Away Day
A fun, easy-to-use carpool app for football fans, transforming game day travel into a shared adventure.
Type
Independent student project
My Role
Entire product design from research to conception and visualization
Timeline
March - April 2023
Project Overview
As part of our certification program at HIT, we were tasked with identifying a common pain point and designing a solution. I chose to focus on the difficulties football fans, including myself, face in getting to stadiums. To address this, I developed AWAYDAY, a user-friendly ride-sharing platform specifically for fans traveling to games. This solution aims to ease the travel frustrations of fans, making their journeys to support their teams more accessible.
Understanding the Problem
Football fans in Israel face significant travel challenges to games due to frequent traffic jams, no public transportation on Shabbat, and centrally located stadiums. These factors, more than the team's performance, often determine attendance. As a lifelong soccer fan, I've personally experienced these obstacles, highlighting the need for improved access to stadiums.
Challenges
Building Trust in Ride-Hailing:
The platform needs to tackle previous issues with ride-hailing apps in Israel by improving safety features and building trust.Handling Team Rivalries:
To help fans of rival teams travel together, the app will let users choose travel mates who support the same team and create a friendly space for all users.Keeping Up with Transportation Trends:
As transportation habits change, like with the new Gush Dan light rail, the platform should connect with public transport and adapt to these new trends.
Opportunities
Easier Access for Fans and Clubs:
The platform makes it easier for fans to get to games, which is good for both the fans and the clubs by increasing attendance.Building Community Among Fans:
To help fans of rival teams travel together, the app will let users choose travel mates who support the same team and create a friendly space for all users.Saving Money by Sharing Costs:
Fans can save money by sharing rides to games, making it cheaper and more enjoyable to go to sports events.Helping the Environment:
Sharing rides means fewer cars on the road, which reduces pollution and helps the environment, making sports fandom more sustainable.
Getting to Know the Fans
I developed a straightforward questionnaire to better understand Israeli sports fans, featuring 10 multiple-choice questions and one open-ended question. The survey focused on:
Fan Demographics: I gathered information about fans’ ages, locations, and lifestyles to see who our audience really is.
Fan Passion: I assessed how deeply fans care about their teams and their level of loyalty.
Travel to Games: I explored the various transportation methods fans use to get to games.
Barriers to Attendance: I identified obstacles that prevent fans from attending games.
I distributed the questionnaire through friends and prominent Twitter fan pages and quickly received 237 responses. Since Twitter users are often highly enthusiastic about their interests, our results may skew towards more passionate fans, potentially not representing all fan types equally.
Who Are They?
Mostly men aged 18-45 from central Israel, and yes, they’ve got cars!!
Fan Loyalty
A solid 82% own season tickets, showing they're regulars at the games.
How They Travel
Over half drive themselves to both home and away games
Public Transit Use
Fans are more likely to use public transport for home games, tailoring their travel to the game location.
Social Scene
Fans usually go to games with friends, though family outings or solo visits are also common
Home vs. Away
Almost half see no difference in attending home or away games—they're committed either way
Away Games Preference
Half of the fans attend more away games, demonstrating strong road support for their team.
Barriers
Three-quarters have faced issues getting to games in the past year, impacting attendance.
Digital Engagement
Many fans coordinate travel and discuss games via Facebook or WhatsApp groups, enhancing their game day experience
Our Users Are Fans
Age Range: 18-45
Background: Mostly male football fans from central Israel who are dedicated and often travel tough routes to support their teams. They share a strong love for football that brings people together.
Goals: They want easier and more enjoyable ways to get to games and feel part of a fan community.
Pain Point: 75% skip games because it's hard to get there or they don't want to go alone.
Leading Values: Loyalty to their teams and enjoying a sense of community with other fans.
User Flows
Informed by research findings, I developed a targeted user flows with a dual focus:
Flow 1 - Find a Ride:
Fans enter the app, search for a ride to their game, select a driver, and confirm their trip. This quick process gets them a ride to the stadium easily.
Flow 2 - Offer a Ride:
Drivers list available seats for a specific game, including trip details. This helps connect them with fans looking for a ride, simplifying shared travel to the game.
Information Architecture
The information architecture I designed focuses on two main user scenarios: finding a ride and offering a ride. Each scenario is structured to allow users to either find or offer a ride intuitively and efficiently, emphasizing a straightforward and clear user experience.
Wireframes
Two low-fidelity screen versions were sketched. The first version featured a map on the home screen, mimicking a navigation app. However, to better meet our target audience's needs, I created a second version that highlights a list of upcoming games right on the home screen, making it more intuitive and focused for users.
User Testing
After user testing, I selected the second app version with the game list. Users found that, while the map was good for quick orientation, the list was better for quickly understanding game details and setting up rides. This feedback made it clear that the list version was more user-friendly.
Final Design
Onboarding Flow
Users select their favorite team to personalize the app, simplifying access to relevant games and enhancing the tailored experience.
Flow 1 - Find a ride
Users can quickly find rides, accessing information about drivers and their team preferences, which promotes transparency and efficiency.
Flow 2 - Offer a ride
Users easily offer rides to games through a streamlined process, improving convenience and usability.
Takeaways
Educational Constraints
Working within an academic setting limited resources and time, suggesting that more autonomy could allow for broader and deeper research.
Significant Transportation Issues
The transportation challenges facing football fans are substantial, directly impacting their ability to attend games, as evidenced by widespread frustration over the lack of organized travel options.