Paddle Up Pickleballers
As the phenomenon of pickleball takes the world by storm, small town Dothan, Alabama is not immune to its charms. There’s just one problem: both locals and guests can’t seem to get a handle on how to get involved.
Background
Pickleball draws the interest of residents and guests here in Dothan. However, vital information for accessing free community play is frustratingly elusive. Many feel pressured to join expensive clubs or pay unnecessary fees within their community due to scattered and confusing city-provided information. The lack of responsiveness across devices and user-unfriendly interfaces causes alot of friction. This often leads them to unreliable sources or alternative activities. Additionally, the absence of ongoing updates causes conflicts when multiple individuals try to access courts that are unexpectedly unavailable as the year progresses.
My Role
I worked as a the sole Product Designer for this volunteer study. I conducted user research, user interviews, sketches, mid fidelity screens, user testing, final screens, and developed visual identity
Get a grip on all the needed information
Scope
UX/UI Design, User Research, Wireframes, Prototypes, Testing and Iterating, and Dev Hand-Off
Tools
Figma, Procreate, Illustrator, Photoshop
A city-provided activity can become a difficult experience for locals and guests to learn about and get involved in. My goal was to develop a platform that enhances the experience of city-provided activities.
I began looking to solve a sporadic info problem surrounding the Pickleball game in the area
When I began my research, I was looking into a problem I and other players were facing. My initial idea focused on consolidating needed info about the game together in one place. In a city-wide interest meeting hosted by Dothan Leisure Services, I heard that their goal was to get people 18-35 more involved. I wondered if I could mesh the two goals together…
And then I noticed something strange
After starting my research, I quickly learned that the majority of Pickeball players were between 40-80 and had been playing for a while. Further, out of the 70 people I surveyed who play Pickleball in the area, none of them stated that they receive their information regarding city-owned courts through the city itself.
Users started sharing problems with network loops about city-provided courts
Insights
