Craving Donuts? Now Just a Tap Away.
Project Overview
Timeline
Jul 2023 - Jan 2024
Industry
Food Trucks & Mobile Food Services
Role
UI/UX Designer, UX Researcher
Tools
Figma, Figjam
Brief summary
Big O Donuts is a mobile food truck concept. The challenge was reducing wait times and improving real time visibility for customers through a mobile first ordering experience.
Goal
Your Sweet Spot on the Go! Track our rolling bakery, order ahead, and indulge in our mouthwatering treats
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Design a fun, intuitive interface for easy ordering.
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Add real time GPS tracking to reduce location confusion.
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Streamline checkout and reduce wait times.
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Create dynamic menus that sync with inventory.
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Build a playful, consistent brand experience.
The Challenge & Solution
Challenge
Locating the Truck:
Users struggled to find the moving truck in real time, causing frustration and wasted time.
Long Wait Times:
In person ordering led to queues and uncertainty about wait duration.
Lack of Engagement:
Without an app presence, repeat customers had limited visibility or repeat engagement.
Solution
Real Time GPS Tracking for Easy Access:
Embedded tracking so users always know where the truck is and can plan their visit.
Real Time Progress Updates:
Pre ordering and progress updates minimize LOSING TIME and reduce queues.
Playful & Engaging Brand Experience:
A fun, intuitive experience that improves confidence and reduces cognitive load when ordering.
Research Process
Methods
Industry Research: Understanding Food Truck Challenges
Explored pain points in mobile food service, such as location tracking and long wait times.
Competitive Analysis: Learning from Similar Apps
Studied food truck apps like Roaming Hunger, Off the Grid, and local ordering platforms to identify best practices.
User Expectations: What Customers Want
Analyzed QSR (Quick Service Restaurant) consumer behavior, focusing on ordering preferences, convenience, and engagement.
Key Insights:
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Customers expect fast, frictionless ordering and real time updates, informing the need for embedded status and location feedback.
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Food trucks with a digital presence show higher repeat engagement, emphasizing value in onboarding and retention features.
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Pre orders and live tracking significantly reduce frustration, guiding priority feature focus on visibility and checkout flow.
User Persona
Users In Context
User Persona:
Created a user persona representing Big O Donuts’ typical customer to pinpoint key behaviors, motivations, and pain points. This guided a user centered design focused on seamless ordering, real time tracking, and menu clarity, making the app more intuitive, engaging, and efficient for food-truck customers.
Design Approach
Focus
Building a user friendly app that improves the food truck experience by making it easy to find, order, and engage with Big O Donuts.
Ideation Phase:
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Task Flow Mapping: Designed a seamless journey from truck discovery to order pickup.
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Crazy 8’s: Explored multiple layout options for tracking, ordering, and engagement.
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Feature Prioritization: Focused on essential functions real time tracking, mobile ordering, and dynamic menus.
Design Process:
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Designed a clear, intuitive flow so users can quickly locate the truck, explore the menu, and place orders with ease.
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Simplified the ordering and checkout process to allow users to complete transactions in just a few taps.
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Integrated live updates so users can follow their order’s progress from preparation to pickup, keeping them informed every step of the way.
Logo Design Process:
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Brainstorming & Sketching: Explored multiple logo concepts through freehand sketches and digital mockups.
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Experimentation: Tested various shapes, typography, and color schemes to reflect the brand’s energy.
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Refinement & Iteration: Reworked designs based on visual impact and brand alignment.
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Final Selection: Chose a bold, vibrant logo that captures the excitement of the food truck experience.
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Seamless Brand Integration: Ensured the final logo fit cohesively within the app’s visual identity.
Design System:
The design system created a cohesive look and ensured harmony across typography, buttons, and color. It improved usability while reinforcing Big O Donuts’ visual identity.
Outcome
Results & Impact
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By streamlining ordering and introducing pre orders, wait times are projected to decrease by 25–30%, improving customer flow during peak hours.
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Embedded GPS truck tracking was expected to increase location engagement by 20%, helping users easily find the truck.
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Dynamic menus predicted to reduce item unavailability reports by 15%, creating smoother order experiences.
What I Learned
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Visibility drives trust, real time feedback and updates reduce anxiety and improve perceived reliability.
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Prioritizing simplicity and speed in ordering flows supports user goals more effectively than added features.
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A cohesive brand and intuitive interactions can increase user engagement and retention even in conceptual products
