2022
3 Months
Product Designer
iOS
Yelp
Toronto's Food Truck Scene Falls Short of it's Potential
In a city as diverse as Toronto, the food truck scene in Toronto has many factors working against it. The strict food safety regulations force owners to take fewer risks with food variety, leading to lack of innovation and inevitably high prices. It is safe to say, the Toronto Food Truck scene needs more participation for it to change for the better!
How might we garner greater interest in innovative food trucks that actively engage consumers?
Boil Down to these Key Features
Promoted Food FestivalsFood Festivals are the best place to find elusive food trucks that aren't typically found while going about one's day. Trucks here have a bit more freedom to experiment.
Loyalty ProgramsIncentive programs that retain customers becomes important as the novelty of the food truck concept wears off.
Live Tracking Food TrucksFood trucks that have posted a schedule can be tracked and discovered, connecting people who take an avid interest in them.
Engagement Dips as Expectations Grow
Based on 10 interviews with food truck owners, heavy regulations in Ontario cause 3 problems in the Toronto food truck scene that prevent any consistent participation.
Street Food Lacks Variety and End up Costing the Same as Restaurants
Ontario's food safety regulations limit street food to basics like burgers, fries, and tacos, with few exotic options and restaurant-like prices—leaving little to distinguish food trucks from traditional dining.
Limited Locations to Set Up Shop (Only 5 Hours at one spot)
Food trucks are typically restricted to private properties, limiting their mobility and making them resemble static restaurants without the benefits. Those that do move must relocate frequently, and social media updates alone aren’t enough to keep followers informed.
Independent Food Trucks have no Competitive Advantage against Established Chains
Most food trucks are extensions of popular restaurant franchises—a sensible choice, as they’re easier to promote and lower risk due to proven business models. Independent food trucks, however, struggle to compete with established chains' superior marketing and brand recognition.
Engagement Goals Across a Food Truck's Life Cycle
User interview data revealed that businesses at various stages have different goals. Newcomers seek to make a name for themselves with a unique concept, while established business are looking to retain long-term followers.
Supporting Food Trucks Every Step of the Way
As engagement goals vary, the solutions offered by the app need to adapt. Having a beneficial feature for every stage of a food truck business is key.
Perfecting the Stamp Card
Through multiple rounds of iteration and design critiques, we explored different potential layouts for the digital stamp card. Each has its unique benefits, so it was important to test for a data-driven decision.
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A Little Push towards Independent Food Trucks
Incentive programs offer a good reason for users to support a food truck over choosing an established chain. Every visit to a truck listed in the app rewards users for going out of their usual way. Scanning the QR code upon visit, the user gets a stamp.
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Events that set the stage for
a Food Truck to Thrive
Food Festivals bring highly needed variety and a reason to engage with the food truck scene. Minimal detail is used for legibility and glanceability, providing just enough detail to take action.
Events help food trucks of all stages - Those looking to introduce new concepts and bringing older concepts to a new audience.
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Map that Reveals a Truck's Posted Route & Schedule
For trucks that are on the move, live tracking helps with their discoverability. Food Truck vendors also have the option to post their stop schedules ahead of time for people to plan their visits.
Navigate Your Way
We added an option for users to navigate using their preferred navigation app, creating more flexibility with a simple alert widget.
Don't Make People Think
The customer and vendor side of the app was tested by 4 tasks that covered the main features of the app. These tasks were unguided to observe how the user explores the app and completes the task.
Overall, the success rate of the test was 95% considering the duration for each task, mis-clicks and test exits. It was observed that all tasks were achieved and no user dropped out of test at any point.
Insights Offer a Powerful EdgeUser Interview data helped uncover opportunities in the street food scene and led to quick and informed design decisions.
Finding Opportunities Amid ConstraintsLooking at market constraints from different angles helped inspire new approaches to address additional challenges.
