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Tovala
(UI/UX Design)
A redesign to improve Tovala's app and to provide a user-friendly, visually engaging, and personalized experience that enhances customer satisfaction and retention. Simultaneously, working on its social media strategy to create compelling, relatable campaigns that highlight the convenience and quality of Tovala's meal plans, driving awareness and boosting customer acquisition.
Project Type
Food App Redesign
Software
Webflow, Figma, After Effects, Photoshop
My Role
UI/UX Designer
Duration
2 weeks
Project Link - (Phone use only)
Tovala
+ Research
Bussiness Goal
Tovala seeks to disrupt dinner with intelligent kitchen devices paired with gourmet-designed meals from top local restaurants. This fast-paced kitchen brand enables an active individual or family to make cooking an easier and fun experience. At Tovala, mixing technology with inside knowledge, its aim would be to save time, food waste, and add healthier, better meals that will go perfectly in any given setting within the existing time, earning Tovala a leading name in both smart home and meal delivery brands.
Problem Statement
Tovala, a brand offering smart ovens and meal delivery services, faces challenges in effectively engaging its target audience and driving customer conversions for its meal plans. While its current app provides basic functionality, it lacks an intuitive user experience that seamlessly integrates with the lifestyle of its users. Additionally, the brand's digital marketing efforts, particularly on platforms like Facebook, are not fully optimized to capture and retain the interest of potential customers.
Key Points
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Lack of Meal Plan Awareness: Customers might not realize that Tovala offers a meal plan subscription, leading to the underutilization of the oven's intended purpose.
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Missed Offers: Customers may not be informed about introductory meal plan discounts or promotions, missing out on savings and added value.
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Unclear Value Proposition: Without knowledge of the meal plans, customers might perceive the oven as overpriced or less useful.
+ Value Proposition - Elevating the Tovala Experience
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Convenience: Managing smart ovens and meal plans should be intuitive and seamless. Many users, especially busy individuals, find navigating complex interfaces for meal preparation inconvenient. By streamlining the app’s design and functionality, Tovala can enhance the overall user experience, making it effortless to discover, order, and prepare meals. A simplified app can increase customer satisfaction and engagement by removing unnecessary friction.
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Usability: While the Tovala oven simplifies cooking, users need motivation to explore its full potential. The app can play a key role in creating habits through features like personalized meal suggestions and gamified rewards for using Tovala’s meal plans. The app can deepen customer loyalty and long-term engagement by fostering routine and rewarding consistency.
Convenience
Usability
+ User Persona
Jennifer Wilkerson
"I love gadgets that make life easier, but they need to fit into my routine and save me time with my kids."
As a frequent big-box grocery shopper, Jennifer noticed a Tovala marketing pop-up at her local Costco. After seeing the oven in action through a demo of the product, Jennifer decided to make a purchase. However, after unpacking the oven at home, she did not sign up for a meal delivery plan. Instead, she uses the oven to cook non-Tovala food. Tovala increased profit by the sale of the oven but is losing a subscription-based customer for what is a subscription-based business model.
Goals and Motivations:
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Prepare quick, nutritious meals for her family despite her busy schedule.
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Find budget-friendly, creative food ideas that her kids will enjoy.
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Simplify meal prep and reduce cooking stress.
Apps:
X
TikTok
Age: 33
Occupation: Data Analyst
Family : Single Mother of two children, ages 4 and 7
Technology Comfort Level: Moderate; comfortable using apps and social media for daily needs
Pain Points:
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Unaware of Tovala’s meal plan offerings and how they could simplify her life.
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Finds the Tovala oven underutilized because she mainly cooks from scratch or uses recipes found online.
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Overwhelmed by the lack of promotions or incentives to try Tovala's meal plans.
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Feels the app could do more to integrate her existing cooking habits and preferences.
Scenario:
After a long day, Jennifer, a busy mom, relaxes by scrolling through Facebook. She spots a Tovala ad showcasing meal plans and remembers the Tovala oven she bought from Costco but hasn’t used much. Intrigued by the convenience of ready-to-cook meals, she quickly signs up for a plan through the app. Excited, Jennifer places her first order, looking forward to effortless, delicious dinners for her family.
The Problem - Why Users Did not interact with the meal plans
The previous design overlooked meal deals, reducing engagement with meal plans. The redesign focused on highlighting these offers to drive awareness and subscriptions.
Before
The previous design overlooked meal deals, reducing engagement with meal plans. The redesign focused on highlighting these offers to drive awareness and subscriptions.
After
+ Ideation
Why Facebook?
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Targeted Advertising: Facebook’s robust targeting options allow Tovala to reach specific audiences, like busy parents or working professionals, who will likely benefit from time-saving meal solutions. This increases the likelihood of converting casual users into meal plan subscribers.
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User Engagement: Many people, like Jennifer, turn to Facebook for inspiration and recommendations. By displaying Tovala ads in users' feeds, the platform allows Tovala to connect with potential customers while they’re actively seeking content, like recipes and meal ideas.
