PLATES
Have you ever been out at a restaurant and you scan the QR code for the menu and what pops up is an impossible to read PDF or a link to a website where the menu is nowhere to be found?
So had I and I found it annoying, so I came up with a solution.
PLATES is a menu design template subscription service for restaurant owners to build and make changes to their menus quickly and efficiently. The service uses QR coded menu templates that are interactive for the customer and pre-designed for owners. Through interactive menus, customers can view the menu in full, simply through their phones.
Along with pre-designed templates, PLATES also gives restaurants the ability to use their custom branded content in order to keep design consistent throughout their entire business.
User Research
In order to get an understanding of the challenges that restaurant owners and employees face, I conducted two sets of interviews. One with a restaurant manager and a second with a head bartender.
Goals:
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What kind of changes were made by switching from printed menus to virtual menus?
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How do restaurants update menu changes during a dinner service?
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How could the process of making changes to menus be simplified?
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What products have been used before and what was the experience using them?
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What kinds of customizations would work best for a menu template design
Findings
#01
There was a lack of products available for menu design that offered customization using branded elements. This meant that there was inconsistencies with the visual design of the restaurant. ​
#02
There was inconsistency with product options to make real time changes to menus throughout the dinner service.
#03
There was an inability to make changes to the drink list without management making the changes on their website.
#04
The mobile version of their website wasn’t intuitive when it came to finding the full drink menu, which made it difficult for customers to order resulting in hiccups with service.
Building Empathy
As there were two elements to the product, the subscription service and the interactive menu, two user personas were created. The first being a restaurant owner and the second being a restaurant customer.
Using the personas for both users, empathy mapping was conducted to further understand my user.
Empathy Map: Restaurant Owner
Empathy Map: Restaurant Customer
With a greater understanding of both users and their experiences, user flows were created for both the menu subscription service and an interactive menu.
User Flow: Subscription Service
User Flow: Interactive Menu
Wireframing, Mockups & Prototypes
The design process began with low-fidelity sketched wireframes in order to be able to make quick changes before moving to more complex digital designs.
Wireframe: Subscription Service
Wireframe: Interactive Menu
After moving to digital design software, a full high fidelity mockup and clickable prototype were created for both the subscription service and the interactive menu.
Scan QR code for interactive menu prototype or view online with this link
Branding & Visual Design
Alongside the prototypes, a full branding package was created including a style guide and business card and social media account mockups.
Usability Testing & Customer Journey
Usability testing was conducted with both clickable prototypes. Users were walked through both the subscription service and interactive menu and gave feedback on where adjustments could be made.
Alongside usability tests, a final product based customer journey map was created for the subscription service.
Conclusion
Having a product that simplifies daily challenges that all restaurants face would revolutionize the food service industry. By removing the challenge of updating printed menus by using a digital service and offering customization options, we can bring control back to restaurant owners. Their overall digital presence can stay consistent and their dinner services can be streamlined and efficient.
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I worked on this project for a total of 6 months and was the sole contributor and utilized design feedback from my peers and instructors.
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If more time was available:
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Conduct further customer journey mapping
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More interviews and usability testing with restaurant owners and customers
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Pilot project interactive menus in a restaurant for feedback and research
Learnings
#01
More conversation means more information
More interviews with different owners, employees and customers of restaurants would give more insight into other pain points that could be solved or current features that could be updated.
#02
Qualitative vs. quantitative
Continuing to research users through different avenues such as surveys and polls could give more insight into the experience of customers and owners.
#03
More in-depth visual design
Updating the style guide and adding more in depth elements such as icons, buttons etc. could help increase consistency in the design and elevate the brand
#04
Continue the journey
Creating more Customer Journey Maps would help develop the product and increase efficiency. It would also give more insight into my user and how they experience the service industry.