UI/UX Starbucks Case Study
Design Softwares used: Adobe XD
About the project:
Starbucks is the world's biggest coffee chain, with an estimated revenue of 29.06 billion USD, however their app store rating only has 1.4 stars.
The issues the users report vary, including:
Inability to log in/log out
Difficulty customising drinks (e.g. adding dairy free milk)
I decided to redesign Starbucks, resolving the functionality issues surrounding drink customisation and placing an order, to demonstrate how they could greatly improve their user experience and app store ratings.
Branding & design trends
Whilst my main objective was to improve the user experience, I also felt as if their whole app needed a freshen up. I used their original recognisable brand colours, whilst adding in modern animations to keep up with the current design trends. These included:
Personalised welcome messages
Playful animations, without being distracting
Minimalist design with bold typography
Issue 1 - Difficulty customising drinks
According to Alpro — a top international dairy-free milk company that conducted a recent survey — reported that 48% of coffee drinkers ask for dairy-free varieties of milk, including coconut, soy, and almond, when they're on the go. This could be for a variety of reasons, most commonly down to the rise in veganism and the common allergy to lactose.
Considering Starbucks are the worlds leading coffee brand, they should keep up with the trends by offering their users the ability to easily customise drinks on their app. Whilst they do offer this on their app, many reviews mention the difficulty they experience trying to access this useful feature.
I redesigned this feature to make it simple & easy for anybody to customise their drinks, by adding dairy free milk, syrups and toppings, as well as the ability to specify any allergies users may have in efforts to be more inclusive.
Issue 2 - Inability to place/process orders
After reading many reviews on the app store, it became apparent that many users were having functionality issues surrounding placing their order.
"I can get all the way through the ordering process up to the final step of "place order", and no, the app doesn't process any further. I have deleted and will be buying my coffee elsewhere".
This issue is costing Starbucks customers, both on the app and in person, as negative experiences will force customers to shop elsewhere, costing Starbucks important customer loyalty.
I decided to redesign the ordering section of the app, with a simple, minimalist design to avoid unnecessary confusion. I took inspiration from the current design trends by adding in fun animations, something which Deliveroo utilises well in their app. It can be useful to take inspiration from well liked rated apps (Deliveroo have 1.7M downloads and 4.7 rating on the app store), to see what sort of design & functionality users enjoy, and then implementing similar systems within your own designs.
Please feel free to email me at [email protected] about future work & collaborations! 😊