.png)
Muzz is the world's biggest community for single Muslims to find their future partner. With a new user interface design for the search filter, Muzz aims to enhance users' comprehension of the search functionality.
I was the main designer leading this project conducting user research, ideating early concepts, presenting designs regularly to stakeholders, and delivering final assets for development.
Muzz has heard from users over the years that the current search filter experience is frustrating owing to the lack of understanding between different premium features. Users are confused about the different functionality between hard and soft filters, which makes it difficult for them to find compatible matches.
Poor understanding of the search filters premium features leads to user frustration, causing a decrease in customer satisfaction and resulting in lower conversion rates.
Our goal is to make it easy for our users to comprehend the functionality of hard and soft filters in our premium features, allowing them to better personalize their search filters and find their ideal match.
We want to provide users with clearer information on how the premium features in the search filter work and how to leverage these features to improve their match search results.
Currently, the premium search filter features are being used less frequently than other premium features in the app. We want to improve their usage.
Following a comprehensive evaluation of our search filter functionalities in comparison to those of our competitors, this is my research design below. I developed several hypotheses and questions regarding how users engage with the search filters in general and their perceptions of our premium search filter features.
Looking at the search filter features of direct competitors, I broadly classified them into two main categories. The first category offers only hard filters, while the second category defaults to a preference setting but also includes a deal-breaker option for individual preferences. The latter category effectively helps users to avoid overly restrictive their search results.
I've observed that hard filters are frequently referred to as advanced filters and deal breakers, while soft filters are generally called preferences.
.png)
Through the competitor analysis, I have analyzed our search filter features against our competitors. Below are my findings on areas where Muzz excel and where Muzz can improve in comparison to our competitors.
Following a comprehensive evaluation of our search filter functionalities in comparison to those of our competitors, this is my research design below. I developed several hypotheses and questions regarding how users engage with the search filters in general and their perceptions of our premium search filter features.
To understand the confusion surrounding premium features in the search filter, I conducted interviews with three users and gained valuable insights. The user research analysis revealed the user’ pain points:
%202.png)
Through the user research analysis, I identified three primary pain points below that were closely related to the project's scope and addressed them strategically
.png)
Our previous design left users struggling to understand our premium features. The feature names were inconsistent, and the explanations were ambiguous. Furthermore, the filter classifications were confusing.
With our new design, we have created clear categories for hard and soft filters, enabling users to comprehend the different natures of each. We have also adopted commonly used terminology, icons, and straightforward feature introductions to help users understand our premium features in the search filter.
With an emphasis on familiarity, simplicity, and clarity, the new design for the search filter screen aims to improve users' understanding of the premium features.
.png)
The new screen implemented in the app has led to a 40% increase in the use of premium features in the search filter within a span of three months (by February 2023).
.png){kind=small}
With Muzz’s users located in more than 190 countries worldwide, it's crucial to factor in how the visual design can effectively cater to various translations while designing the user interface."
When I was ideating, I came up with an idea to include a separate screen for premium filter features that would help users better focus on the task at hand. However, I didn't consider the fact that this approach would increase the number of steps in the user flow, potentially making it more difficult for users to achieve their goals.
While creative names may make premium features more noticeable, they can also lead to user confusion. To avoid this, it's important to use familiar terms to users that facilitate comprehension.
Here are potentially future plans for the premium search filter features:
As we conduct our user research, we've discovered a need for more advanced filters to help refine search results. We would like to explore the optimal number of filters to provide users, striking a balance between optimisation and not overly restricting search results.
The current process of switching the premium filter options involves removing the original one first, which is an additional step. We would like to improve user exerpeince by enabling them to update their filters seamlessly.
