Cattlelog
Simplifying course registration for students at UC Davis.
ROLE
Product Designer
Graphic Designer
TIMELINE
Since Oct 2024
TEAM
Product Managers (3)
Product Designer (1)
Software Engineers (4)
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OVERVIEW
OVERVIEW
Cattlelog serves as a centralized resource hub that aims to provide reliable course information and recommend classes based on desired degree requirements for UC Davis students. Course instruction quality, appeal of curriculum, course difficulty, course workload, and other relevant metrics will be provided by Cattlelog through student-written reviews and ratings.
Cattlelog serves as a centralized resource hub that aims to provide reliable course information and recommend classes based on desired degree requirements for UC Davis students. Course instruction quality, appeal of curriculum, course difficulty, course workload, and other relevant metrics will be provided by Cattlelog through student-written reviews and ratings.
THE PROBLEM
THE PROBLEM
There is a lack of resources available to UC Davis students regarding instruction and course quality, with the main source of acquiring knowledge being through word-of-mouth. Outside of Rate My Professor and Reddit, students at UC Davis do not have access to crowdsourced, qualitative information that is useful for schedule building, and may be missing out on discovering relevant or interesting courses that can help work toward their degree. A more intuitive and data-driven approach can significantly improve the decision-making process for students.
There is a lack of resources available to UC Davis students regarding instruction and course quality, with the main source of acquiring knowledge being through word-of-mouth. Outside of Rate My Professor and Reddit, students at UC Davis do not have access to crowdsourced, qualitative information that is useful for schedule building, and may be missing out on discovering relevant or interesting courses that can help work toward their degree. A more intuitive and data-driven approach can significantly improve the decision-making process for students.
APPROACH
APPROACH
USER RESEARCH
USER RESEARCH
Our team conducted user research through an anonymous survey to get a better sense of the types of site features that students may need. The responses generated from our survey revealed that students wanted faster course filtering options to help narrow down their search for classes, as well as professor-specific insights in the form of average ratings and student-written reviews, which can allow students to make better-informed decisions when it comes to taking a class taught by a particular professor. Grade distribution data was another highly-requested feature due to students' lack of access to these records.
Our team conducted user research through an anonymous survey to get a better sense of the types of site features that students may need. The responses generated from our survey revealed that students wanted faster course filtering options to help narrow down their search for classes, as well as professor-specific insights in the form of average ratings and student-written reviews, which can allow students to make better-informed decisions when it comes to taking a class taught by a particular professor. Grade distribution data was another highly-requested feature due to students' lack of access to these records.
COMPETITIVE ANALYSIS
COMPETITIVE ANALYSIS
MID-FIDELITY
MID-FIDELITY
I drafted mid-fidelity wireframes with the goal of displaying all features necessary for course searching while aiming to keep cognitive overload to a minimum. I decided to implement a fixed filter bar on the search page, allowing users to simultaneously view the immediate refining of courses as they fill out the categories under the filter bar.
I drafted mid-fidelity wireframes with the goal of displaying all features necessary for course searching while aiming to keep cognitive overload to a minimum. I decided to implement a fixed filter bar on the search page, allowing users to simultaneously view the immediate refining of courses as they fill out the categories under the filter bar.
HI-FIDELITY
My hi-fi designs were driven by my goal to help students efficiently refine their searching and save time by narrowing down search results to the courses and professors best suited to their needs. The addition of components such as tags to identify professors teaching in the next quarter, graphics to display overall ratings and difficulty rating, interactive buttons, as well as the intentional placement of color all work together to deliver relevant academic information to students, allowing them to make better-informed decisions about their prospective schedules.
Products that deal with content such as academic information tend to be text-heavy, so I focused on cleaning up my desktop designs to reduce visual overload before transitioning to a mobile interface. I rearranged the compositions of each page in my mobile designs by splitting the main page into three distinct collapsible units, which provides users with more intentional flows to follow.
