Goals: To create an add on app as a member benefit to the AARP site

Problem: Baby Boomers don't currently have a digital solution to store and access their important documents safely and securely

Solution: To create an app that can be used on an iPhone or tablet that allows users to digitize all their important documents and have them be accessible to loved ones

Prototype:

Process:

We created a waterfall spreadsheet that allowed us to take ownership of specific parts of the project and complete them in a timely manner. This was extremely helpful in keeping the project on track to complete in 2 weeks.

Fact Finding

We researched the Baby Boomer generation to help determine their behaviors and needs:

In less than 5 years 50% of the population will be over 50
They will control 70% of the nation's disposable income
As they become increasingly social media savvy, they'll be able to put their money towards whatever is trending
As a result, they may become the key to success for many brands

We needed to understand certain necessities for this aging generation:

Design with simplicity and usability in mind
Eliminate ambiguity
Integrate instructions whenever possible

What are they currently using for this process?

We decided to do a survey to further understand the possible needs for our product:

Takeaways

The survey findings confirmed a need for a storage solution for important documents. Moreover, it confirmed that the demographic was indeed tech savvy and familiar with cloud storage solutions. This reinforced our hypothesis that if boomers found our product pleasant and intuitive, they would be inclined to use it.

Those surveyed tended to use technology frequently in their day-to-day lives. However, although they appreciate technological solutions, they are wary of the privacy issues involved.

When it comes to online storage of important documents, they insist on security
When it comes to mobile apps, overall, they appreciate products that mimic products they are familiar with
They prefer products that are easy to read and interact with

Affinity Map

We created an Affinity Map to organize and group all the ideas we had. This helped us begin to create our Information Architecture for the app.

Market Research

Next we took a look at the competition and discovered that most websites and apps were not really catering to the Baby Boomer's need for security, instructions and usability. Most sites had a confusing and convoluted uploading process. We took the opportunity to learn best practices when it came to navigation and adding files. We liked the scanning feature offered by some apps and decided to incorporate that into our own app.

Synthesis

We created a Persona and a Scenario for our MVP

“Linda has an overflowing binder that is extremely disorganized that is filled with her family’s important papers. She has recently retired and now plans to travel with her husband. She worries about not having all her important documents in one place before she leaves and wishes there was a quick, digital solution”