RESTAURANT USER EXPERIENCE Aligning insights with organization strategy
Identifying the customer profiles to help direct the restaurant’s strategic efforts.
CONTENT
FOREWORD This is a User Experience (UX) mini project made for Earth Kitchen during the researcher’s internship with On-Off Group (OOG). This document should not be reproduced without permission.
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Project Overview “Discovering their customer profiles in order to align their future strategic decisions, marketing and innovation efforts on customer insight‌â€?
The goal of this project was to find ways by which UX could be of value to Earth Kitchen and act upon those findings. During the needs assessment meeting, Earth Kitchen was asked about their metrics (foot traffic, daily customer averages, peak periods and days) and their customer profiles. While this was not formally recorded, they said they had an idea of who their customers were. It was decided that this UX project had to assist Earth Kitchen in discovering their customer profiles in order to align their future strategic decisions, marketing and innovation efforts on customer insight. 3
What is UX? In this UX mini project, the interactions are not with a product but a service, EARTH KITCHEN’s restaurant. But what exactly is UX? User Experience (UX) is the process of creating meaningful and personally relevant experiences. It is an awareness of the different touchpoints encountered in the interactions that shape the perception of the user. There are so many different ways of defining what UX is. At the core of all these different definitions is a commitment to designing products and services with the customers in mind. This is done through extensive research and using that information to build products and services that provide positive experiences. UX follows a process of extensive research, problem definition, validation of findings and iterations to ensure that the end product or service works well for the people.
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Needs Assessment During the needs assessment meeting with Earth Kitchen, three concerns were brought forward: 1. 2. 3.
The need to boost customer numbers by exerting more effort into marketing; The idea to innovate on current products (as described by Christine, “the need to make pakulo�); The need to improve on-ground experience.
It was also mentioned that despite the three items being in their priorities, the restaurant and shop is packed with activities making it overwhelming. It was a constant juggling of responsibilities and activities. This idea of who their customers are have to be validated in order to make sure that their knowledge of their customers reflect reality. As a result of this deeper understanding of their customer profile, their strategic decisions will be derived from customer insight.
At the end of this engagement, Earth Kitchen was expected to: 1.
Have conducted surveys to gather insight from their customers;
2.
Created a to-do list to enhance the on-ground restaurant experience;
3.
Developed a better understanding of their customer profiles through Personas and Empathy Maps;
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And, make strategic decisions based on insight from their Customers.
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Project Activities and Output The table below shows the planned project activities and outputs. Three main priority activities were identified. EARTH KITCHEN MINI UX PROJECT Activity
Outputs
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Customer Research (Surveys)
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Survey Results
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Persona creation (based on survey results)
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Identified marketing channels
Mini Experiments (promos) and Physical Tweaks
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Feedback Action Steps
1. CUSTOMER RESEARCH The goal of the customer research is to be able to have a deeper understanding of the restaurants customers beyond knowledge and assumptions we currently have. 2. PERSONA CREATION As defined by the Nielsen and Norman Group, User personas are fictitious yet realistic representations of your target users. They act as a multipurpose tool used to drive many important product development tasks 3. MINI EXPERIMENTS Earth Kitchen’s representative recognized the need to offer something. The only way to know if the idea will work is for her to be able to experiment on her ideas and work with the feedbacks and insight she gathers. 6
What are Personas? Customer research is identified as the primary activity because insights derived from its results will provide the context for the decisions made in the succeeding outputs. It is hard to design products or services from an insight but it is easier to do so with a persona. Personas are fictional characters created based upon your research. This is not one person but a personification of qualities, goals and characteristics similar amongst those you have collected data from. They represent different user or customer types who may use your service, product, site and brand. Personas provide meaningful archetypes which you can use to assess your planned activities against. Constructing personas will help you ask the right questions and answer those questions in line with the customers you are catering to.
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Difference between Target Market and Personas Human Centered Design prevents acting upon assumptions by collating research and personifying patterns. Instead of defining outright who the target market of a product or service is, personas use research as basis for their design decisions. This way, the end result is a product or service catering to the real needs of the customer.
WHY SHOULD I DESIGN FOR PERSONAS WHEN I CAN DESIGN FOR A TARGET MARKET? Designing for a target market presupposes that you “know” your user’s motivations, goals, behaviors and thoughts. Many individuals and teams design products with these presuppositions. This runs the very big risk of missing the mark. And the way to avoid this is simple: Do your research before designing and developing your product or service. That way you design and develop in a way supported by insight and data.
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Understanding the Customer’s Mindset When you design and develop a product or a service you collect data from people of different backgrounds, experiences and preferences. It is important to be able to make sense of the information you have collected. So the question now is, “How do you achieve common understanding?� Mapping is one of the ways to achieve that. Mapping presents visualized representations of different aspects and processes associated with that product or service. Because the goal of this UX mini project is to gain a better understanding of the users , the recommended mapping technique is the Empathy Maps.
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What are empathy maps? Human-Centered design keeps people’s lives and desires at the core of designing products, services or solutions. These are reflected in their mindset. Empathy maps help designers understand that mindset. The Nielsen Norman Group defines empathy maps as a tool that: “externalizes user knowledge in order to 1) create a shared understanding, and 2) aid in decision making.” This helps the designer/s align to the customer’s needs because it helps keep in mind the user’s perspectives. It contains four quadrants: says, thinks, feels and does. It is not sequential. There is one empathy map per persona. Image from the Nielsen Norman Group Website
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Data Collection There are many ways to collect information from your users. Good data collection has to be: â—? Worded in a way that is easy to understand â—? Tackle a specific research focus â—? Most importantly, unbiased. The data collection deemed ideal for this UX mini project was through Survey (see appendix). However, due to unforeseen delays in the timeline, the UX researcher decided to run naturalistic observations from which she, created proto-personas and empathy maps. This will serve as a guide for succeeding research activities to be done by Earth Kitchen.
What are proto-personas? Unlike the standard persona, proto-personas are based on the assumptions of the stakeholders, and further checked against actual data. Proto-personas are utilized to to ensure alignment amongst our client stakeholders. They ultimately represent what we think our users are like. They are not replacements for personas developed from research but are to be used in conjunction with one.
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Data Limitations The UX researcher would like to list the following limitations to the data that will be presented in the next slides: 1.
The personas presented here are PROTO PERSONAS. a. The data presented will not be as thorough as the data that would have been collected via a survey. b. The data presented is limited to the observations made by the researcher during her 5 day observation period. (3 time slots on a weekday and 2 on a weekend) c. The empathy maps’ content are based on assumptions made from the PROTO-PERSONAS. These will most likely be modified once the data from the survey comes in.
2.
The proto-personas listed here have to be used in conjunction with a proper persona study in order to be further validated by collected data. 12
Observations Most of the customers were ● Women in their mid 40s. ● Men in their early to mid 50s with either another man for a daytime meeting, with his wife or with his family (seen on weekends) ● Young parents, especially mothers in their early 30s with toddlers or young children. Minimal Millennial Presence ● During the observation period, there was at most, 6 individuals who could count as millennials. (Excluded are the people who were part of the Latte Making Competition) ●
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Observations Food Preferences ● Sharing seemed to be a common amongst restaurant goers especially with salads, pastas and tacos. ● Families also shared drinks and other dishes with with bigger servings. Interactions with the staff is minimal. ● Staff did not readily recommend items or present the advocacy but usually come when called on. ● Staff took longer to attend to the customers during weekends. Physical arrangement ● The store area is difficult to maneuver around because the table and shelves only leave a narrow space for customer to walk through. ● Tables on the perimeter of the restaurants are preferred over the ones in the middle.
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PROTO-PERSONAS & Empathy Maps
PROTO PERSONA: Tita Cherry Garcia Age: In her 40s Gender: Female Location: Quezon City Occupation: High level manager of a company’s department
“I want to meet my friends in cozy places, without a lot of kids and delicious healthy food for me and my Tita friends.”
Technographics: Has a mobile phone for keeping in touch, taking photos and other devices (iPad) manage her magazine subscriptions and books. She has a handful of app-based games. Usually gets to know about photo editing apps from her children or nieces.
CUSTOMER BIO: Tita Cherry is that woman you know who has passed her career woman phase. She worked while also balancing her role as a mother. She was the go-getter. Now, she’s starting to settle down, try new hobbies and meet up with friends. She is usually there during lunch-time to early afternoon.
RESTAURANT FAVORITES: Loves sharing the appetizers. She loves the pastas, the salads and the taco. She tries something new every now and then! :) 16
SAYS ● ● ● ●
“I’d like to meet with friends now that I am not as busy.” “I have new hobbies!” “Let’s eat somewhere healthy!” “I wouldn’t mind spending that because I deserve it.”
THINKS ● ●
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FEELS ●
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Accomplished (from career or from raising good children who have left the nest) Like she can finally be a little more laid back That this is the time to enjoy life as said by one of the people in Saturday’s observation, “Cincuenta ang mabenta!” Like NOW is the time to enjoy life, catch up with friends and be thefabulous Tita of Manila she was always meant to be.
About cultivating hobbies and exploring life outside her of career or children That staying healthy in the years before her sixties is important so that she can enjoy a healthy retirement That she would rather catch up in a cosy restaurant with friends near their houses
DOES ● ● ●
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Explore new restaurants and health spas Try new hobbies Have money to spend on restaurants and activities, millennials might consider a “splurge” Like eating a variety of the different dishes available at Earth Kitchen. She either: ○ Orders multiple items to share with her friends ○ Orders a new item each time she visits so she gets to try something new.
Tita Cherry
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PROTO PERSONA: Mr. Rey Delos Santos Age: In his mid 50s Gender: Male Location: Quezon City Occupation: Top Managerial position (lifetime employee); part-time stocks trader.
Technographics: Phone is for email, SMS and Facebook. He is not tech-savy.
CUSTOMER BIO: Mr. Rey is the responsible family man. Who worked 5-6 days a week to make sure his family was well provided for. He makes an effort to take his family out to Sunday lunch in places with good food. Sometimes, he will even meet partners outside of
“I have to watch what I eat now. I should also spend time with and take my family out restaurants now that I have the time to…”
Now that Rey is starting to be close to his retirement age, he is starting to be more conscious of his health. He loves meat dishes but now incorporates as much fruits and vegetables in his diet. RESTAURANT FAVORITES: The bacon slab, the kebab. He loves his meat but now has to cut down and watch what he eats. Despite holding back on the meats, the makes sure he orders the salads and fresh juices. Oftentimes will get a coffee.
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Of the different types of individuals assumed to be customers, the “Tito” or “Father” type seemed have been unnoticed. During the observation period, number of customers have been middle aged men either with family or with another fellow. It would be recommended to further validate this customer type through the data collection.
SAYS ●
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THINKS
I just want a private, quiet place with decent food for day meetings This place is nice, not too crowded with parking space “I need coffee” “I need to have a salad to include vegetables.” That he would rather eat something tasty than something healthy and bland
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FEELS ● ● ● ●
About job related matters and retirement About keeping himself healthy Does not really care about the ingredient origins as long as he gets to eat the dishes he wants. Of bringing children and wife to restaurants on weekend
DOES
Like this is a nice meeting venue Like this is a place good for “adults” Like his wife/sister/mother might enjoy Earth Kitche Like this is a nice place to take his family
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Run on coffee Not think about the advocacy of the restaurant Like a place that is quiet Like a place with good parking and decent coffee
Mr. Rey’s Empathy Map 19
PROTO PERSONA: Mrs. Rose Quijano Age: In her 30s Gender: Female Location: Quezon City Occupation: Full-time Mother
Technographics: She has a phone for connectivity and an iPad that is filled with her magazine subscriptions and her kid’s games.
CUSTOMER BIO: Rose is the dedicated mother. In between bringing her kids to school, she sometimes squeezes in a quick brunch with a friend (before she has to pick up her toddler) or does a quick workout. She is still in the early years of being a mother where her kids demand her attention most.
“I like that there is a place with good, healthy and organic food for me and my family. I just wish that the area could be a little more child friendly…”
RESTAURANT FAVORITES: She shares the food with her young children. Oftentimes it will be a pasta dish, fresh fruit juice and a taco. She makes sure it is something they can eat quickly and with as little mess as possible. On weekends, when they have lunch as a family,, she’ll order one or two of their favorite appetizers. Sometimes, after swimming lessons, she might bring her children here for merienda or dinner.On the days she brunches with friends or co-parents she’ll order something new. She likes being at Earth Kitchen but worries that her hyperactive kids could bump into the glass doors, table corners or knock over some of the display by the shop. 20
SAYS ● ● ● ●
“No! Don’t run there!” “Ay nako, kapag nauntog ka, yari ka!” “Finish your food, love.” That it is her job that her family is kept happy and healthy
THINKS ●
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FEELS ●
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Love for her family despite the exhaustion being a mom can be That the restaurant is good value for her money. That her younger child might bump into the glass or knock things over
About her family ○ Her children’s activities ○ Maintaining the household ○ Keeping her family health That health is wealth and that food is the best form of medicine for her family DOES
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Takes care of her kids Buy healthy organic items for her family Is also trying to take care of herself by squeezing in health activities in between errands and house chores.
Mommy Rose 21
Research Insights 1.
Customers just flipped past the first page.
The researcher understands that the restaurant would like to share its advocacy. However, the diners seem to want to go straight to the menu instead of reading the information on the first page. 2.
Road Signs
The restaurant is easy to miss especially if you’re coming from Katipunan towards Earth Kitchen. The restaurant sign is not visible. 3.
Glass door leading to the bathroom.
On a Saturday, it was observed that playful toddlers had the tendency to bump into the glass door. Adults almost hit it too. Something could be placed on the glass to prevent this. 22
4. Table Arrangements The peripheral seats are preferred. Passing through the seats placed within the center of the dining area is a little difficult given the narrow space between tables.
Image: Current placement of blackboards (partially obstructed by the pillars depending on your seat).
Also, not all tables were arranged the same way. Not all tables had a container with tissue. 5. Chalkboard of Drinks and Dessert The blackboard is visible to those within 2-3 tables of the counter but not too all. The board is beyond eye level for most customers father than the abovementioned distance Image: Ideal placement of blackboard: Unobstructed, and visible to most diners. 23
Other Notable Details 6. Child Friendly Space The restaurant welcomes a lot of adults but those adults also bring in children. Especially during the weekend. It was noticed that kids often walked around and sometimes touched items on display. Some of those items are edible goods that could be bruised. The corners of the restaurant tables are also not so safe. It would be nice to leave diners who have kids with activities they could do while waiting for the food such as coloring materials and a pen. Maybe this artistic touch could also be a way of sharing the advocacy through themed coloring pages or stories.
Making a child friend restaurant: Keeping the kids busy.
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Recommendations 1.
Implement the Survey Post-Holiday Service
This booklet presents personas are proto-personas. This has to be used in conjunction with further research in the form of a survey. Administer the survey for at least two weeks to see patterns and trends with foot traffic, types of customers and frequently ordered items. Do not be restricted by the proto-personas. Chances are, with a longer and more detailed tool, there may be other customer personas. 2.
Update or Create new Personas and Empathy Maps based on the survey insights
Remember that personas are personifications of trends. They do not have to be an exact match in age or gender. What is important is that their description manifests a similarity in behavior, motivations, backgrounds and mindset. 3.
Identify relevant marketing channels based on the personas.
The personas and empathy maps should give you better clarity on how best to reach your personas. Are they the techy kind? If so, what channels should you try? What about subscriptions? Which publishing companies? And so on. Your decisions have to be grounded on the personas you have made. So please take time learning about them. 25
Recommendations 4. Experiment with new things for the restaurant The restaurant has been a venue for various events. It would be good to see what kind of events bring in new customers. Or, the restaurant could also look into events fit for a certain persona. Would mothers want a cooking class? Would a certain group of your customers want a tasting menu? Or a set menu for gatherings? What about your non-customers? Are there channels that are targeted towards your current customer personas that may bring in other customer demographics?
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Thank you! 27