Electric Miles
Redesigning Electric Miles' Onboarding Journey
Electric Miles stands at the forefront of electric vehicle (EV) charging innovation, offering a sophisticated tech solution through its mobile application. With a core mission to facilitate seamless EV charging experiences, EM prioritizes not only user convenience but also cost savings and environmental sustainability.
Designed at Electric Miles
Problem
How might we streamline Electric Miles' onboarding processes to enhance user engagement and adoption rates by simplifying procedures and providing timely feedback, thereby improving user progression and satisfaction while positively impacting success metrics?
My Role
Co-responsible for discovery, ideation, user research, design, and testing with the Senior Product Designer.
Team
Aidan Nickerson (Me) - Product Designer
Shilpa Sikotra Taylor - Head of Product
Alessandra Calonico - Senior Product Designer
Raghav Julka - Product Manager
Challenge
Urgent Objectives Amidst Engagement Hurdles
Electric Miles encountered significant obstacles hindering its user engagement and adoption rates, notably stemming from incomplete onboarding processes. Users faced cumbersome procedures and lacked timely feedback during critical onboarding steps, leading to frustration and disengagement. These challenges directly impacted EM's success metrics and necessitated immediate attention from the product team
Upon analysis, the primary challenge confronting the product team was the urgent need to overhaul the onboarding process within a constrained timeframe. We became aware that the onboarding of the three key elements (car, charger, and tariff) were too clunky and inefficient as over 70% of users left the app before completing all three of these flows.
Key objectives included enhancing user experience, optimizing flow efficiency, and boosting completion rates to align with EM's growth objectives.
Approach
Agile Methodologies Drive User-Centric Onboarding Redesign
In response to the challenge, our team embraced agile methodologies to expedite decision-making and foster iterative design practices.
By prioritizing user-centric principles, we strategically integrated progress indicators and micro-interactions throughout the onboarding journey.
This iterative approach allowed us to swiftly prototype, gather feedback, and refine designs, ensuring a seamless user experience and sustained engagement levels.
Discovery
Research Hub
Utilising data-driven insights as our compass, we embarked on a journey to enhance Electric Miles' onboarding experience. Our approach was anchored in a meticulous analysis of user feedback and behavioral data, enabling us to pinpoint pain points and areas ripe for improvement. Leveraging this wealth of information, we meticulously crafted prototypes and conducted iterative testing sessions to validate our design decisions.
Through user interviews, surveys, and usability testing, we gained invaluable insights into user preferences, pain points, and expectations. These findings informed every aspect of our redesign process, from interface elements to user flows, ensuring alignment with user needs and preferences.
Additionally, we tapped into industry best practices and benchmarks to inform our design decisions, drawing inspiration from successful onboarding experiences in the electric vehicle and technology sectors. By synthesizing these diverse sources of knowledge, we crafted a refined onboarding experience tailored to Electric Miles' unique audience and objectives.
Our data-driven approach empowered us to iterate rapidly, continuously refining our designs based on user feedback and insights. This iterative cycle of testing and refinement allowed us to fine-tune the onboarding experience, optimizing for user engagement, retention, and satisfaction.
Ultimately, our commitment to data-driven iteration resulted in a redesigned onboarding process that not only addressed user pain points but also exceeded expectations. By harnessing the power of data, we unlocked new opportunities for Electric Miles to delight users and drive long-term success in the competitive electric vehicle market.
Vision
Streamlined Onboarding for Enhanced User Experience
Our vision focused on simplifying Electric Miles' onboarding process while simultaneously enhancing user perception of its value proposition. Leveraging API’s and refining UI/UX elements, our goal was to create an intuitive and compelling experience. By streamlining complex procedures and optimizing interface elements, we aimed to facilitate user progression and elevate overall satisfaction.
Through strategic integration of innovative technologies and meticulous attention to design, we sought to cultivate trust and loyalty among users. Our efforts aimed to not only meet user needs but exceed expectations, solidifying Electric Miles' position as a future leader in the electric vehicle market and inspiring long-term engagement and loyalty.
Product
Electric Miles is the smart way to reliably charge your electric vehicle, save money and reduce your carbon footprint. Tell EM when your car needs to be ready by and we’ll charge your vehicle with the cheapest and greenest energy available.
Onboarding 2.0
Framework
Structured Iteration
Underpinning our product redesign journey was a meticulously structured framework designed to foster iterative progress and stakeholder collaboration. Each two-week sprint was dedicated to refining specific onboarding modules, facilitating rapid feedback integration and agile course correction. The integration of streamlined APIs and UI enhancements served as tangible evidence of our commitment to delivering a frictionless onboarding experience.
Our agile framework served as a robust foundation for project execution, promoting cross-functional collaboration and optimizing resource allocation. Breaking down the redesign process into modular phases allowed us to harness team expertise effectively and capitalize on prior customer insights to guide design decisions. This iterative approach ensured that each iteration built upon the last, driving continuous improvement and ultimately delivering a superior user experience.
Validation
Testing Our Assumptions
User-centric validation played a pivotal role in refining our redesigned onboarding journey. Through rigorous user testing and feedback sessions, we iteratively fine-tuned our designs, ensuring alignment with user preferences and industry best practices.
The successful integration of API enhancements and UI refinements yielded tangible improvements in completion rates, validating the efficacy of our approach.
Impact
The Impact of Redesigned Onboarding
The redesigned onboarding experience marked a pivotal moment in Electric Miles' journey toward market acquisition. By actively soliciting and integrating user feedback and remaining responsive to emerging trends, Electric Miles continues to redefine its product offerings, laying the groundwork for sustained growth and innovation in the EV charging landscape.
The transformative impact of the redesigned onboarding journey transcended mere metrics, profoundly shaping Electric Miles' market positioning and user perceptions. With completion rates skyrocketing by an impressive 10x margin, catalysing heightened user satisfaction and retention.
This shift not only bolstered Electric Miles' competitive edge but also reinforced its commitment to delivering exceptional user experiences, paving the way for continued success and leadership in the market.
Reflections
The Importance Of Live Testing
Throughout the Electric Miles redesign project, a significant challenge emerged due to limited access to live chargers for testing. With remote development teams and logistical constraints, reliance on simulators became necessary, compromising the reliability of our product downstream. Despite efforts to simulate real-world conditions, reliance on untrustworthy simulators introduced unforeseen complications, hindering proactive issue identification.
Reflecting on these testing limitations highlights the critical need for robust testing procedures and access to live environments in product development. Moving forward, prioritizing real-world testing scenarios and advocating for improved infrastructure can enhance Electric Miles' product reliability and performance, fostering a seamless user experience and driving innovation in the EV charging landscape.
Final Note
Unfortunately, despite the product teams best efforts and advocacy, the challenge of limited access to live chargers persisted throughout my tenure at Electric Miles. This ongoing obstacle significantly impeded our ability to ensure the reliability and effectiveness of our product solutions. Regrettably, as this issue remained unresolved and continued to hinder progress, it ultimately contributed to my decision to leave the company.
While I am proud of the contributions made during my time at Electric Miles, the inability to address this fundamental challenge ultimately led me to seek opportunities elsewhere where I could more effectively contribute to impactful and innovative projects.