In this project, we were looking for a solution that allows residents of the XXII. district of Budapest to report, comment on and track issues they have encountered in public places. Since most of these issues are reported on the go, quick setup, general ease of use and stability were key aspects in achieving our goals.
Learning is key
Apart from the public end-user facing apps, this project includes a backend for managing issues reported via them. The backend is mainly used by government and city officials, who have their long used processes for dealing with this kind of citizen feedback. Creating a new process from scratch is not always the best solution and in certain situations not even possible. It is however, challenging to create something that seamlessly integrates into an existing flow, while trying to make it faster and more streamlined. Especially, considering that this was an entirely new field for us. In a project like this, it is crucial to closely collaborate with our client and leverage their expertise in their own field, in order to create an useful product to them.
Feedback and iterations
Despite clear vision and well executed strategic planning, often we find ourselves missing a few minor details that can make the life of our users much easier. Receiving feedback from a person who actually uses your product in a daily basis is invaluable. Continuous product iterations using that feedback can help you to grow your prototype into a likeable, yet effective tool.