Design Thinking: Helping Victoria satisfy her hunger

WHO IS SHE?

Meet Victoria. She is a recent psychology graduate from Queens and has returned home to Toronto after graduation. Victoria is a homebody and likes to be at home surfing the internet, making art and watching her favourite videos. Since she does not have any food allergies, she is very adventurous when it comes to her food and is not afraid to try new things. We are going to understand her needs and identify the main issue she has with ordering food online. 

THE 3 Ws: WHERE TO, WHEN TO AND WHY TO ORDER

When Victoria was living on campus during her time at Queens University, she was an avid user of the online ordering services. However, ever since she returned home, ordering out became less frequent as she is living with her parents. Nevertheless, ordering food online usually happens in the comfort of her home.  

Victoria would order food whenever she felt hungry or was too tired to cook. When it came to decide what to eat, she would order whatever was craving for that day.  Sometimes, when she completed a difficult assignment, Victoria treated herself to ordered food as a reward. She also got hungry in the middle of the night, so online ordering was a convenient way for her to get food since most sit-in restaurants were closed early.

            Like most people, the common reason for ordering food online is that cooking your own meal takes time and effort. Sometimes after a long day, you don’t want to cook, so the best option is to just order. Also, since Victoria likes to try new cuisines, it’s easier for her to order rather than attempt to make it on her own.

HOW DOES VICTORIA FEEL?

            Victoria generally has had good experiences with ordering food online and once it arrives on time, especially when she’s hungry, it’s a good feeling for her. Since she has an introverted personality, she used to have anxiety from talking on the phone. That was an obstacle for her, back when the only way to order food was through a phone call.  

WHAT DOES VICTORIA NEED?

Since Victoria often orders food online when she doesn’t feel like cooking but is hungry, fast service and a progress bar would be a must-have in an online ordering service. Also, because she is not completely comfortable with talking on the phone, Victoria would need a restaurant that provides online ordering as opposed to calling. Sometimes, the restaurant Victoria orders from does not provide images of the food so it would be nice if there are pictures of what’s arriving. She does not want to be disappointed when her food comes and it’s not what she wanted or expected.

SO, WHAT’S THE PROBLEM?

            The problem that Victoria faces is reassurance. Not all websites provide a status bar of her delivery, leaving her waiting impatiently as well as a visual of their menu, making it difficult for her to picture what she’s getting as it is important for customers to see what they paid for and to be satisfied with their purchase. Victoria also wants to be reassured that her order is what she wants, since talking on the phone gives her slight anxiety, it’s preferred that she has an option to submit an order form online.


*Image from: https://techspot-static-xjzaqowzxaoif5.stackpathdns.com/images2/news/bigimage/2014/04/2014-04-04-image-12.jpg