Aroy Thai
How I redesigned this small business's site
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TOOLS
Figma
Sketch
DURATION
4 Weeks
MY ROLE
UX Researcher
UX/UI Designer
BACKGROUND
Aroy
Aroy Thai is a small family-owned restaurant that embodies a rich cultural heritage and a deep commitment to exceptional hospitality. As first-generation immigrants to the United States, the restaurant's owners sought to share a part of their homeland through their unique recipes and culinary traditions. Their passion for food and culture is palpable in every dish they create, making Aroy Thai a beloved community gathering place for locals and visitors alike.
THE PROBLEM
Aroy Thai, as a new restaurant seeks innovative and more efficient ways to drive sales while leveraging on technology. They are currently confronted with the challenge of not having an engaging and innovative website, which may result in limited traction and reduced brand awareness.
THE GOAL
Our goal is to redesign the site to be more engaging and user-friendly, catering to the needs and expectations of both the restaurant and its customers. While also focusing on creating a website that aligns with Aroy’s goals and values, while also delivering an exceptional user experience.
PRE-EMPHATHIZING
What is wrong with the current site?
Before conducting research, I analyzed the previous site to see what current user's were seeing. These are a few takeaways I made before conducting my research and interviews.
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The website lacks an engaging landing page
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Users are directed straight to the online ordering system
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The current order page has no visual designs
User Interviews
By interviewing restaurant goers who frequented Aroy Thai...
I was able to sit down and personally ask 10 interviewees to conduct a walk through of the current site. Being sure to ask them focus questions that would help further the research and ideation process of the new design.
03 What are the most common challenges you face when ordering online
02 What improvement would you want to see on the site?
01 How often do you order online on Arroy?
04 How important do you think website design is in influencing your decision to order from a restaurant online
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EMPATHIZE
Competitive Analysis
In order to have a better understanding of Aroy's users, I conducted a competitive analysis to identify competitors based in Houston. I researched their strength's and weaknesses to inform Aroy's new structure.
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03 Enjoy an engaging site
01 Create a popular dish feature to help indecisive users
01 Users would prefer to see popular dishes or have recommendations given to them
03 Remodel the site to be more visually engaging and easier to navigate
02 Likes to see images of dishes to gauge the size and amount they would be receiving
02 Incorporate photos of items for users to see
PAIN POINTS
NEW IDEAS
DEFINE
The Problem
Using the data collected from the interviews I defined the pain points that users face and used them to generate new ideas for the new website.
User Personas
Meet Chloe, Penny, and Steven!
Because I was able to meet and speak with so many great customers, I was able to generate 3 user personas that aided in the new design. Based off my interviews, the goals and pain points of the personas align with real users.
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IDEATE
Site Map
Since this is a redesign of an existing website, I decided to separate the order online and menu feature, in order to help users decide on items before ordering online.
PROTOTYPE
Low-Fidelity
The most important element a restaurant can have on its site is the menu page, allowing customers to easily see what to eat. I have generated two mockups to create a high-fidelity design from.
Variations
The first design featured a simple menu page, utilizing buttons to navigate through each section of the menu, with the items displayed on different pages.
The second design involved a single page that incorporated a carousel to slide through dishes, all while allowing users to scroll to view other sections.
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High-Fidelity
Following thorough research and creative ideation,
I incorporated photos provided by Aroy Thai's owners and highlighted their growing chain of restaurants as part of the new site's redesign. These changes aimed to enhance the site's visibility and attract more visitors. I'm pleased to say that the project is now complete.
Landing Page
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The new site design features a popular dish section
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Used photos from real menu items
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Created a visually pleasing landing page
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Showcased different locations with the same owners
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Order Page
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Used photos for users to visually see items
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Created a carousel to move through images
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Clear descriptions
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Added location and hours
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FEEDBACK
After finishing my final design,
I showcased the prototypes to a few customers and the owner who approved of the visuals and aesthetics.
FINAL DESIGN
What I Learned...
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How to create a carousel image slider on Figma. It made designing for a website more fun being able to create a fun interaction.
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That design plays an important part into business traction. A lot of customers agreed that they would rather have some visual design than none at all.
If I had more time I would have...
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Developed each feature more throughly. Since time was a big constraint I wasn't able to create a fully functioning site since it was built through Figma as well.
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Taken my own photos instead of using previous photos taken by the owners.
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Interviewed more customers. It was great being able to talk to people about my families business and share our stories.
REFLECTIONS
Embarking on this UX redesign project for Aroy Thai, my family's restaurant, infused a profound personal significance into my work. It provided me with the chance to create something impactful for them. As I delved into the design process, my primary focus was on catering to the customer's needs. I carefully considered their previous site, determined an intuitive layout, and aimed to replicate the real-life ordering experience at Aroy Thai.
While my initial emphasis was on enhancing the user experience, a pivotal objective for this sprint was to devise strategies that would assist Aroy Thai in navigating through the challenges posed by the pandemic. This necessitated a shift in perspective towards a more business-oriented approach.
I found a symbiotic relationship between the customer-centric and business-centric aspects of the redesign. A satisfied customer not only contributes to a positive user experience but can also translate into increased revenue. Looking ahead, I envision exploring additional avenues, such as the incorporation of a rewards program, to further align with and enhance the overall business model in future iterations.