ReSub

Overview

Resub is a subscription management application that cuts the stress out of organizing and tracking recurring bills. For this project, I created a mobile friendly version of a theoretical desktop based application by using research, business goals, and desktop screens to guide my vision.

Conducting a competitive analysis

Due to time restrictions, I decided to do a competitive analysis of 5 mobile subscription management applications and deep dive into their user reviews. While I do not directly engage with users, this process enables me to understand potential users and spend more time on synthesizing what they want.

Notes from personal testing and evaluation

Customer review in app store

Subscription Manager - BIlls

Haitus

Truebill

Bobby

Prism Pay Bills, Bill Reminder

Three main objectives for the mobile redesign

From data I collected by doing a competitive analysis, I concluded that there were three main objectives I had to keep in mind when designing the mobile version of Resub.

• ‍Easy onboarding
  Offer users multiple ways to input their subscriptions and be careful not to overwhelm them at this stage. It is the most taxing and vital part of joining the app. 
• Functionality
  The application must be significantly better than a banking app. Users want to track their budget and unsubscribe quickly and easily to save money. 
• Clean layout
  Ensure that the information, especially the price and date, of the subscription is easy to spot.

Identifying user flows through competitor research

After conducting my research, I created some user flow diagrams to visualize the main actions users would be taking. By researching competitors, I had learned what flows made sense and what type of route is ideal for the user’s experience.

Responding to a notification

Checking in on subscriptions

Prototyping and testing

Sketches

To begin designing, I created some sketches to roughly map out what I wanted to include on various screens. These screens included visual elements I felt were easy to look at and easy to use from competing applications.

Low fidelity wireframe

I turned the sketches into rough wireframes so that it would be easier to test remotely. Below, I have included photos of the red routes I developed in figma.

Guerilla Usability Testing

Prior to designing my app any further, I assessed what parts of the app were usable and where it could be improved through some remote usability tests conducted through zoom. Test participants found many issues, including:

• Bank synchronization
  Users wanted to understand the process more and felt wary about trusting the app with such sensitive information.
• Delete vs Cancel subscription
  Seem redundant and it is confusing to users why both are present.
• Inputting subscriptions
  Clarify what information needs to be entered and allow users to view and edit the additional information.

Developing a style guide

Prior to starting the high fidelity screens, it was important to establish a style to follow which aligned with how the company wanted to portray themselves. Resub is to appear as a trustworthy, caring, friendly, casual app. 
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I chose a navy blue as the primary color to reflect the trustworthiness and seriousness of the app, and used a bold orange and fresh green as accents to make it lighthearted. The font is all sans and does not have unnecessary flairs, making the typography feel calm and approachable.

High Fidelity Wireframe

When designing the high fidelity wireframes, I added more frames to the design to make improvements suggested through the usability tests. These screens include screens that show the bank syncing process, including one that explains to users why it is safe to sync their subscriptions through Resub.

The information within subscriptions was also reorganized so that each tab of information had a description. I removed the delete button, as per the suggestion of users, replacing it with the edit button which had been less visible previously.

Usability testing the prototype

To further assess my app, I conducted 5 remote usability tests with a new group of participants. These test participants helped me understand that users wanted more information on how they needed to input their subscriptions. Users also noted that the prototype itself was hard to use, an oversight on my part which gave testing more friction. Participants wanted more out of the report and calendar functions, as they felt there was potential with these additional features.

Prioritizing revisions to achieve within the set timeline

In this round of revisions, I focused on adjustments to enhance the onboarding process and the process of adding more subscriptions. I prioritized these changes because these screens are the primary elements of the application. 
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In the first image, I have added screens to show users the process of filling in the subscription information of preset company. In the second pair of screens, created a new set of screens to show what the user would see if they hit the plus button on the top right of the subscription dashboard to add more subscriptions. The final screen in the pair illustrates the difference between a prefilled company subscription and one added by the user themselves.

Outside of the dashboard, I also made adjustments to the report and calendar functions. I created two ways for the user to view their bill breakdowns within the report application, while in the calendar I changed the colors of the selection and date to make it easier to view and match with its respective information bar.

Reflection

I think Resub has a lot of potential as an app that I wasn’t able to capture within the time I had to dedicate to it. While the mobile app I made met the business goals, based on user reviews and feedback I received during testing, there are a number of ways to expand the app:

• Creating a budgeting system
  ‍Many users want their subscription management apps to have an element of budgeting. For Resub, the report section offers opportunity to increase the app’s budgeting and budget tracking capabilities
• Offering filters
  While the filter is included in the initial dashboard, it’s not a route I developed any further.