Final Presentation Paper.docx - University of...

Hunger HelpersProject

Sarah Karney

Sydney Miller

Table of Contents

Executive Summary………………………………………………...……....3

Strategy…………………………………………………………...………….....5

Goals...................................................................................................5 Obstacles We Encountered…………………………………………....5 Finding Project Partners...................................................................6

Hunger Helpers Website......................................................................8

Usability Testing Research Plan......................................................8 Site Design 1 and Testing Results.............................................…10 Site Design 2 and Testing Results.................................................24 Final Site Design…..........................................................................35

GroundCntrl App Testing..................................................................38

Research Plan..................................................................................38 Data Collection Results…...............................................................39 Research Summary.........................................................................44

Marketing Plan.......................................................................................49

Recommendations...............................................................................56

Illinois Public Media........................................................................56 GroundCntrl…..................................................................................56 Moving Forward...............................................................................57

Sources....................................................................................................59

Executive Summary

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The goal of the Hunger Helpers project is to create and market a mobile

application and website that will inspire citizens to volunteer to end hunger in their

community. The mobile app and website are pioneering tools that encourage civic

participation and redefine the role of journalism in communities.

Our clients for this project are Illinois Public Media/WILL and GroundCntrl. Illinois

Public Media is a non-profit media outlet that airs both local and national programs on

its public radio and television stations (WILL-TV, WILL-AM and WILL-FM), as well as

publishes content online. GroundCntrl produces the platform our future mobile

application will be hosted on. The target audience of this project is the Champaign-

Urbana metro area community, starting with current listeners and viewers of WILL’s

media.

Secondary research included readings on usability testing and reports from

former capstone students previously working on this project. We also conducted much

of our own research. We designed and held two usability testings for the versions of the

Hunger Helpers mock website we coded. We also designed and ran a weeklong trial

testing the functionality of the GroundCntrl mobile app.

Our strategy is to launch a product that we can be certain intuitive, attractive and

easy to use for potential volunteers. We want to offer a way to volunteer that increases

options for participants based on how much time they have to volunteer, as well as

making it fun and rewarding by incorporating a social aspect and reward system. We

intelligently designed a website based on our research findings. We also recommend

changes to the GroundCntrl app platform so that the project can be a success. We

designed a marketing plan to use as a guide when promoting the project both within the

Illinois Public Media viewership/listening area and the journalism community. Our

project has created a sturdy framework from which a successful launch of the final

product can be made possible.

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The findings from this project present multiple opportunities for future capstone

students going forward with this project. We propose that RJI continue funding the

Hunger Helpers project and working with Illinois Public Media, contingent on some

changes that we will recommend be made by Illinois Public Media and GroundCntrl.

The findings from this project will also ideally encourage a discussion about the

role newsrooms should play in their community and force a reexamination of the

definition of civic journalism.

Strategy

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Goals

● To create a mobile application and website that makes it easy to volunteer in the

community, is intuitive and actively encourages Illinois Public Media listeners and

viewers to volunteer on behalf of the project

● To open discussion about the role of newsrooms in communities and civic

engagement/participation journalism

● To successfully complete research that provides a clear foundation and indicates

what needs to happen next for the project to be a success

Obstacles We Encountered

The objective of this project changed as time went on. Initially, our goals were to

find and confirm project partners, design the app and website, market the app, launch

the app and analyze how the project was going after the launch. Due to unforeseen

changes in newsroom staff at Illinois Public Media, we were forced to push back the

launch date of the app from March 2013 to August/mid-September 2013.

This shifted the focus of the project. The importance moved instead to providing

research that would be useful to both Illinois Public Media and GroundCntrl, should they

choose to move forward with the project. We found this shift of focus to be for the better

rather than detrimental to the project. We were able to design multiple research trials

that allowed us to find out more about how to design the app and website to be the most

intuitive and user-friendly. We created a strong framework supported by research to

ensure this project can be a success when launched.

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Finding project partners

This project could not be successful without community food pantries and soup

kitchens working directly with Illinois Public Media to promote and manage the project.

We identified 34 food pantries and soup kitchens in the Champaign-Urbana area

that could potentially partner with Illinois Public Media on the Hunger Helpers project.

Each partner needed to fulfill a number of agreements in order for us to successfully

implement the program. We created a handout for each partner detailing its

responsibilities and what they would receive in return:

PARTNER AGREEMENTWhat is the Hunger Helpers pilot project?

WILL has partnered with the Eastern Illinois Foodbank, and the Central Illinois

Foodbank to pilot a new volunteer matching program known as “Hunger Helpers.”

The Hunger Helpers pilot project is an engagement initiative that uses the power of

social media to mobilize and reward volunteers for making a difference in their

community around the issue of hunger.

Volunteers go to the project website or app and sign up to volunteer at one of our

partner soup kitchens or food pantries in their area. As they volunteer, complete

challenges, share their experiences online, and recruit others to become volunteers,

they can earn badges. Examples of challenges may be donating money, completing

volunteer orientation, or spreading the word about your agency on Facebook. We will

work with each partner to come up with the challenges that will best fill your agency’s

needs. The more a person volunteers, the more badges they can earn. There are no

monetary incentives with our system. People are volunteering because we ask them,

we make it simple, and they make it social.

What do we need from our partners?Our project partners must be willing to:

○ Commit to the pilot project for six months (March – August)

○ Designate a point person to work with WILL

○ Have a volunteer coordinator to absorb and orient new volunteers

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○ Promote the Hunger Helpers project website

○ Participate in a videotaped exit interview for possible use on TV, radio and online

What can our partners expect from us?WILL will be the bridge between you and potential new volunteers. With our

project partners, The Reynolds Journalism Institute and GroundContrl.com, we will work

with each partner to identify your volunteer needs and design challenges that fit these

needs. We will promote the project website as well as your agency, track participants’

progress, and give you feedback after the pilot program ends. We are also there to

monitor any problems and questions you or your volunteers may have throughout the

course of the project.

After contacting and working with the food pantries and soup kitchens in this

community, we confirmed 14 committed partners to the project. We also updated the

project partners on the changed timeline of the project. When we initially contacted

them, they believed the project would be launching in March; now, it is slated to launch

in September or later.

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Hunger Helpers Website:

We designed and coded a website viewers and listeners of WILL could turn to as

a source of information for the Hunger Helpers project, as well as a platform through

which users could download the program using their desktops or laptops rather than

their mobile devices. We tested the site, then an updated version, to ensure the site is

easy to understand and navigate.

