Problem Statement
55% of pet owners in China are under 30, and many young people rent apartments due to financial pressure. However, landlords who refuse to rent to pet owners may miss out on significant business.
Young renters with pets face two main challenges:
1. Bias: Many landlords refuse to rent to tenants with pets
Limited rental options: There are no specialized platforms or channels for pet owners to find apartments
Project Process
The essence of design is to solve problems, combine work practice and theory, establish goal-oriented design thinking, and apply it to the actual demand docking.
Research
In order to get a solid understanding of how our competitors are doing in the market and to lay out a solid foundation, we did a competitor analysis which consisted of direct and indirect competitors.
We conducted user research on pet owners and landlords, including 50+ surveys and 10+ in-home interviews, to better understand their needs. After integrating user priorities, we gained the following insights:
Persona: From the perspective of user experience, define the characteristics of the target group, including attitudes, values, product core needs, etc.
Key Insights:
After analysis, the interview and collected data, we find here the key insights:
80% of Pet owners need a pet-friendly APP to rent an apartment.
69% of Landlords' attitudes can change, and they will consider renting their properties to high-quality pet owners.
User journey Map
Based on the solution, we create the user journey map which can show the idea of how we help users to address their existing problem and the whole process.
User flow
Due to this platform, the main user will be the Tenant and the other one is the Landlord, I made two user flows, which show the different sides of user behaviour and operations.
Prototype and user test
User Test Feedback
Advantages: The app is easy to operate and understand
Provides a platform for renters looking for apartments that accept pets
Disadvantages： Not many types to filter apartment
How to increase the trust of tenants by purchasing the services provided by the platform
Final Design
Tenant Pages: The tenant can use this application to find an apartment as soon as possible and based on the rules set the pet information and build their profile which can gain the landlord's trust.
Landlord Pages: House owners can use the application to post the house information for tenants to choose a suitable apartment. They can base on the potential tenant's profile to decide rent or not.
