Home Screen Innovation
Looking at Uber’s home screen today, there are several features I’ve had a hand in getting it to where it is now.
During my time at Uber, I worked on a range of projects both forward-thinking and strategically instrumental in improving rider and driver experiences and Uber’s bottom line. Several of which have found a home on the modern version of Uber’s home screen.
Bottom Sheet Navigation
During a project in which was I working on redesigning rider shortcuts, I studied how users were using the “Where to?” search field 98% of the time versus using the smart shortcuts at the bottom. I proposed moving the shortcuts closer to the search bar since they both related to destinations. Usage shot up 25%.
At the same time I also proposed we relocate the “Where to?” search and shortcuts to the bottom for better ergonomics, map layout and aesthetics. Low and behold, Uber soon redesigned the app to include this design layout at the same time other mapping apps did.
Messaging Framework
Months before the new design rolled out, myself and several members across the rider design team iterated on several ideas around messaging frameworks in the rider app. Just two months prior, I had also led a very successful 20-person cross-discipline design sprint in Amsterdam focusing on “inbox”. We developed and tested 5 unique messaging concepts across the app.
One of these concepts later guided the approach to the “Ring Messaging Framework” which would appear on the home page as cards of various heights — from on top of the bottom sheet to full-screen takeovers. I created some guidelines around the priority of the message which specified the appropriate treatment.
Reservations
Do you need a ride NOW or LATER?
For the longest time (maybe three years?), the rider app did not offer a clear entry point for riders wanting to schedule a ride ahead of time. Through research, my team was able to drive a new test that would illuminate the many needs of this rider segment that had not been met to date.
We learned that riders typically fell into three timelines: “I need a ride now”; “I need a ride in the next 20-60min”; or “I need a ride 1-24 hours from now”. I pushed the product team to allow us to run a test to see if a new entry point on the home screen would increase awareness and conversion. The product team saw a huge increase in adoption and has kept this feature since that Spring 2019 experiment.