Usability Testing Research Plan

I. Research Questions

The overarching goal of the research is to determine whether or not the Hunger Helpers

website is easy to navigate and understood by our target audience. Specifically, there

are multiple facets of the website we are testing for this goal:

1. Does the user understand the purpose of the site?

2. Can a user sign-up/log-in easily?

3. Can the user navigate through the page easily, and find what information they are

looking for?

4. Does the site leave the user with unanswered questions?

II. Background and Significance

According to Jeffery Rubin, testing at least four to five participants will expose the

majority of usability problems, although testing more participants will ensure more

statistically valid results.

Internal participants are valuable for explorative usability testing, as long as they

fit the user profile and are unfamiliar with the product (Rubin 133). We will use

participants from the Missouri School of Journalism and RJI that fit the audience profile

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of Illinois Public Media. A survey from WILL in 2012 shows the Illinois Public Media

audience profile breakdown accordingly:

As you can see, Illinois Public Media has a wide age range of audience

members, with older members tuning into WILL-TV and FM radio, and a younger

audience tuned into WILL-AM radio. Therefore, we are looking for participants between

18 years old to 65 years old or older, and of a variety of economic backgrounds.

III. Research Method, Design and Statistical Analysis

We will employ a method of explorative usability testing. This type of usability

testing is used early in product development to assess the effectiveness and usability of

preliminary designs.

We will find participants by contacting multiple volunteer organizations on

campus, as well as students and professors from a variety of schools.

The first testing was held from 3 p.m. to 5 p.m. on March 21st in the Journalism

Library in RJI. The second testing was held from 3 p.m. to 5 p.m. on April 25th in the

Journalism Library in RJI. Participants came at the time that best fits their schedule.

IV. Potential Risks

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Station Weekly Cumulative

Audience

Age Range

(majority)

Top Income Bracket

TV 83,000 25-65 (45-64) $75,000-$149,000 (26%)

AM 24,500 18-65 (18-34) >$75,000 (50%)

FM 24,600 18-65 (>65) >$75,000 (31.2%)

Because our testing pool is mostly made up of students and university

employees, they likely use technology more than the average citizen. This could skew

the results. We served as moderators, which may have biased the results as well.

V. Potential Benefits

This research will provide a better understanding of how our final website design

should look. Furthermore, it gives a general sense of what components of web sites in

general are easy to understand and what are more difficult to understand. It will also be

useful to GroundCntrl in knowing what does or doesn’t work on their sites.

Site Design 1

The first version of the site contained four different pages: “Get Started,” “How It

Works,” “About the Project” and “Faces of Hunger.”

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“Get Started” was the landing page potential participants would start on after

being directed to the site. The goal of this page was to give users just enough

information to pique their interest and inspire them to read more into the project’s site.

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“How It Works” gives users an overview of how the Hunger Helpers GroundCntrl

interface works. Participants join the team of the pantry where they want to volunteer

when signing up for an account. They then can complete challenges related to helping

the pantry and earn badges for their efforts.

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“About the Project” gives background on Illinois Public Media and why they

started the Hunger Helpers project.

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“Faces of Hunger” shows real-life examples of people who volunteers would be

helping when they participate in this program. By showing the real faces of people that

struggle with hunger in the community, we hope this page would further inspire viewers

to get involved with the project. An issue like “hunger” is a vague concept; identifying

individuals affected produces an emotional element to draw viewers in.

After completing the first round of usability testing, a few issues with the site

became apparent. We recoded the site to deal with these errors and to make the site

easier to use and understand.

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Usability Test 1 Data Collection

Task One: Find out what the Hunger Helpers project is.

How easily does the user find the information on the page?● 9 out of 11 participants had no problem

● 1 out of 11 participants had one wrong turn, but completed without assistance

● 1 out of 11 participants needed prompting

● 0 out of 11 participants needed specific instructions

Where did the user get stuck or confused?● 6 out of 11 participants N/A

● 1 out of 11 participants wasn’t sure where to click first.

● 1 out of 11 participants was confused about what rewards the About page spoke

of.

● 2 out of 11 participants were confused by what the paragraph on the landing

page meant,

● 1 out of 11 participants was confused about the challenges the About page

spoke of.

What surprised the user?● 7 out of 11 participants N/A

● 3 out of 11 participants were surprised to learn it was an app, and did not come

to this conclusion without the moderator telling them.

How well did the user understand the information they got from the system?● 3 out of 11 participants had no problem

● 7 out of 11 participants had questions

● 0 out of 11 participants needed help

● 1 out of 11 participants needed to be told specifically the meaning of the

information they got

Completed successfully?● 0 out of 11 participants completed the task successfully.

● 11 out of 11 participants did not complete the task successfully.

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Success Criteria:● 9 out of 11 participants clicked on About tab.

● 8 out of 11 participants read and understood information on page.

● 0 out of 11 participants mentioned app is mobile-based.

● 4 out of 11 participants mentioned the concept of activities and earning badges.

● 5 out of 11 participants mentioned the choice of choosing a team.

Notes:● 3 participants were confused about how to complete activities.

● 6 participants said they did not know it was a program/app after completing task

until told by moderator.

● 2 participants said “They want to go beyond awareness and they’re doing it

through social media, but I don’t understand exactly how.”

● 1 participant said “IPM is acknowledging hunger in the area and is trying to

motivate people to act.”

● 1 participant said they don’t understand what an “engagement program” is.

● 1 participant said “It uses social media to make volunteers more involved.”

● 1 participant said purpose of site is “You want teams to become more involved.

This is extra encouragement to challenge people.”

● 1 participant said there are too many words to read on About page.

● 1 participant said the purpose of the project is “getting people involved and

making it easier and there are incentives.”

● 1 participant said the page is about “a few groups working together to fight

hunger in Illinois.”

● 1 participant said the purpose of the page is “a way to encourage people to sign

up for food banks and there is a competitive element to it.”

Task Two: Sign up for an account.



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● 2 out of 11 participants got confused about hours page pop-up, and asked “What

is this?”

● 3 out of 11 participants got confused on where to click to sign up.









Success Criteria:● 10 out of 11 participants clicked the sign up box.

● 11 out of 11 participants entered information.

● 10 out of 11 participants chose the correct food pantry/soup kitchen given to

them.

● 10 out of 11 participants completed creating an account.

Notes:● 2 participants had trouble finding where to sign up.

● 1 participant said “What is an account; what does that get you?” and did not

realize it was an app until told.

● 2 participants said the process was “very straightforward.”

● 1 participant said they think having a sign up box next to the login sidebar box

would be easier to find.

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● 1 participant said they would not have been able to complete the task if they had

not been given a team and info to use.

● 2 participants suggested putting “Create account” higher up on page.

