Determining the Need for a New Application ...
Our client Homeward Bound is a new, locally-owned company based out of Youngstown, Ohio, focusing on finding forever homes for shelter pets around the United States.
THE PROBLEM
There are numerous options when it comes to selecting a family pet, from breeders to pet stores to animal shelters. Animal shelters are by far the most overlooked option, due to “second hand” stigmas.
“Animal shelters currently provide only 10 to 20% of the animals people take into their homes,” according to People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA).
Finding the perfect pet match for a family can be challenging when existing pet adoption websites are designed poorly, with their photography portraying sad, depressed animals, and their search functionality lacking personalization for the user’s pet-finding needs. This can lead to frustrated users, who may not have wanted a “second-hand pet” in the first place.
Currently, nearly 40% (2.5 million) of companion animals entering shelters each year are either euthanized or remain in need of adoption.
SOURCE: PETA These estimates are based in part on Shelter Animals Count data and other known and estimated sources, 2015-2018.
THE DESIGN CHALLENGE
The access points to these animals, such as websites and/or mobile applications need improved to reduce this number.
Initial Questions
Who are the target users?
Who is the competition?
What are the competition’s successful and unsuccessful elements?
What do users focus on?
What goals would the users like to accomplish?
How can we help users meet these goals with the creation of an interactive application?
project goals
Homeward Bound is looking to build a new, mobile application that will mobilize pet adoption, and reduce the unnecessary euthanization of pets in the United States. This application will be a new, stand-alone product, that will help improve the current process for finding homes for pets on individual pet adoption sites.