The Redesigned Zagat.com
Over the years Zagat’s website had fallen behind the times, there was an urgent need to provide a better experience for the 2M users who visit every month. There was also a need to create a polished mobile web experience that was on par with the newly launched Zagat iOS app, both in terms of feature parity and quality. Entering this project our mission was not only to craft a modern website for the newly refreshed Zagat brand, but also to ultimately provide users and fans with a superior and elevated food finding experience.
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DESIGN TEAM – Camille McMorrow, Danny Balgley
ENG TEAM – Kyla Dolan, Jason Feinberg, Victoria Metzger, Bob Fuhrer and team
PM – Ranjith Jayaram
Wireframe & UX
Through extensive design planning and research we were able to identify existing entry points & triggers, user drop-off points and site dead-ends, allowing us to craft flows that kept users engaged on the site for a longer duration. In strengthening the “lean forward” and “lean back” discovery on the web, we were able to better cater to various user personas and journeys as they applied to the varied discerning users who visit the site daily.
Search Flow Explorations
Visual & UX Design
Our goal in keeping users engaged and enjoying themselves was to make the site visually appealing, distinctive and on-brand. We sought to use high quality photos to engage and inform people in the way only great photography and video can. We strove to keep the website lean by removing existing website features that didn’t provide enough value to users, and strengthen the Zagat voice by making unique Zagat content - reviews, lists, buzz - more prominent everywhere.
To better serve our exploratory users we refined the web search experience achieving parity with the mobile app and also meeting user expectations for how a search focussed website should function. The improved search functionality provides richer zero states, dining suggestions based on the time of day, plus an interactive map to help users find the perfect place.
