Dog walking app

Dog walking app

Dog walking app

Team

1 person

My role

User Research

Interaction

UI design

Prototyping & Testing

Design system

Year

2023

Brief

Brief

Brief

A UX design concept for a mobile app that allows busy dog owners in a mountain town in France to easily reserve trusted dog sitters and walkers. The project focuses on creating a smooth, reliable booking experience tailored to local residents and seasonal visitors.

Problem

Problem

Problem

Many dog owners spend long days skiing, working full-time, or visiting on holiday, leaving them without consistent daytime care for their dogs. Existing options are fragmented, unreliable, or difficult to arrange on short notice. It is also challenging to build trust with individual sitters, as existing options lack transparency, reviews, or clear verification.

Solution

Solution

Solution

A dedicated dog walking and sitting app that offers quick booking, real-time availability, and trusted local caregivers. A built-in trust system—featuring profiles, reviews, verification, and clear communication—helps owners feel confident when choosing a sitter.

1.

1.

1.

Design process

Design process

Design process

Research / discovery

Research / discovery

Research / discovery

Work began by defining users’ core challenges and problems. Four dog owners were interviewed, revealing needs for reliable availability, transparent sitter profiles, and simple booking.

Work began by defining users’ core challenges and problems. Four dog owners were interviewed, revealing needs for reliable availability, transparent sitter profiles, and simple booking.

Design

Design

Design

Key app attributes—trustworthy, reliable, clean, intuitive—guided the visual direction. Typography, colors, and components were chosen to create a professional yet friendly interface, supported by a consistent style system.

Key app attributes—trustworthy, reliable, clean, intuitive—guided the visual direction. Typography, colors, and components were chosen to create a professional yet friendly interface, supported by a consistent style system.

Prototyping & Testing

Prototyping & Testing

Prototyping & Testing

Two dog owners tested tasks such as searching for a walker and booking a walk, completing them easily. Feedback led to clearer CTA wording and increased button padding to improve accessibility.

Two dog owners tested tasks such as searching for a walker and booking a walk, completing them easily. Feedback led to clearer CTA wording and increased button padding to improve accessibility.

2.

2.

2.

Concept and development

Concept and development

Concept and development

Research

Research

Research

The process began with clarifying the challenges our potential users faced and aligning them with Dog.Walkers’s business objectives. Four dog owners were interviewed to uncover their frustrations and needs, leading to several key insights.

The process began with clarifying the challenges our potential users faced and aligning them with Dog.Walkers’s business objectives. Four dog owners were interviewed to uncover their frustrations and needs, leading to several key insights.

Key pain points

Key pain points

Trustability

Trustability

Trustability

One of the main issues our cohort faced was building trust through an app. I had a brainstorming session on how I can design trust in various ways.

One of the main issues our cohort faced was building trust through an app. I had a brainstorming session on how I can design trust in various ways.

User persona

User persona

User persona

The next step was to define the user persona based on all the information gathered.

The next step was to define the user persona based on all the information gathered.

And with user persona defined, key gain points were highlighted to address in the design.

And with user persona defined, key gain points were highlighted to address in the design.

Gain points

Gain points

User flows & Wireframes

User flows & Wireframes

User flows & Wireframes

Since the user persona had limited time, the app needed to feel familiar and straightforward. Features like saving favourites, a personalised dashboard, and entering dog details in advance were designed to create a faster, more tailored experience.

Since the user persona had limited time, the app needed to feel familiar and straightforward. Features like saving favourites, a personalised dashboard, and entering dog details in advance were designed to create a faster, more tailored experience.

Wireframes were used to test and validate these solution ideas, emphasizing a clean and functional layout.

3.

3.

3.

Design and prototypes

Design and prototypes

Design and prototypes

After the discovery phase, the core qualities defined for the app were trustworthiness, reliability, cleanliness, and intuitive use. Typography, colors, and visual elements were selected to create a professional, polished look with a subtle sense of friendliness.

After the discovery phase, the core qualities defined for the app were trustworthiness, reliability, cleanliness, and intuitive use. Typography, colors, and visual elements were selected to create a professional, polished look with a subtle sense of friendliness.

4.

4.

4.

Designing trust

Designing trust

Designing trust

Various elements such as badges, reviews, endorsements and language were incorporated to help solve the issue around trustability.

Various elements such as badges, reviews, endorsements and language were incorporated to help solve the issue around trustability.

5.

5.

5.

Design system

Design system

Design system

Components and style system helped provide consistency and speed.

Components and style system helped provide consistency and speed.

6.

6.

6.

Prototype and test

Prototype and test

Prototype and test

The design was tested with two dog owners who were asked to search for a walker, view a profile, and book a walk.

Both completed the flow successfully and found it familiar and straightforward. Their suggestions included being able to search for a type of walk the dog needs —prompting to add a filter for different types of walks and care — and increased card padding for better accessibility.

The design was tested with two dog owners who were asked to search for a walker, view a profile, and book a walk.

Both completed the flow successfully and found it familiar and straightforward. Their suggestions included being able to search for a type of walk the dog needs —prompting to add a filter for different types of walks and care — and increased card padding for better accessibility.

One participant also shared the following comment after finishing the task:

One participant also shared the following comment after finishing the task:

Go back to my work

SB

About me

Work

Let’s talk

SB

About me

Work

Let’s talk

SB

About me

Work

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