● 1 participant tried to sign up by putting information into login box, but then found

the correct box after realizing their mistake.

Task Three: Log in.


● 0 out of 11 participants had wrong turns, but completed without assistance




What surprised the user?1 11 out of 11 participants N/A








Success Criteria:● 11 out of 11 participants found one of the two designated login areas.

● 11 out of 11 participants entered username and password they created.

Notes:● 7 participants used the sidebar login option.

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● 1 participant said the login option at the bottom of the landing page is not easily

visible.

Task Four: Determine information about project partner.


● 2 out of 11 participants had wrong turns, but complete without assistance (One

participant had 1 wrong turn; one participant had 9 wrong turns)




● 3 out of 11 participants were confused about which partner to click

● 1 out of 11 participants did not realize the icons in the right sidebar were

clickable.

● 1 out of 11 participants could not find any information about partners at all


● 2 out of 11 participants said they did not know WILL was main partner

● 1 out of 11 participants was surprised the header is not clickable








Success Criteria:

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● 8 out of 11 participants found the link to WILL’s/Illinois Public Media’s website.

● 8 out of 11 participants clicked the link.

● 5 out of 11 participants distinguished the project as an Illinois Public Media

project.

Notes:● 4 participants did not think it is clear it is a WILL project.

● 3 participants did not know which partner they were meant to click on.

● 1 participant said they do not know why IPM is affliated with the project.

● 1 participant found IPM’s page by clicking the icon in the right sidebar.

● 1 participant thought the Eastern Illinois Food Bank was our main partner.

● 1 participant said the IPM logo is not prominent enough.

“Hunger Helpers” Usability Testing: Round 1Research Summary

Demographics: Eleven people participated in usability testing and 8 participated in the

survey. Our participants ranged from 18 years old to 63 years old.

Additional participant information: Four of our survey participants currently volunteer.

Out of the participants that currently volunteer, three say they would be “likely” to

volunteer in the Hunger Helpers project, with one participant remaining neutral.

From responses to our survey and testing, we identified problems that were consistent

throughout the usability testing and survey process. We have also identified qualities of

the site that are working. We have summarized the problems and positive aspects of

the site and our recommendations to fix these problems below.

Positive 1: Users responded well to “Faces of Hunger” page

There was unsolicited positive response from survey and testing participants

regarding the “Faces of Hunger” page. One participant said, “I like the faces of hunger

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tab—very motivating.” Another mentioned, “I liked the stories about people who use

Food Banks because it makes it more personal.” Moving forward, we should plan to

include, expand and improve upon the “Faces of Hunger” page, making it a critical

element in our site design rather than an afterthought.

Positive 2: Users like the design of the site

Seven respondents liked the design of the website; only one person disliked it.

The design made it easy for participants to gather information about certain aspects of

the project. Nine participants said they had “no problem” finding information and all 11

participants had no problem logging in to the site.

Positive 3: Users find the site easy to navigateOverall, 5 participants found the site “easy” to use and two said the site was

“extremely easy” to use. In addition, participants had “no problem” completing activities

during usability testing 70 percent of the time. They had some questions 11 percent of

the time and had serious hesitations only 5 percent of the time.

Problem 1: Users don’t recognize the app is mobile-based

During the usability testing, when asked to describe the website and app, not a

single user conveyed that the bulk of activity is done on a mobile app. One user

responded in the survey, “I didn't originally know it was an app, but after clicking on a

few tabs I was clear. Maybe make it on the home page?” This theme continued through

the survey. Two more participants stated that making the fact it is a mobile app “more

prominent” and giving “more explanation” about the fact it is an app would improve the

quality of the site.

Recommendation 1: Use the words “mobile app” throughout the page so that

there is no mistaking how the app is to be used.

Recommendation 2: Re-write the “How it Works” and Home pages to

emphasize that the bulk of activity is done via mobile app.

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Problem 2: Users don’t fully understand the purpose of the app While participants usually got the gist of the app, they still expressed hesitation.

One participant said, “I guess I'm not entirely sure what the purpose of the app is. Does

it locate Food Banks for you? Or are you just keeping track of your accomplishments so

you can make your team win points?” Another said, “Nothing was confusing, the layout

was simple enough to navigate and had enough color/pictures to catch and keep my

attention. “

Recommendation 1: Re-design the landing page to emphasize the purpose of

the app but also the nature of the app.

Recommendation 2: Add more references to Illinois Public Media’s work on

hunger in the state and their desire to help end the problem. Problem 3: Users don’t fully understand the concept of activities and badges

Seven participants mentioned the concept of being rewarded for completing

activities and understood this concept in varying degrees, while others did not mention

this aspect of the project at all. However, one participant believed participating in the

project meant the user was in a competition to win something extrinsic (other than a

badge). On the other hand, most participants had trouble understanding the purpose of

the app. On the survey, responses ranged from “to encourage citizens to get more

involved in the food bank. What do "Hunger Helpers" do?” to “To help get people

involved in the food crisis, to make it easier for volunteers to sign up and find locations

in which to help, and to give social media incentives for volunteering.”

Recommendation 1: Re-write the “how it works” page to clarify how badges

work and what it means to “reward” participants.

Recommendation 2: Emphasize rewards are not tangible things of value.

Recommendation 3: List available badges to earn (We can list general badges

for the second testing).

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Recommendation 4: Have screenshots available to demonstrate what the

GroundCntrl interface looks like and how users will navigate it.

Problem 4: Users are confused about how to register for an accountThe most surprising discovery during the usability testing was that participants

were consistently confused about how to register for an account on the website. The

“Already a member?” login is prominent on every page; it is at the top left corner of the

sidebar. However, the registration button is at the bottom of the page, hidden from view.

Three participants suggested moving the “create an account” link higher on the

page and making it more visually prominent. Users were easily able to identify both of

the login places for already-registered members, but the “create an account” link got lost

in the shuffle.

Recommendation 1: Create a visually prominent (colorful and large) “create

account button” at the top of the landing page. If users have to scroll to find the

button, it is not prominent enough.

Recommendation 2: Have a visually prominent link to create an account on

each page.

Problem 5: Users don’t always recognize Illinois Public Media as the main project partner

When asked to navigate to the project partner’s site, six participants did not

choose Illinois Public Media. When asked why they did not identify Illinois Public Media

as the main project partner, they said there were no cues on the website that it was

more significant than the other listed project partners. Two participants selected another

project partner’s link, such as Eastern Illinois Food Bank. Other participants declined to

choose a partner saying they did not know which partner was the “main partner” and

others still were able to identify Illinois Public Media as the main project partner through

the header.

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One respondent said, “The partnership-- It wasn't clear that that was too

important. And the home page-- maybe would have been better if what the website/app

is was on the first page that pops up.” Another expressed “finding the project partners

section of the website” as a difficult task.

Recommendation 1: Although the Illinois Public Media logo is featured next to

the “Hunger Helpers” logo, it should be made more visually prominent.

Recommendation 2: Illinois Public Media’s logo should be singled out on the

sidebar. For example, Illinois Public Media’s logo can be under “Project Partners”

with text below that says, “With additional partners…” and a continuation of other

partner logos.

Site Design 2

On the “Get Started” page, we moved the account registration link to the top of

the page, and made it stand out by making it a red button. We hoped this would allay

confusion about how to register for an account. We also re-wrote the “Get Started” page

to provide a more detailed description of what the project is about right off the bat. One

of the most troubling problems we encountered during usability testing one was that

participants had difficulty understanding the purpose of project. All of the respondents

were unable to accurately describe the purpose of the site during usability testing one.

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We also got rid of the “Already a member?” sign-in box at the bottom of the home

page because people seemed to have no trouble finding where to sign in during

usability testing one. Having a sign in location in two places was unnecessary.

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We continued the theme of a registration button on every page so that there

would be absolutely no chance of confusion about where to register for an account.

During the first usability testing, respondents had difficulty identifying Illinois Public

Media as the main project partner. We thought adding “A project by” in the header

(where the Illinois Public Media logo is) would help solve this problem.

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We re-wrote the “About the Project” in layman’s terms so that people unaffiliated

with a media organization could understand what we were trying to accomplish with the

project and who was behind it.

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Usability Test 2 Data Collection

Task One: Find out what the Hunger Helpers project is.


● 1 out of 7 participants had one wrong turn, but completed without assistance (1

wrong turn)



Where did the user get stuck or confused?● 5 out of 7 participants did not get stuck or confused.

● 1 out of 7 participants clicked the How It Works page first, then clicked the About

page

● 1 participant thought the explanation of badges and challenges was vague

What surprised the user?● 7 out of 7 participants were not surprised by anything.








Success Criteria:● 7 out of 7 participants clicked on About tab.

● 7 out of 7 participants read and understood information on page.

● 7 out of 7 participants mentioned app is mobile-based.

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● 7 out of 7 participants mentioned the concept of activities and earning badges.

● 6 out of 7 participants mentioned the choice of choosing a team.

Notes:● 2 participants said the challenges description was vague/confusing

● 1 participant thought you had to sign up for two accounts: one with IPM and one

with Hunger Helpers

Task Two: Sign up for an account.





Where did the user get stuck or confused?● 4 out of 7 participants did not get stuck or confused

● 1 out of 7 participants was confused by multiple sign-up/don’t have an account

options

● 2 out of 7 participants was confused on how to pick the right food pantry


● 1 out of 7 participants was surprised there was no sign-up box








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Success Criteria:● 7 out of 7 participants clicked the sign up box.

● 7 out of 7 participants entered information.

● 7 out of 7 participants chose the correct food pantry/soup kitchen given to them.

● 7 out of 7 participants completed creating an account.

Notes:● 1 participant used the “Don’t have an account” link to sign up

● 2 participants said there should be a page with information on each food pantry.

They said if we had not given them a designated pantry they would be confused

on how to choose which one to volunteer with.

Task Three: Determine information about project partner.


● 0 out of 7 participants had wrong turns, but complete without assistance



Where did the user get stuck or confused?● 4 out of 7 participants did not get stuck or confused

● 3 out of 7 participants were confused about which partner to click because of the

sidebar on the right

What surprised the user?● 7 out of 7 participants were not surprised by anything






Completed successfully?

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● 6 out of 7 participants completed the task successfully.


Success Criteria:● 6 out of 7 participants found the link to WILL’s/Illinois Public Media’s website.

● 6 out of 7 participants clicked the link.

● 6 out of 7 participants distinguished the project as an Illinois Public Media project.

Notes:● 3 participants clicked the link in the header to IPM’s page

● 1 participant asked “So these are just other partners?” when viewing the sidebar,

but still clicked the correct link in the header

● 1 participant suggested we make it bolder and more obvious IPM is our partner

“Hunger Helpers” Usability Testing: Round 2Research Summary

Demographics: Seven people participated in the second round of usability testing, and

five people participated in the survey. Participants in the usability testing ranged from

22 years old to 61 years old.

Additional participant information: Two of the survey participants currently volunteer.

One of these participants said the site would “likely” inspire them to volunteer while the

other remained neutral. The other three survey participants who do not volunteer

seemed uninspired by the site; they remained “neutral” when asked if they would be

likely to volunteer in the Hunger Helpers project.

Similar to responses from usability testing one, all survey respondents said the site was

either “easy to use” (3) or “extremely to use (2).” In addition, all survey respondents

either said they “like” (4) the design or “strongly like” (1) the design.

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After reviewing responses to the survey and testing in Round One, we identified several

problems that were consistent in responses. The most critical issue was that many of

the participants from round one of usability testing were unable to accurately describe

the purpose of the project. We have since identified areas that have been improved

upon since the first testing, and areas that still require some work.

Positive 1: Marked improvement in participants understanding the purpose of siteAll seven participants in the second round of usability testing had “no problem”

understanding the purpose of the site. Each participant recognized that the bulk of

activity in the Hunger Helpers project was done via mobile app, which is a vast

improvement from the first round of usability testing, in which none of the participants

acknowledged this fact.

A 61-year-old participant picked up that the project was done via mobile app

immediately saying, “Well I don’t have a smartphone so I can’t do this project,” and

asking if he “gets a badge” for completing the testing.

Positive 2: Improvement in recognition of Illinois Public Media as main project partner

Participants had an easier time identifying Illinois Public Media as the main

project partner during this usability testing, although it is still not at the level of

confidence we are comfortable with. Only one participant could not identify Illinois Pubic

Media as the main project partner, compared to six out of 11 participants in the first

round of testing.

Three of the respondents who correctly recognized that Illinois Public Media was

the project’s main partner immediately identified this by click on the link in the header.

Although two other respondents correctly identified the project partner, they were more

hesitant because of the list of partners in the sidebar.

Positive 3: Marked improvement in ability to register for an account

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All seven participants had “no problem” registering for an account, a large

improvement over the seven out of 11 participants that completed the task with similar

ease during the first round of testing. However, some of the participants did offer some

suggestions for improving the process, described below.

Problem 1: “Signing up” for an account is not as intuitive as it should beAlthough all of our usability testing participants were able to easily sign up for an

account, there are ways that the process can be made easier. One participant said that

at first they believed there was no “sign up box” because the button did not actually

have the words “sign up” on it. Another said they were confused because there were

two red buttons that each allowed you to register for an account. A survey respondent

said , “Too many registration buttons on the same page (they all say something

different). I think one “Register Here” button would’ve sufficed.”

Recommendation 1: Only have one “Register” button

Recommendation 2: Change the wording of the button to “Sign Up Here” Problem 2: Users are not sure how to choose a partner organization to team with

Participants had no trouble registering with a team when given the team name

they would be signing up with. However, participants acknowledged that they would

have been at a loss as to which team to pick if they had been left to their own devices.

One participant said it would have been “a game of eanie-meanie-minie-moe”

because he did not have information to decide between the teams. That same

participant also suggested that the website should suggest a team nearest to the user,

implying use of geolocation technology.

Another participant had a suggestion along the same lines, and advised us that a

user “should be able to click on a link that gives you more info on each of those

particular food banks. How would I be able to know what team I would want to be in?

You should sort by location.”

33

Recommendation 1: Provide a geolocation tool that allows participants to find

the nearest participating organization.

Recommendation 2: Provide information for participants selecting a team such

as times the organization is open and level of involvement required.

Problem 3: Users still find the explanation of challenges and badges to be “vague”

Users understand the concept of completing tasks and earning badges, but have

requested more information on the website about specific badges they could earn or

tasks they would complete. One participant called the “How it Works” page “vague.”

One survey respondent said they’d like to see “better instructions about app navigation,”

and another asked for more “examples of challenges and badges you can get.”

Recommendation 1: Provide screenshots of team badges/individual badges

from GroundCntrl testing

Recommendation 2: List specific examples of activities based on conversations

with partners

Recommendation 3: Explain level of involvement can vary by team

Problem 4: Users don’t always recognize Illinois Public Media as the main project partner

This continues to be a problem from usability testing one to round two, although it

has improved. During testing one, when asked to navigate to the project partner’s site,

six participants did not choose Illinois Public Media. When asked why they did not

identify Illinois Public Media as the main project partner, they said there were no cues

on the website that it was more significant than the other listed project partners.

We attempted to solve this issue by adding “A project by” and the Illinois Public

Media logo in the header so that people affiliated the project with IPM. We also re-wrote

several pages to include Illinois Public Media’s name. However, one participant still was

unable to identify Illinois Public Media as the main project partner. This participant

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guessed that Central or Eastern Illinois Food Bank were leading the project. He said,

“I’ve got five choices here, how do I know which one is the main?” And suggested we

“put the main partner first,” which it is. Obviously we need to find another way to

differentiate Illinois Public Media from other partners.

However, it is worth mentioning that the usability test’s word choice may have

contributed to confusion. We asked participants to “navigate back to the main partner’s

website” to see if they correctly identified IPM by clicking on the logo. However, if a

participant believes IPM has launched and designed the project, they may distinguish

IPM as separate from a “partner.” We believe the participant (and earlier participants)

may have believed that they were looking for the main partner other than Illinois Public

Media.

Recommendation 1: Fix header image so that Illinois Public Media logo is

equally prominent to “Growing Hope Against Hunger” logo.

Recommendation 2: Illinois Public Media’s logo should be singled out on the

sidebar. For example, Illinois Public Media’s logo can be under “Project Partners”

with text below that says, “With additional partners…” and a continuation of other

partner logos.

Final Site Design

After analyzing the results of the second usability testing, we once again revised

parts of the site to reflect our findings. Here are the final site designs:

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36

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GroundCntrl App Testing

The final version of the Hunger Helpers app will be its own branded app, but will

use the GroundCntrl interface and software. Therefore, we found it important to find out

how people use the app and what they thought of the app to know how to best design

the Hunger Helpers app around the software.

GroundCntrl App Testing Research Plan

I. Research Questions

The overarching goal of the research is to determine whether or not the GroundCntrl

app is easy to navigate and understood by our target audience. Specifically, there are

multiple facets of the app we are testing for this goal:

1. How easy is it for participants to complete tasks, including: Q&A, poll, check in,

take a photo, and enter an amount?

2. What problems do participants encounter while using the GroundCntrl app?

3. What do participants like/dislike about the app?

4. Would participants use the app in a volunteer setting?

II. Research Method, Design and Statistical Analysis

We will find participants by contacting multiple volunteer organizations on campus, as

well as students and professors from a variety of schools. Each participants was given a

$5 Starbucks giftcard in return for participating in the testing.

The test was held over a span of five days, from May 1, 2013 to May 5, 2013.

III. Potential Risks

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Because our testing pool is mostly made up of students and university employees, they

likely use technology more than the average citizen and are more familiar with how

mobile apps work. We did not have any participants older than 45, leaving out the older

demographic’s opinion. This could skew the results.

Post-Research Note: In addition, we cannot with certainty generalize the results

of the app testing. At the time of our app testing launch (May 1), GroundCntrl was

in the process of launching a new platform system. We know of at least two

participants who downloaded the older version of the GroundCntrl app, while it is

believed the others have downloaded the newer version. Therefore, some of the

problems encountered may have been due to discrepancies in the version of

GroundCntrl downloaded.

IV. Potential Benefits

This research will provide a better understanding of how participants use GroundCntrl

and what type of challenges would be appropriate for participating food pantries to

provide. It will also be useful to GroundCntrl in knowing what does or doesn’t work

correctly on their application.

GroundCntrl App Testing Data Collection

General Task Feedback

1.) Which task was easiest to complete and why?

“Uploading a photo. The way to do it was similar to other apps I have used before, like Facebook.”

“Upload picture Process was convenient and easy”

“Checking in on the quad”

“The ones that required entering text into a box and taking a picture in order to complete. They were easiest because it was very clear what exactly we had to do in order to complete the task.”

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“Checking in was the easiest because it had the least amount of steps”

“Upload a picture, the process was the most convenient”

“the survey, it was very brief”

2.) Which task was hardest to complete and why?

“The task where we had to read an article then answer a question about the media group. I could not get answer box to activate.”

“Checking in to the quad, was not working”

“Reading the prompt and answering a comprehension question”

“I wasn't able to complete some tasks because the App didn't make it clear how exactly to go about completing them. For example, one said to fill out a survey before checking in. It didn't say how to get to the survey, so I wasn't sure if I actually completed it before checking in. Also, another activity required entering text into a box, but I couldn't enter text into the box.”

“The one where you read a story and answer the question was hardest because the answer box wouldn't let me type anything in it so I couldn't complete the challenge”

“Checking into the Quad because it didn't work”

“just having to do one task a day was hard to remember versus just doing all the tasks in one day”

3.) Please list any problems you encountered while using the app.

“1. I kept registering as in Fulton, even when I followed the GPS map to check in at right place at the quad. 2. I did not see any instructions or link to complete the day 2 challenge - complete the poll. I just confirmed I did it and moved on. 3. I used the app to send a message to the team leader, but there was no way to know if it had been received or to get a reply. 4. I could not activate answer box in one challenge.”

“Checking into the quad didn't work”

“In the Illinois Public Media prompt, I couldn't activate the text box to write in my

40

answer. Also, it was hard to tell if I had really completed a task once I did it”

“Not being able to enter text into a box, the app crashing (especially after finishing all of the activities at the end) and not being clear how to work things.”

“Poll didn't show up on my challenge; wouldn't let me type in an answer on the read and answer one”

“The checkin to the quad didn't work”

“signing up for the app, it wouldn't let me sign in the first time and I had to request a second invitation even though the person who sent me the invitation did it right the first time”

Detail Task Feedback

4.) How would you rate the difficulty of each task?Extremely

easy Easy Manageable Neutral Slightly difficult Difficult Very

difficultRating

AverageTask 1 (Check in at the Quad)

3 0 0 0 2 0 1 3.33

Task 2 (Complete the poll)

2 1 0 0 0 1 2 4.00

Task 3 (Upload a photo)

3 2 0 0 0 0 1 2.33

Task 4 (Click the link, read the story and respond)

0 1 0 2 0 2 1 4.83

Task 5 (Upload photo, count items)

1 1 1 0 1 2 0 3.83

Task 6 (Q&A and Poll) 1 1 0 2 0 1 1 4.00

5.) What would make it easier to complete any task you thought was difficult?

“Quick feedback and replies, more detailed instructions.”

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“Doing a "test" task where the user is shown how to submit a task, upload, etc.”

“Clearer instructions on how to access things like a Poll, or a Q and A session.”

“if it worked”

“not having to upload photos, in the above portion you can't pick the same level of difficulty for more than one item so the answers are incorrect :(“

Engagement and Usability

6.) What do you like about this app?

“The layout was nice. The ability to use the GPS in app to navigate worked well.”

“Simple to use”

“The feature of being able to see where your team is.”

“The "teamstream" feature is great in that it allows you to check your other team members' progress.”

“it reminds me of foursquare because of the challenges and badges so that makes people want to do it”

“user friendly”

7.) What do you dislike about this app?

“Inability to obtain answers or directions when something wouldn't work.”

“I don't understand how it helps the food bank”

“The organization of how to access certain features.”

“It's a little plain and hard to tell if I've completed a task.”

“a lot of the challenges didn't work; design doesn't make things clear, you have to mess around with it to figure it out”

8.) Now that you have seen how the system works, how would you like to see it used in relation to volunteer activity?

“It would be very useful to coordinate locations.”

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“Make tasks more relevant to the volunteer activity and the food bank”

“Only if it had improvements to make it more functional and intuitive.”

“if it had challenges like checking in at volunteering places to earn badges that would work”

9.) What ideas do you have that could make this even better?

“A way to contact team leader and receive responses to questions or difficulties.”

“Make the tasks more relevant to the purpose of the app”

“Clearer explanation of how to complete certain tasks. Also, a clearer explanation of what this app is designed for.”

“More testing of the app, more engaging tasks and livelier colors!”

“more attractive design and fix the errors”

10.) How likely would you be to recommend this app?

Very Likely : 0 Likely: 1 Neutral: 1 Probably would not: 2 Definitely would not: 2

Demographics

Do you currently volunteer? Yes: 4 No: 2

Do you listen to public radio? Yes: 5 No: 1

What is your age? Respondent 1: 41 Respondent 2: 21 Respondent 3: 22 Respondent 4: 21 Respondent 5: 45 Respondent 6: 21

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What is your gender? Male: 1 Female: 5

9 App testing participants, 6 survey respondents (1 partial survey respondent)

GroundCntrl App Testing Research Summary

Demographics: Nine people participated in the weeklong app testing and 7

participated in the survey. Our participants ranged from 20 years old to 45 years

old.

Additional participant information: Four of the survey participants currently

volunteer. Five of the survey participants said they listen to public radio.

We summarized both the problems and positive aspects of the GroundCntrl

mobile app for iPhone and our recommendations to fix these problems below.

Positive 1: Users thought uploading photos to the app was easyWhen asked what task was easiest to complete, three of the survey

participants said uploading photos was the easiest task. One participant said the

“process was convenient and easy.” Another also used “convenient” to describe

the photo uploading process. A participant stated the easiest tasks were “the

ones that required entering text into a box and taking a picture in order to

complete. They were easiest because it was very clear what exactly we had to

do in order to complete the task.”

Positive 2: Users liked the “Teamstream” featureSome of the participants brought up the Teamstream feature without being

prompted. This feature allows users to post and view other teammates’ posts.

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One participant said that the Teamstream feature was what they liked about the

app. Another added: “The ‘Teamstream’ feature is great in that it allows you to

check your other team members' progress.

Positive 3: Users thought the GPS challenge was easyOverall, most participants thought the check in task was the easiest. One

participant said “checking in on the quad” was the easiest task to complete.

Another expanded by stating “checking in was the easiest because it had the

least number of steps.” This task was chosen by most as the easiest when they

were able to complete it. However, this task did not always work (see problem 1

below).

Problem 1: Users could not complete some of the tasks due to system problems

Many of the participants reported having problems completing some of the

challenges due to errors in the software. Five of the seven survey participants

said they could not get one or more of the challenges to work. Two participants

said they could not check in and four participants said they encountered

problems with not being able to type in text boxes. Two participants said they

could not complete the poll challenge because the poll did not show up. One

participant said “I did not see any instructions or link to complete the day 2

challenge - complete the poll. I just confirmed I did it and moved on.” One

participant said the problems they encountered were “not being able to enter text

into a box, the app crashing (especially after finishing all of the activities at the

end) and not being clear how to work things.”

It is difficult to determine whether this is due to differences in how different

iOS versions behave with the app platform, the version of GroundCntrl

participants downloaded or errors in the GroundCntrl system. It is likely that it is a

45

mixture of the last two. We know of at least one participant who downloaded the

GroundCntrl app instead of the newer version, listed in the Apple store as

GroundCntrl3. However, we also know that many of the other participants did

download the correct version and still experienced difficulties.

Recommendation 1: We recommend the GroundCntrl team continue to

work on fixing bugs in the new system, and testing it on multiple types of

iPhones (4, 4S, 5, etc.) and multiple versions of iOs, as this may affect how

the app works.

Recommendation 2: We recommend the description of the app in the

Apple store states that users should update their iPhone’s software before

downloading the app.

Problem 2: Users did not like the design of the appSome did not like the design of the app. One participant said “it’s a little

plain,” while another participant said the “design doesn’t make things clear.”

When asked what ideas they have to improve the app, one participant said they

wanted “more engaging tasks and livelier colors!” Another participant answered

they wanted a “more attractive design.”

Recommendation 1: Re-design the “Tasks” panel to make it more

attractive and less “wordy.” Currently, the tasks are in a list form with no

icons or pictures. By adding color or turning each challenge into a small

icon, it would add interest to the panel.

Recommendation 2: Add at least one brighter color in the design to add

interest.

Recommendation 3: Make the badges different colors from one another.

Currently, they are all the same color.

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Problem 3: Users said they would likely not recommend the appFour of the survey participants said they either “probably would not” or

“definitely would not” recommend the app to others. Only one participant said

they “likely would” recommend the app. When asked what they dislike about the

app, two participants mentioned the problem they had completing certain

challenges as discussed above. Three participants mentioned that they disliked

the organization of the app, and how hard it was to figure out how to work it

(discussed further in Problem 4).

Recommendation 1: Fix bugs and errors with some of the challenges, as

explained in Problem 1.

Recommendation 2: Reward users for recommending the app to others.

This could be in the form of giving users a badge for referring new users to

the app, or for talking about the app on Facebook or Twitter.

Problem 4: Users did not think the app was intuitive or easy to understandMany users reported being confused by how to use the app and the lack of

directions within the app. When asked what would make the app easier to use, a

participant answered “quick feedback and replies, more detailed instructions” and

another answered “clearer instructions on how to access things like a Poll, or a Q

and A session.” One participant said “you have to mess around with it [the app]

to figure it out.” One participant stated they disliked “the organization of how to

access certain features.”

Some participants said they would have liked the option to ask someone

for help with the problems they encountered. One participant said they disliked

the “inability to obtain answers or directions when something didn’t work.”

Another participant said the app would be better if there was “a way to contact

team leader and receive responses to questions or difficulties.” One participant

47

suggested “doing a "test" task where the user is shown how to submit a task,

upload, etc.” When asked which task was the hardest to complete, one

participant stated, “I wasn't able to complete some tasks because the App didn't

make it clear how exactly to go about completing them. For example, one said to

fill out a survey before checking in. It didn't say how to get to the survey, so I

wasn't sure if I actually completed it before checking in.”

Recommendation 1: Create a Frequently Asked Questions or Help

section within one of the existing panels.

Recommendation 2: Create a messaging feature within the app that

would allow team members to message the team leader directly on the

app.

Recommendation 3: Give users the option to complete a tutorial upon

downloading the app. This would include a few practice tasks that would

teach users how to complete the various types of tasks before joining a

team and actually doing it.

Marketing Plan

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Target Audience

Based on previous research completed on this project, the volunteer

demographic ranges in age from 35-44, is more female than male, is married with

children, is college-educated and employed, spends approximately 32 hours a year

already volunteering, and is primarily interested in religious and youth-related

opportunities. The ideal volunteer is a homeowner and feels they have a stake in their

local community.

(1) Spreading the word in WILL’s listening/viewing area

SUMMARY: Our approach to increase awareness of the project within WILL’s

listening and viewing area is two-pronged. We would largely encourage viewers

and listeners to become volunteers through an on-air blitz of “advertisements,”

which would then lead interested people to the website where they could learn

more about the project and download the app. Some of the advertisements

would direct people to the Hunger Helpers website, while others would give

instructions on how to directly download the app from the Apple Store. People

would not be downloading the Groundcntrl app, but rather the app would be

branded in the Apple Store as a “Hunger Helpers” app by Illinois Public Media,

using GroundCntrl’s software. Therefore, we need to provide as much

information about the app in the Apple Store’s description as we do on the

Hunger Helper’s website.

In addition, we will also reach listeners and viewers online by providing an

advertisement on Illinois Public Media’s website linking to the Hunger Helpers

site. Because advertisements don’t allow much space, our goal is to attract the

viewer’s attention while providing just enough information to make them want to

click through to the site.

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On-Air

On-air spots are one of the most important facets of the Hunger Helpers

marketing plan. Because Illinois Public Media has both radio and television outlets, this

is the easiest and most effective way to target and reach the audience most likely to

participate in the program.

Radio:

Here are three examples of :15 to :30 radio ads that could be played on WILL

Radio:

1. ) “An estimated 1.9 million Illinois residents do not have enough to eat. You can be

part of the solution and you can do it all on your iPhone. Go to W-I-L-L.illinois.E-D-U to

join the Hunger Helpers team.”

2.) Someone who is profiled in the “Faces of Hunger” page on the Hunger Helpers site

can voice their experience and encourage listeners to go to WILL’s site to learn more

about the project.

3.) “At W-I-L-L TV and Radio, we have consistently covered the issue of hunger in

central and eastern Illinois. Now we want to do more than cover it. We want to be part of

the solution. Become a hunger helper today and join us in being part of the solution. Go

to W-I-L-L.illinois.E-D-U to learn more.”

Based on previous research by Daniel Maxson, those who do not volunteer

choose not to do so due to perceived time constraints. Therefore, an effective marketing

plan would address these concerns and emphasize how the Hunger Helpers project can

fit into any schedule.

4.) “Think you don’t have time to volunteer? Think again. The Hunger Helpers app

makes volunteering easy. We help you find ways to volunteer that fit into any schedule

50

and budget, and it all starts with your iPhone. Visit W-I-L-L dot Illinois dot E-D-U today

to learn how you can make volunteering part of your life.”

Television:

Here is an example of a :30 ad that could be played on WILL-TV:

1.) A 30-second spot following a person who struggles to find enough food: b-roll of

going to a soup kitchen, food pantries, and brief “talking head” segments

Online

In order to direct people to the site in order to download the app, we recommend

there be a small picture link to the Hunger Helper’s site in the sidebar of WILL’s main

site. The ad should not be distracting, but should be prominent enough that visitors to

the site understand it is an important project affiliated with Illinois Public Media. Below

are several examples of ads that could run on the site’s sidebar. In addition, we have

included a banner ad that links to the Hunger Helpers’ site:

51

We also recommend that WILL expand “Faces of Hunger” into a multimedia

project featured on WILL’s main site, explained in greater detail below.

