Yummly for Echo Show // TribalScale
Your favorite cooking assistant, from voice to screen
UX designer
ROLE
Nov 2018 - Dec 2018
TIMELINE
The challenge
Our client Yummly approached us at TribalScale to design a version of their experience for the Echo Show. The existing app was centered around VUI voice-commands with no visual interface on Echo Dot devices. Since Amazon was launching the Echo Show, Yummly needed to add support for the device with visual interface elements.
Use cases and real-life context
Busy families
Yummly’s existing product allowed finding recipes that could be cooked in less than 30 mins. Therefore, the interface should clearly display the cook & prep time commitment before suggesting a list of recipes.
Messy hands
We’re not always able to tap a screen while cooking (that’s also pretty unsanitary.) - Yummly should make it easy to view a recipe and display according steps using utterances. This way, the person cooking can focus on the food, rather than navigating an interface.
Picky eaters
Of course, everybody has culinary preferences and limitations. Some people eat everything, others have special dietary needs. Users should set their preferences to ensure the recipes will be relevant and safe for them.
Meal prep
When do we want to cook? Today? Tomorrow? Next week? Do we have everything we need for a new recipe? Probably not. A shopping list as well as meal scheduling should help families and busy individuals prepare and be excited for their meals.
Feature requirements
meal scheduling
Users should be able to schedule their meals in advance, add to calendar, and choose to receive reminders.
select cuisine preference
Users should be able to specify what type of cuisine they’re craving so that the recipes will be relevant to what they want to cook.
cooking duration
Users should be able to specify how much time they have to prepare their meal, so ensure they see recipes that fit their schedule.
shopping list
Users should be able to see a shopping list of items needed for the meal. Ingredients, as well as cooking tools needed. It should also be easy to purchase those items on Amazon.
how many people is the recipe for?
Users should specify how many people the recipe will feed, so that the ingredients list will scale according to the meal size.
search, save, and recommendations
Users should be able to look for recipes, such as “cookie recipes” - or, receive recommendations if they’re not sure what they’d like. They should also be able to save recipes, so they can easily make them again.
Scheduling a meal diagram
Outlined here is the process of scheduling a chosen recipe. Users should be able to rest easy knowing they don’t have to scramble to make a good meal for themselves or their family on busy weeknights. They should use utterances to set reminders for when it’s time to start cooking.
Designs shared with client
VUI applications should be simple, concise, and easy to navigate. On account of the Echo Show being a voice-supportive device, the designs that we have provided to the client had to use Amazon Echo fonts and supported layouts. The text should be visible from afar, and include enough contrast for proper legibility.
Conclusion
After presenting the designs to the engineering team responsible for VUI development, as well as the client, we received approval to move forward. The work was then slotted in for engineering intake. At this point, I had been allocated on to another project for a different client while development commenced.