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Social Proof: Facebook groups and reviews create a space for customers to share their experiences. Positive word-of-mouth from friends or family members in food-related groups can help build trust and credibility, encouraging new users to sign up for meal plans.
Current Statistics of Facebook Usage
Share of Facebook users in the United States as of July 2024, by age group
I used Facebook because it offers a unique opportunity to connect with a broad audience while allowing for precise targeting. By leveraging Facebook’s ability to track user interests and behaviors, Tovala can reach busy parents, working professionals, and health-conscious individuals who would benefit from the convenience of ready-to-cook meals. The platform’s highly visual nature allows Tovala to showcase the ease and quality of its meal plans, while also tapping into social proof through user reviews, group discussions, and recipe sharing. This strategy ensures that Tovala’s message reaches potential customers where they’re already seeking meal inspiration, making the transition to subscribing to meal plans feel natural and relevant.
Competitors
Tovala faces competition from several companies in the smart kitchen, meal kit, and meal delivery space. Some of its key competitors include:
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HelloFresh: A meal kit delivery service that provides fresh ingredients and recipe cards for home-cooked meals, targeting similar busy professionals and families looking for convenient meal solutions.
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Blue Apron: Another meal kit delivery service offering fresh ingredients and pre-measured recipes, competing with Tovala in terms of convenience and cooking at home without the hassle of meal planning.
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Freshly: A direct competitor in the ready-to-eat meal delivery market, Freshly offers fully prepared meals that only need reheating, similar to Tovala’s chef-prepared meals but without the need for a smart oven.
Strategy
Tovala stands out from its competitors by combining a smart oven with chef-prepared, ready-to-cook meal plans, offering a truly hands-off cooking experience. Unlike meal kits that require preparation, Tovala meals only need to be placed in the oven, saving time on both cooking and cleanup. I used this unique feature to my advantage by emphasizing the ease and convenience it offers to busy individuals like Jennifer, highlighting how it removes the common hassles of meal prep and makes healthy, delicious meals accessible with minimal effort.
Easy
Emphasize how Tovala simplifies cooking
Quick
Fits perfectly into a fast-paced lifestyle.
+ User Flow
Jennifer starts by discovering a Tovala ad on Facebook, which leads her to click through to the app. Encouraged by the simplicity and convenience seen in the ad, she opens her Tovala app and signs up for the meal plans with the offered promo code.
+ Wireframes - Low-Fidelity Promo Code Iterations
For the promo code iterations in the app, inspiration was drawn from Tovala’s existing promo code visuals on their website. These designs were adapted and resized to seamlessly fit the app’s interface, ensuring consistency in branding while optimizing for mobile usability.
+Design System
Simplistic icons, consistent with Tovala's current design style, were used to maintain brand alignment. The color palette and typeface also followed Tovala's existing system for cohesiveness. Additions, such as banners, were introduced to enhance the interface and improve user engagement.
Colors:
HEX: #000000
Black
HEX: #FF5F1A
Orange
HEX: #2D781F
Green
HEX: #F8F9F4
Off-White
Buttons
.jpg)
Menu Bar buttons
Typeface:
Banners
Banner before Sign Up
Banner after Sign Up and promo code.
Reconnecting with Tovala and increasing engagement
The video shows a user browsing Facebook and opening a recipe group for meal inspiration. While scrolling, they discover a Tovala meal plan ad, perfectly targeted to their interests. Facebook ads are effective here as they connect with users already engaging with food-related content. Intrigued, the user clicks the ad to download the app, only to realize they already have it, prompting them to reconnect with their Tovala oven and explore its meal plans.
The Solution - Linking Elements
Enhancing Visibility: Driving Engagement with Meal Plan Promotions
The prototype highlights improved discoverability within the Tovala app. The user opens the app to find a prominently displayed promotion for meal plans, addressing the previous lack of visibility. Encouraged by the clear call-to-action, they sign in and are excited to see a 65% discount on their first meal plan, driving engagement and conversion through intuitive design.
+Learning Outcomes
Through this project, I gained valuable insights into creating user-centered designs by leveraging existing brand assets while introducing thoughtful enhancements. I learned how to adapt visuals, such as promo codes and icons, for different platforms to ensure consistency and usability. Additionally, I deepened my understanding of balancing creativity with functionality, integrating new elements like banners to enhance user engagement without disrupting the established design system. This experience reinforced the importance of aligning design choices with user needs and brand identity while exploring innovative solutions to improve the overall experience.
+Conclusion
In conclusion, this project provided an opportunity to enhance Tovala’s user experience by thoughtfully integrating existing brand elements with new, user-focused features. By maintaining consistency in design while introducing improvements such as banners and optimized visuals, the interface became more engaging and functional. This process not only strengthened my ability to adapt designs across platforms but also highlighted the importance of aligning user needs with brand identity to create a seamless and enjoyable experience.
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