Postpal – Modernizing the Mailbox
THE PROBLEM
The porch pirate problem
Over 100 million packages were reported stolen in 2023, and roughly 44% of Americans reported a lost or stolen package. Currently, the solutions that are out there are annoying. You can schedule a store pickup or deliver them to an amazon locker, but both take more time and effort than getting it delivered to your front door (of course the trade-off is the risk).
Don't worry this dog is innocent
RESEARCH
Delivering essential features
Taking my time to avoid assumptions, I conducted interviews to learn people's experiences and feelings around package theft. Using info I got from those interviews and other research, I made a list of user needs and product features that could fulfill those needs.
MY GOAL
How can I make it easy for homeowners to secure their packages and food deliveries?
IDEATE
The product package
I got started on sketching my ideas. The thing is, this was my first time designing a physical product and learning how to 3D model, both were humbling experiences. Evidently, the first couple iterations were rough but it allowed me to get a basic idea of how it was going to work.
IDEATE
Very rough drafts
Even the first draft of my prototype felt rough, there were only a handful of smart home apps I could use for reference so I had vague ideas of what it could look like. Even with user tests, interviewees said they didn't understand the point of the product and the interface didn't feel intuitive.
DESIGN
Perfecting the package
After getting a lot of feedback, I went back to the drawing board for both the physical and digital designs. I realized that the message wasn't clear enough, protecting packages was my main goal and the initial designs weren't relaying those kinds of messages. I needed the product to feel more secure and trustworthy. It didn't feel like a "real" product.
After spending more time polishing my ideas I finished modeling the "modern mailbox" and in turn, that solidified the interface and experience design. Once I knew how the mailbox was going to work, I knew how the app was going to work. All of the pieces started falling into place.
DESIGN
Introducing Postpal
To make my concept feel more "real" and to drive home the message, I prototyped the core features of Postpal that users could interact with more deeply. Each feature was made more simple, and in turn, more intuitive.
Postpal Branding
The idea behind Postpal is pretty simple, "Post" for post mail and "pal" for a friend. Of course, dogs are our best friends and protectors. So naturally, it would be the mascot and brand behind Postpal. Secure your packages, and your peace of mind.