Social Media

We recommend that IPM make a concerted effort to market the Hunger Helpers

project through their already-existing social media accounts. We do not see the need to

create separate social media accounts for the Hunger Helpers project during the initial

stages of raising awareness about the project. However, it may be helpful in the future

to do this to keep participants up to date.

“Liking” the Illinois Public Media group on Facebook and following the Twitter

account could even become two of the challenges users can complete to earn badges,

should GroundCntrl begin to incorporate sharing to other social media outlets as a

feature on the app. However, creating specific Hunger Helpers social media accounts

would only be worthwhile after the Hunger Helpers project has gained traction in the

community and only as a way to effectively communicate updates on the project as a

whole— not as an effective way to raise awareness about the project.

Encouraging advertisement of the program through partners

The food pantries and soup kitchens that partnered with Illinois Public Media in

the project would be valuable for encouraging potential volunteers to not only volunteer,

but to volunteer through the Hunger Helpers app.

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For larger organizations that only keep in contact with its volunteers via email, we

can design a newsletter explaining the project and linking to the Hunger Helpers

website. In addition, we recommend asking larger partner organizations to share

information and link to the website through their social media accounts.

Expansion of Faces of Hunger

Positive feedback received during usability testing was that participants

responded well to the Faces of Hunger page. One participant said “I like the faces of

hunger tab— very motivating.” Another mentioned, “I liked the stories about people who

use food banks because it makes it more personal.” This positive feedback stayed

consistent through the second round of testing. One participant said the site would be

better with “more faces of the hungry throughout the pages. It doesn’t appeal to me

emotionally because there are no photos of people. Images with emotional impact help

tremendously.”

Illinois Public Media can build on this positive feedback by launching a

multimedia project documenting some of the “faces of hunger” in central and eastern

Illinois. A smaller version of the Faces of Hunger project will be available on the Hunger

Helpers site, but we recommend that a larger multimedia project be linked to on the

Illinois Public Media’s site. The project would profile people who are directly affected by

hunger and rely on food assistance. It is important to personalize the Hunger Helpers

project in this way so that potential volunteers can see the people they will be helping in

participating.

We recommend that the multimedia project be displayed on Illinois Public

Media’s site because it shows the issue of community hunger is an ongoing and

important project to WILL, and not an afterthought. People who may not be interested in

downloading the app and otherwise may never follow the link to the Hunger Helpers site

could learn about the issue of hunger on the main site, and may choose to participate in

53

ending hunger in their own way. Featuring such a project prominently on the WILL site

demonstrates WILL’s dedication to the issue.

(2) Spreading the word in the journalism community

SUMMARY: It’s important for Illinois Public Media to focus on raising community

awareness about the project to ensure its success, but it is also important for

WILL and Reynold’s Journalism Institute to raise awareness about this venture

within the journalism community. This is a pioneering project that could open

discussion about newsrooms’ role in civic participation and community

engagement— and we want to encourage that discussion.

Discussion of project on RJI “Futures Lab” vodcast

Newsrooms are searching for new, innovative ways to engage audiences. There

is a legitimate debate about how large a role the media should play in civic

engagement, but there is no denying Hunger Helpers is a pioneer project in terms of

audience engagement.

Hunger Helpers is one of the first of projects that encourage audiences to

engage more with their community. While hosting a discussion on the project on the RJI

vodcast will not necessarily attract more participants, it will create more recognition

within the journalism community, and perhaps encourage other newsrooms to create

similar community engagement projects.

Continued blogging on the project

Should RJI continue funding the project, future capstone students should

continue blogging about the progress of the project on the current blog, Beyond

Engagement (www.beyondengagement.wordpress.com ). This is a way to document

54

the process of launching such a project and serves as a learning tool for other

newsrooms or interested parties considering such a project.

Recommendations

Illinois Public Media

55

Recommendations mandatory for the project’s success:

1. Choose a designated person from Illinois Public Media to be the first point of

contact for the project. They will handle the information coming from the backend

of the site (such as joining a team requests), to communicate as needed with

partners, and to take lead in marketing the project. (Probably Kimberlie Kranich).

2. Illinois Public Media must market this project in the months approaching the

app’s launch. It is most important to do this online and on-air. On-air

advertisements for the app need not exceed 15 seconds to be effective.

Listeners and viewers will not know about the project until Illinois Public Media

takes initiative by raising awareness.

GroundCntrl

Recommendations mandatory for the project’s success:

1. The ability for users to raise awareness about the project through social media

on the app as a challenge.

2. The ability for users to contact the team leader (and other members) directly via

a messaging system through the app. This would be even better if the user got a

push notification that they had a message available similar to the notifications

they receive about new tasks.

3. A team details page: the team leader contact, hours of operation and level of

involvement.

4. Ensure that when a team leader downloads the metadata for a team, that all responses, interactions and tasks are recorded.

Additional recommendations:

1. The ability for users to invite friends via social media.

56

2. The ability to use geolocation when determining the nearest “team” available in

order to choose which team to join.

3. Add another color into the design of the app to ‘lighten’ it up. If the app design

could be altered for the Hunger Helpers app to reflect the colors and tone of the

Hunger Helpers website.

Moving Forward

1. We strongly recommend that those who work on this project in the future design,

test and develop a mobile version of the website so that if someone visits the site

from their phone, they are able to easily view information on the project and

download the app directly to their phone.

2. Remain in contact with project partners. The designated contact at Illinois Public

Media should follow up with the partners using the contact information we have

obtained to introduce themselves personally and get a deeper understanding of

the needs of each organization.

3. Based on the needs of the organization, draft a list of potential tasks and badges

that are unique to each organization.

4. On the website, there needs to be some sort of description available so that

people know a little bit about each organization before choosing a team. Since a

big aspect of the app is that people with any kind of schedule can participate, the

description should state the level of involvement required to be part of that team.

(Many partners do not want volunteers per say, but people who will organize food

and money drives. Therefore, depending on the organization, the level of

involvement and personal interaction will change).

5. We recommend setting a goal of launching the site and app by October. If the

project takes any longer to launch, we run the risk of losing partners. We lost one

partner just in the period of delaying the launch from March to late summer.

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Sources

Harwood, Richard C., and Aaron B. Leavy. Why We're Here: The Powerful Impact of

Public Broadcasters When They Turn Outward. 1st ed. Dayton: Charles F. Kettering

Foundation, 2011. Print.

58

Rubin, Jeffrey. Handbook of Usability Testing: How to Plan, Design, and Conduct

Effective Tests. New York: Wiley, 1994. Print.

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