Roles & Methods
Competitive Research, User Interviews & Surveys, Art Direction, Wireframing, UX/UI Design, Prototyping, Testing
Tools & Programs
Figma, Adobe Photoshop, Adobe Illustrator, Whimsical, Useberry, Lucidchart
Spreading the Joy of Yakiniku!
I had the pleasure of working with London-based Kintan to redesign their website. Kintan specializes in Japanese-style barbecue (called yakiniku) where guests cook premium-quality cuts of meats to their desired tastes using grills installed right at their own tables.
From a marketing standpoint, websites provide brands an advantage where people can easily discover the restaurant with a quick online search for places to eat. Having an online presence will increase a brand’s exposure astronomically– it’s that simple.
Business Goals and Impact
COVID-19 continues to have a lasting impact the restaurant industry that many businesses worldwide, small and big, are still recovering from.
When asked about Kintan's business goals moving forward, Kintan's CEO expected the website would share the story of the brand with site visitors. He believed that the goal of the website was to leave a positive impression of the restaurant’s mission, food, and service for those planning to make a visit.
"Why do customers need a restaurant website?"
Using websites, businesses create a digital extension of the dining experience customers can expect. To strengthen Kintan’s presence, we had to learn what generally attracts guests and what factors influence in their decision to dine out.
Research Method: Surveys
A survey was sent asking participants about motivations and habits for eating out, how they discover new places to eat, and what key points guide their decisions to eat at the restaurant.
Reponses revealed potential customer’s dining habits, motivations, what they want to know, and other related info. Importantly, we learned what they look for on websites which will affect their impression of the business and their choice to visit.
Restaurant websites aren’t just about giving people information, though. The difference between databases like Yelp and a personal website is that a website speaks directly to customers. Instead of relying on customer feedback (which is important for other reasons), a website lets brands present their food and themselves to potential diners, rather than letting that all be filtered through the experiences of others.
Additionally, having features like online reservations on a website can increase visitor count for those who like the convenience of not having to call the restaurant or leave their homes.
Discovering Customers' Intentions and Motivations
Crucial information should be easy to access and locate.
Information about the restaurant such as store hours, location, directions, and phone number had to be clear and easy to find. Even in our digital age, and customers need to be able to find and contact you easily.
Guests want to see menu prices and items.
Guests' choices are influenced by budget, preferences, and of course, cravings. Visitors also rely on images and photos of the restaurant's food to provide them a better expectation of the food quality and taste.
Online reservations and ordering increase customer accessibility.
Technology transformed the way customers place reservations and order food. Websites can offer them convenience by providing online reservation features or online ordering.
Welcoming Guests, Both New and Returning
After evaluating the data and research from user surveys and marketing analysis, personas were created in the stead of guests both new and returning to Kintan. These personas demonstrated below would set guidelines for the business's new website and find a way to appeal to both audiences who have different goals, expectations, and experiences with eating at this particular Japanese BBQ dining concept.
Slide to navigate between the New Guest and Returning Guest personas.
Major Components of a Restaurant Website
Images and photos that showcase restaurant food, drinks, and quality.
Easy to find information: location, hours, and menu items/price.
Ability to schedule table reservation or join a waitlist online.
Based on survey responses, the menu and price point are the two biggest factors a potential guest considers before making a reservation. Without information on menu or prices, customers will simply move on and choose a competitor who gives them a better idea of what to expect.
Once the guest is interested, they can either contact the restaurant or access an online reservation system to book a table in advance for a future visit, which secures potential revenue for the business. Users can benefit from using online reservation systems to conveniently and quickly plan their outings and see if tables are available for their desired times and number of guests.
Site Map
We generated a site map to make better user-centered decisions for navigation, labeling, and organization. We wanted to prioritize making the main site features clear and easy to find, nesting important pieces of information in their corresponding categories.
Initially, the CEO and I discussed adding online ordering and delivery options to bolster restaurant sales and numbers. But in late stages, the call-to-action for online ordering and delivery was removed because of various COVID-19 related difficulties with government-mandated restrictions, on-and-off closures, and restaurant operations.
Task & User Flows
Assuming the new customer persona, this flow plays the role of a new potential customer hearing about Kintan wanting to learn more about the business. So how would a new visitor possibly traverse through the structure of the website? I considered the visitor's steps upon landing on the home page and how they would go about learning about the business, exploring menus, and making a reservation for a future visit.
Guest numbers is an important metric in the food industry. For every reservation Kintan receives, the business has secured a conversion to help drive their sales number and can better predict other facets of their operations such as staff scheduling, maintaining food inventory and stock, vendor deliveries, and more.
Low-Fidelity Wireframes
Once again, customers are most interested in finding out what kind of food and prices a restaurant offers while images sell a brand and entice guests into wanting to try out a business's menu. These wireframes present the stakeholder's desired messaging, supplemented with essential textual and visual elements users tend to scan for.
