I myself have loved the Monterey Bay Aquarium for a long time. It allowed me to showcase my skills of UX design and research, and produce something tangible that can benefit not only this company but animal conservation. With COVID-19, there is a need for companies to go remote to keep that connection with their visitors, making the aquarium accessible to all. From this I have learned how crucial it is to implement empathy and doing more with less; having findable and desirable features.

Next steps: 

  • Implement more interactive features for children; broadening intended audience. 

  • Continue building and testing the high fidelity prototype.