Project Overview
EAT U MEAL aims to provide university students, staff, and faculty with convenient access to affordable and diverse meal options around campus while supporting local food businesses.
Objective
Address the prevalent issue of university students skipping meals due to time constraints and financial concerns, as well as the challenges faced by busy faculty members in finding convenient and diverse meal options.
Personal Role
Product Design, Market Research
Project Origin and Purpose
Research indicates that a significant number of university students skip meals due to lack of time and financial constraints, negatively impacting their health and academic performance. Faculty members also struggle to find diverse and convenient meal options within their limited break times.
Primary Challenge
University students and staff face significant difficulties in accessing affordable and convenient meal options due to time constraints, financial limitations, and the lack of a cohesive platform that connects them with local food businesses offering special deals.
Specific Problems:
Time Constraints:
Issue: University students and faculty often have tight schedules with limited time for meals, especially during short breaks between classes and office hours.
Impact: Many skip meals or resort to unhealthy, fast food options, negatively impacting their health and academic/work performance.
Financial Limitations:
Issue: The high cost of dining out is a barrier for students who are often on tight budgets.
Impact: Financial constraints lead to students skipping meals or choosing less nutritious options, affecting their overall well-being and energy levels.
Lack of Convenient Meal Options:
Issue: Faculty and staff have limited options for convenient and diverse meals near the campus, particularly during short lunch breaks.
Impact: Limited meal options result in monotonous and less enjoyable eating experiences, reducing overall satisfaction and productivity.
Post-Pandemic Recovery for Local Food Businesses:
Issue: Local food businesses are struggling to recover from the pandemic and need effective ways to reach their target audience, particularly university students and staff.
Impact: Without a platform to promote their offerings, these businesses face difficulties in attracting customers and boosting sales.
Target Users and Market Analysis:
University students, staff, and faculty in the campus area.
Local food businesses around the university campus.
Research and Discovery
User Interviews and Surveys
To understand the needs, preferences, and pain points of university students, staff, and faculty, a series of user interviews and surveys were conducted. The key findings include:
University Students:
Pain Points: Lack of time to find and enjoy meals, high cost of dining out, limited healthy options.
Needs: Affordable meal options, quick and convenient access to food, special deals and discounts, variety in meal choices.
Preferences: Mobile app with easy navigation, quick ordering process, ability to customize meals, integration with student IDs for discounts.
University Staff and Faculty:
Pain Points: Busy schedules with short meal breaks, limited access to diverse and healthy meal options.
Needs: Convenient meal ordering and delivery, diverse food options, ability to schedule meals in advance.
Preferences: Mobile app with reliable delivery, ability to view and compare different restaurant offerings, options for healthy and balanced meals.
Local Food Businesses:
Pain Points: Difficulty in reaching the university community, challenges in promoting special offers and discounts, need for customer feedback.
Needs: Platform to promote their business, ability to offer discounts and special deals, customer feedback mechanism.
Preferences: User-friendly interface for posting offers, ability to track and analyze customer feedback, integration with delivery services.
User Personas:
Focus Group
User interviews, surveys, and focus groups to understand the eating habits, preferences, and pain points of university students and staff.
Focus groups were conducted to gather in-depth insights and validate survey findings. Participants discussed their daily eating habits, challenges they face, and features they would like to see in a food delivery app. Key takeaways include:
Desire for a community-driven platform where students can help each other with meal deliveries.
Interest in personalized meal recommendations based on dietary preferences and past orders.
Need for a robust feedback system for both users and restaurant owners to improve service quality.
EAT U MEAL's Competitive Edge
Affordability: By offering exclusive student discounts and minimizing delivery fees, EAT U MEAL aims to provide cost-effective meal options.
Convenience: A user-friendly app with quick ordering and delivery services tailored to the needs of university students and staff.
Community Engagement: Encouraging students to become "Holders" and deliver meals to peers and faculty, fostering a sense of community.
Support for Local Businesses: Providing a platform for local restaurants to promote their offerings and gather valuable customer feedback.
Competitive Matrix:
Needs Analysis
Problem Statement:
University students and staff face challenges in accessing affordable and convenient meal options due to time constraints and financial limitations. Local food businesses need a platform to effectively reach their target audience and promote their offers.
Design Goals:
Provide a platform that offers affordable meal options with exclusive student discounts.
Enable quick and convenient food ordering and delivery.
Support local food businesses by providing a platform for promotions and feedback.
Information Architecture
Flowcharts and Site Maps:
Final Product Showcase
Screenshots of Final Design:
Functionality Interactive Prototype:
