When physical connection is restricted, how can we build on the sense of community offered by local cafes and establish these places as community hubs beyond the pandemic?
I began by exploring ideas for a website for my local cafe, looking at new opportunities for increasing sales but also as a way of bringing together people as they search for new routines and ways of working and living.
Explore the possibilities for expanding the business proposition to better serve the community and create a hub for bringing people together beyond the pandemic.
skip to prototypeResearch how, when & why existing customers use the cafe
Analyse competitors to understand their strengths, weaknesses & identify opportunities
Identify ways in which a sense of local community can be fostered & maintained
Determine the key demographic that is most likely to use the cafe
Define and understand the key factors that determine why a customer chooses to support a particular cafe
In order to explore wider hospitality and coffee industry trends market research was carried out by investigating articles, relevant influencers, published reports & SME interviews.
With everyone struggling in 2020, there has been a collective attitude to support the shops closer to home to help them survive. Having been limited to our locality during lockdowns has also meant more of us are choosing to invest in our own communities.
Subscription boxes have seen a steady rise over the last year, thanks to the in-person shopping limitations.
In-home experiences where people can taste, learn, do and get involved in things like blind coffee tastings and barista experiences from the comfort of their own home
Sustainability now goes beyond food & drink packaging - consumers also want to know where the coffee they drink comes from, how it’s grown, how it’s harvested, if the growers are paid a fair price, and if the whole process is ethical.
As travel is still a way off being back to normal, a taste of other cultures’ cuisine and coffee is becoming more desirable.
Healthy coffees will come to the fore as people look at how they can reduce their fat intake, increase their overall health, and in particular their gut health.
This led me to question the validity of the project: would a small, local coffee shop really benefit from a website and could you justify the cost and upkeep involved?
Looking back at my initial research I refocused on the 'why' of the project; creating a digital space for encouraging local engagement. I decided this concept was something that could work more broadly for local coffee shops across the UK and had potential beyond my local cafe.
This led me to question the validity of the project: would a small, local coffee shop really benefit from a website and could you justify the cost and upkeep involved?
I looked back at my initial research and reminded myself of a study that had directly looked at the importance of coffee shops in connecting the local community. I also refocused on the 'why' of the project; creating a digital space for encouraging local engagement. I decided this concept was something that could work more broadly for local coffee shops across the UK and had potential beyond my favoured cafe.
Four remote interviews were conducted with participants between the ages of 35-37. Three of whom had young children.
One unexpected insight was the level of loyalty to coffee chains that some of the participants had.
This may simply be a reflection on the area and local cafes where the participants live however it also highlights the benefits that larger chains offer in terms of reliability, choice and facilities, especially for those with young children.
“maybe they were just friendly to all the babies, but I remember all the staff would recognise Charlie, the little one. Which was nice.”
“the staff kind of know me as well, cause they always get me a nice table”
“It's like my weekend tradition. After finishing at the gym, I would walk back and go and get brunch and a coffee”
Sociable but time poor. Values local community and keen to support local businesses.
Up early before the rest of the family and appreciates the walks as much as the dog.
Used to commute into London, now working from home. Likes to get out for a break at lunch.
Enjoys long picturesque cycle rides at the weekend planning in breaks at local cafes or pubs
My first attempt at a site map resulted in something oversized and over complicated considering the size of the business. After looking back over the project goals I managed to simplify it by identifying three core sections of the site; ‘Cafe Menu’, ‘The Pantry’ & ‘Community Hub’.
I discovered through my research that many people rely on Google Maps to seek out new cafes so I created a task flow based around a potential customer deciding where to get lunch. This helped me to focus on the key information this customer would be looking for when arriving on a cafe homepage to help them in their decision.
I created three user flows for Laura based on different scenarios for which she might realistically have to use the site:
Authentic, positive, community feel with an understated aesthetic that represents the high quality products sold.
The majority of users will be on-the-go. Design for mobile first before making the website fully responsive.
Focus on the three core sections of the site; 'Cafe Menu’, ‘The Pantry’ & ‘Community Hub’.
I felt the cafe name could be made more specific to the local area and the logo more unique.
Over the last three years that the cafe has existed it has had two owners and two different names. Despite the changes ‘Little’ has remained part of the cafe's name and I thought it beneficial to keep this as a remembered link.
The cafe is opposite a Heath (a public park with woods and a children’s play area) and this is what makes it such a good location for the business. I therefore chose to rebrand the cafe as ‘The Little Heath Coffee House’. I felt ‘Coffee House’ provided a better portrayal than ‘Cafe’ of the premium products sold and knowledge and experience of the owner.
Participants were given two tasks to complete; finding information about an event and placing a specific order that included a hot chocolate made from oat milk.
The first three participants failed to complete the second task unaided, due to a lack of clarity on how to select an alternative milk. There was also an issue in not being able to navigate back to the homepage.
User testing was paused and the design was iterated to improve the way alternative options were selected within the ordering process and 'Home' was added to the navigation menu.
Strong branding and use of colour with an ‘upmarket feel’
Clean, clear layout and easy to read text
Nicely laid out navigation menu with all options instantly visible
Drink options should open as soon as a drink is selected
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Download icons on Menus Page caused confusion
Expectation of a 'Go to Basket' button as soon as item is added
Initial attempts to try and simplify the order process made it more confusing by not giving all options upfront, when users expected them.
User testing reinforced the fact that people don’t tend to read blocks of text, at the most, skimming through.
The iterative nature of this project reinforced the benefits of creating components for every element from the outset, speeding up changes when necessary.
The next step for this project would be a final round of user testing on my third iteration to ensure a completely smooth checkout process before hand off.
