Project Overview
Mike’s Clean Sweeps focuses on chimney maintenance and fire prevention in the San Francisco Bay Area. Due to low awareness, numerous homes have unsafe fireplaces. To generate web-based leads and boost fire safety awareness, I suggested creating a website linking property owners with Mike’s Clean Sweeps. The website continues to serve new and returning customers, increasing sales by 60%. The increase in lead quality has improved the experience for users who receive a more personalized service and the employees who have increased their productivity and focus for each job.
My Role: UI/UX Design, Research, Prototyping, Visual Design
Michael Carlson: Business Owner, Fire Safety Expert, Research
Duration: 7 months – Remote/In Person (Hybrid Work)
Toolbox: Figma, Photoshop, WordPress, Bootstrap
Problem Statement
A shocking majority of property owners in Northern California are largely unaware of Fire Safety Inspection standards and the necessity of regular maintenance. Mike was spending valuable time explaining a recurring scenario with potential customers via phone calls. I knew there was better way to increase awareness and allow users to request service.
How can we empower property owners to better understand fire safety?
Scheduling service calls is a major recurring pain point for users and the business, how could this experience be improved?
How could we create a more personalized experience for property owners?
Goals
- Increase business growth and simplify the booking for service calls
- Establish an online presence for Mike’s Clean Sweeps as a brand
- Increase fire safety awareness for residential property owners
Design Process
1. Research
The target user comprises property owners aged 45 to 58, residing in Alameda, West Contra Costa, San Mateo, and Marin Counties, where Mike specializes.
Research uncovered a significant lack of awareness among Northern CA homeowners about fireplace maintenance, largely due to a comparatively lax fire safety code enforcement. A SWOT analysis identified an opportunity for Mike’s Clean Sweeps to offer personalized services in the San Francisco Bay Area.
Previously, bookings were made via phone or email. A website will streamline this process, improving lead collection.
Competitor analysis highlighted the use of prominent contact details and general contact forms. Leveraging my lead generation expertise, I identified an opportunity to enhance the personalization of customer interactions and increase leads for Mike’s business.
2. Information Architecture
All of Mike’s Sweeps services were categorized under ‘Services’, simplifying site navigation and keeping the main focus on the primary and secondary calls to action.
The priority was to prioritize the booking process as the main call to action, with alternative pathways available for users interested in exploring additional services and fire safety information.
User Flow
3. Prototyping and Testing
I created a clickable prototype to simulate user journeys and conducted usability testing with six volunteers across various devices. Observing users completing the ‘schedule appointment’ task revealed key insights.
Four users clicked the primary call to action within 7 seconds of loading the homepage, while two users initially explored services before clicking the main call to action. No user required assistance during the process.
Based on these observations, two changes were implemented:
1. The hero section will only feature the primary call to action, with 2-3 popular services listed below the header to avoid overwhelming users. Each service section will include a secondary call to action.
2. For users who delayed scrolling, the primary call to action will include an anchor link directly to the form in addition to linking to the page.
4. Visual Design
Since Mike already had a logo, I only needed to establish the visual design for the site. I created a style guide, color scheme, responsive components and UI elements.
Style Tile
Final Design
5. Development
I coded design system components, utilizing Bootstrap 5.0 and WordPress. Installed and set up WordPress plugs-in for Google Analytics, SEO and the lead submission form.
6. Testing and QA
To help ensure the website is fully functional, meets accessibility and brand standards I test the website with 12 users in a test environment. I also ensured the website is compliant for mobile devices, tablets, laptops and large screens. Additionally I checked accessibility and SEO compliance. The bugs were logged and resolved prior to launch.
7. Launch
Migrate from testing environment to live environment and launch the website
Results
Mike’s clients praise the web experience, with over 50% immediately requesting service. Around 70% of users who don’t request service immediately, browse all services. An average of 60% of these remaining users then use the form to request service. Using a form yields higher quality leads compared to cold calls, as it gives more detailed responses. This approach outperformed email links or click-to-call options by 40%. This shift allows Mike to prioritize personalized experiences, a key value for his clients. Future plans aim to further streamline maintenance service calls and personalize user experiences to enhance lead quality.
Reflection
I plan to incorporate a scheduling calendar allowing clients to book recurring inspections annually to prevent oversight. Additionally, I aim to enhance retention and SEO by integrating a blog for Mike to share personal insights and experiences. I’m proud of this project because I was able to understand the pain points of both the business and it’s customers and address these in a way that has helps solve real problems for all users.