Chilight App

The problem

Usually, requesting electrical service is not an easy process, done either by sending an email, or making a phone call. A potentially complicated process for end users as they need to type or thoroughly describe the problem. Using a website to submit a request is also not an easy process and not intuitive for some end users. We approached this problem from a unique perspective wanting to bring something new to the market and really help users make this process as smooth as possible.

Competitive analysis

We used competitive analysis to collect and review information about rival companies. It was an essential tactic to find out what our competitors were doing and what kind of threat they represented. We came to the conclusion that an app would make a difference as a powerful competitive advantage.

Branding

We created a logo! For the logo creation, I used the approach based on two components: where and what. The first one (where) was inspired by the Chicago landmark, the famous John Hancock building placed at the “magnificent mile” in downtown Chicago, and a part of the Chicago skyline. The second one (what), represents our client’s industry. A universal electric icon was used as our best choice. By merging these two elements, a new one was created. A mark that will communicate who the company is and where it operates. My approach to logo design is: make it simple, yet responsive.

Product design

Amazing digital product design is what’s pushing businesses forward nowadays. By creating a meaningful user experience, we help businesses grow faster and ease the customer experience. That way, clients become more comfortable using one service and staying loyal. In some cases, we make the user experience just one click shorter as it could make a huge difference in a particular industry or niche.

By carefully analyzing the pain points, we deliver winning product-design solutions that bring value to your business. In the case of the ChiLight app, we created a super-simple way that saves time and simplifies business correspondence. We at Designer and Gentleman are focused on human-centric design, which means considering what is relevant both to our clients and their end users. Both parties have to be satisfied when they use our product solutions.

Usability testing

We created a quick but very detailed prototype to be tested by end users. This way we got immediate direct feedback that we could implement in the next iteration. Results we got were very positive and all issues were documented and resolved.

User flow

When the user flow is completed, it is the designer and developer’s final solution and the most intuitive way to submit a request for service. Currently, our client is in the process of evaluation and doing additional testing before going into production.

Website development & design

According to Forbes Magazine, each business in the US has to have three things: great branding, a website, and social media exposure. We focused on the first two. Before building the app, we handled the client's branding and web development. This electrical company has been active on the market since 2005. Since then, they have served more than 50 000 residential clients and more than 10 000 commercial clients.

We made a clear differentiation between these two business approaches by making an easy-to-navigate, responsive website with a simple fill-out form. Also, we focused on their returning customers, especially commercial ones, who are served by the retainer payment model. That is how the idea for the ChiLight app arose.

Analyzing user feedback and Ideate

When we receive user feedback, we usually redesign the app and make sure we are on the right track. In this particular situation, we came to a breakthrough solution of 3 easy steps in the app flow. The crucial thing was to minimize the number of steps for a service request. You can see the comparison of steps required for the request to be received by an HLC electrician in the picture below:

Red routes

We approached this project very seriously and we created the red routes to check what elements of a service request are the most important for users. Red Routes which improve client satisfaction are shown in the picture below:

User journey map

We wanted to see how the end user journey affects users emotions, and to see which steps that are needed to complete the fully documented service report create most frustrations.

User Personas

Knowing that every user is different, we analyzed Google Analytics and talked directly to stakeholders of HLC to create a detailed personas chart to pinpoint all important details for each possible end customer. User personas are presented in the picture below: