Group Name: Eager Explorers
Group Members: Gina Gatti, Andrew Martin, Isabella Restrepo, Meagan Russell, Marinel Stancu, Paul Kwek
Selected website: TripAdvisor
We have selected TripAdvisor, which is a travel information and booking site. It provides information, reviews, and photos on hotels and transportation from user-generated content. Users can book lodging, transportation and make reservations at restaurants. In addition to travel accommodation, it also provides information on attractions and things to do on trips.
User profile / persona created
The user is a married 42-year-old mother from the Miami, Florida area. She is college educated with a bachelor’s in science in Marketing and serves as the Marketing Director at a midsize accounting firm. She is trying to plan a vacation for her family of 5 and wants to stay relatively close to the United States. She and her spouse have three children, a girl that is 12 and two boys that are 9 and 5 years old. The entire family has valid United States Passports and have traveled internationally in the past. This family goes on a trip annually, however, this year they are a bit more budget conscience, given the economic challenges with inflation. They are looking for good deals that will maximize their vacation without breaking the bank! The user has experience with other travel sites and is comfortable using technology in her daily life.
Scenario developed
For their trip next year, they wanted to go on a cruise. So, the mother is trying to check on TripAdvisor for a cruise that will match their budget ($400 per person) and availability. The user prefers leaving from a Miami port, however, would be open to leaving from another port in Florida if the price savings were significant. Additionally, since she has 3 children in school, the timing of the trip should not interfere with this program, and she would prefer not to travel in the Caribbean during the most active part of the hurricane season (e.g., September – October).
Specific tasks developed
* First task is to find a cruise when the kids are on break from school and taking in consideration of hurricane season and to stay within the vacation budget.
We selected this task to assess how the user would address this task and what logical path they would take. We are curious to see how they would start their search, if it is by date, pricing, or both to see what they prioritize first.
* Second task is to pick a cruise that stops in multiple ports.
We selected this task to assess how the user would filter their search results by stops. The user could filter by “Cruise length” or they could select specific ports they would like to travel to. It also shows where it will be embarking from. Overall, it would show which approach is easiest or accommodating for the user in their search.
* Third task is to figure out what activities are offered at the different cruise stops.
We selected this task to assess how the user would search for activities at the different cruise stops. We are curious to see if the user will search using the general search bar or click on the “Things to Do” search. The user could also explore the website and search based off interests (e.g., “Outdoors”, “Food and drink”, “Arts and culture”, “By the water”) which is a different search option.
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