Because the UC Davis' colors are a shade of blue and gold, I decided to use a similar color palette to create the impression that Cattlelog is meant to be used as a university resource.
My hi-fi designs were driven by my goal to help students efficiently refine their searching and save time by narrowing down search results to the courses and professors best suited to their needs. The addition of components such as tags to identify professors teaching in the next quarter, graphics to display overall ratings and difficulty rating, interactive buttons, as well as the intentional placement of color all work together to deliver relevant academic information to students, allowing them to make better-informed decisions about their prospective schedules.
Products that deal with content such as academic information tend to be text-heavy, so I focused on cleaning up my desktop designs to reduce visual overload before transitioning to a mobile interface. I rearranged the compositions of each page in my mobile designs by splitting the main page into three distinct collapsible units, which provides users with more intentional flows to follow.
Because the UC Davis' colors are a shade of blue and gold, I decided to use a similar color palette to create the impression that Cattlelog is meant to be used as a university resource.
MARKETING
MARKETING
GRAPHICS AND FLYERS
GRAPHICS AND FLYERS
The week before our marketing push, I designed flyers that would be used to promote our product, concentrating on enhancing our branding and graphics. Because our product's logo is a cow wearing a top hat and monocle, I decided to incorporate the chain of that monocle in my poster designs, using it as a playful graphic element to "lasso" the contents of the flyers together.
The week before our marketing push, I designed flyers that would be used to promote our product, concentrating on enhancing our branding and graphics. Because our product's logo is a cow wearing a top hat and monocle, I decided to incorporate the chain of that monocle in my poster designs, using it as a playful graphic element to "lasso" the contents of the flyers together.
MARKETING INITIATIVES
MARKETING INITIATIVES
For our first marketing strategy, my team and I took to tabling in high traffic areas of our university's campus, handing out flyers and pitching our product to students and university staff who stopped by to listen.
For our first marketing strategy, my team and I took to tabling in high traffic areas of our university's campus, handing out flyers and pitching our product to students and university staff who stopped by to listen.
IMPACT
IMPACT
ANALYTICS
ANALYTICS
One week after launch we achieved:
One week after launch we achieved:
500+
unique site visitors
500+
unique site visitors
2000+
page views
2000+
page views
One month after launch we achieved:
One month after launch we achieved:
3000+
unique site visitors
3000+
unique site visitors
15,000+
page views
15,000+
page views
REFLECTION
REFLECTION
Though the launch of Cattlelog was quite nerve-wracking for us, my team and I were thrilled to witness the outcomes of our hard work and dedication from the past few months. What we have already achieved with Cattlelog is incredibly rewarding for me personally, as this was my first experience working as the sole designer on a relatively large project. Collaborating with my talented team on this product has taught me so much about the importance of quick and effective cross-functional communication, especially given the time frame we were limited to.
Though the launch of Cattlelog was quite nerve-wracking for us, my team and I were thrilled to witness the outcomes of our hard work and dedication from the past few months. What we have already achieved with Cattlelog is incredibly rewarding for me personally, as this was my first experience working as the sole designer on a relatively large project. Collaborating with my talented team on this product has taught me so much about the importance of quick and effective cross-functional communication, especially given the time frame we were limited to.
NEXT STEPS
NEXT STEPS
My team and I are continuing to conduct usability testing to refine any UI details that may assist in improving user engagement and retention. We are also looking into implementing user authentication to verify review writers, as well as a user account page that will allow students to favorite and track any course information relevant to them. With the addition of these new features, a few redesigns of the website's interface may be necessary to maintain the clarity of the user flow.
My team and I are continuing to conduct usability testing to refine any UI details that may assist in improving user engagement and retention. We are also looking into implementing user authentication to verify review writers, as well as a user account page that will allow students to favorite and track any course information relevant to them. With the addition of these new features, a few redesigns of the website's interface may be necessary to maintain the clarity of the user flow.
Cattlelog
Simplifying course registration for students at UC Davis.
ROLE
Product Designer
Graphic Designer
TIMELINE
Since Oct 2024