One interesting thing noted was that all users from survey reported using their phones to browse a business’s website. Responsive screens for mobile devices were also drafted in consideration of this, which could be developed in later stages.
Visual Identity and Branding
Japanese-style BBQ, or yakiniku, is often seen as expensive and reserved for special occasions in Japan because of its high price point. For the people of London, Kintan wants to make yakiniku accessible and enjoyable for all visitors. The CEO's idea with the updated website was to create a dining experience that fits anyone's budget but still offer an upscale and high-value impression.
The signature red of Kintan's logo gives off the sensation of heat from their grills and warmth of their service and hospitality. It also works as an accent to draw attention and focus. The black and grays convey the sophistication and elegance associated with Japanese culture, while cooler gray tones create a temperature contrast against with the warm hue of Kintan’s logo.
High-Fidelity Wireframes and Prototype
Customers “eat with their eyes” and judge a restaurant based on images and photos. Low quality photos or unprofessionally-taken images can devalue the brand and I curated a selection of images from Kintan’s existing photo collection to enhance the visual appeal and win visitor’s hearts. The page compositions were refined to ensure proper spacing and consistency with the formatting established in the visual style guide.
Usability tests were conducted via Zoom with users such as Kintan's CEO, the marketing manager, and testers unrelated to the business who fit our new customer persona. Unmoderated tests were also done to measure how users navigated around the website prototype.
I was interested with how users interacted with the website, listened to inputs on the website architecture and design, and tracked users' steps within the site. Users also asked to schedule a mock reservation to observe the process that they took to complete it and discover any problems with the overall flow of the website.
(Screenshot of live test meeting with Kintan's CEO)
Test Successes
The prototype was an overall success and the volunteers I met with were excited when they browsed the pages, complimenting particularly on the images and photos. They had strong, positive impression of the restaurant with the food and interior shots and most were understandably sad to find out there was no Kintan located near them.
"The site is well laid-out and simple enough for me to navigate."
Many users mentioned that site information was well laid-out and clearly presented on the pages, allowing them to locate the elements and pages they were instructed to find.
"The photos of the food especially look delicious and I really want to try visiting this place now."
As proven by user research, images effectively showcased Kitan’s best offerings and gave them a sense of what their experience would be like when dining with us and piqued their curiosity to learn more.
Comments included how the website felt legitimate, a clear sign the business is established and trustworthy. This was personally interesting because I did not consider this perception nor did it cross my mind as a benefit for brands. (New marketing knowledge acquired!)
Pain Points Discovered
Constructive input involved the storytelling of the brand's history and information.
Body content was implemented while in the structure and architecture of the site but misplaced in correlation with the context of headers and other text on the pages.
Example of the reservation step most users struggled with.
Disruption in the reservation flow.
Feedback included the awkwardness of the wording of “Find a Table” or “Book a Table” to the American majority of testers when OpenTable’s system was pre-designed for British audiences.
Some users were confused on OpenTable's reservation widget. The process seemed easy in the beginning with selecting a date, time, and number of guests. But when guests had to provide contact information to confirm the reservation, they were daunted by the text-heavy reservation policy and notices on the same screen.
Although I had no control over OpenTable's defined design, I took note that customers prefer simple reservation systems that require less steps and decision-making. If the reservation policies and notices were presented somewhere before guests were ready to make a reservation or sent with the reservation's confirmation email, this step could have been more positively received.
Iterations and Revisions
After assessing user value and feasibility from the usability test, major changes were made to the design and content of the Kintan website. These revisions would improve the overall visual concept and storytelling that we wanted to convey with the website redesign project.
Revision 1 - Adding Hours for Menus and Specials
To reduce additional clicks or other unpleasant surprises, hours were added to the menu thumbnails. This could prevent dissatisfaction and confusion for visitors who would see offers such as lunch specials and visit the restaurant thinking it was offered all day because the limited hours were not clearly displayed anywhere aside from the menu file that they had to click in to.
Revision 2 - Page Margins and Composition
I noticed all the page content occupied the entire screen in an overwhelming manner that was difficult to selectively scan through. Increasing the margins create a better framing effect that make the pages' text and image content easier to browse.
With a majority of my designer career in food service and hospitality, it was delightful to see the industry from a new perspective and learn how visitors perceive the brand and use websites as the first step into learning about a business. Working with Kintan began as an opportunity to grow as a graphic designer and evolved a step further into a UX designer researching, strategizing, and crafting a responsive website.
Although the pandemic hit full service the hardest, changing social norms and business landscapes will alter various restaurant segments for good. Kintan will need to discover ways to present itself front of consumers, build reputation, and cultivate relationships because people more than ever rely on reviews and ratings through other platforms and consumer feedback. Just maintaining that brand presence is going to be a big part of the industry moving forward!
← UpliftEncouraging sustainability through donations
Venmo →Adding scheduled and reoccurring transfers