Find My Rep is an app designed to help users find and contact their local and federal representatives. It empowers people to feel politically engaged, and enables them to make their voices heard.

This was a solo design challenge project to create a fictional app. I interviewed users, defined the problems to be solved, ideated solutions, created wireframes and mockups, created low- and high-fidelity prototypes, and tested my designs via usability studies.

Since this was a solo project for my UX certification class, I relied on friends and family for research and testing purposes, which is not a true representative sample of users. It does, however, give a good idea of the process that I would use if I were designing for a real product.

October – December 2023

Problem statement

Rose is a tech-hesitant grandmother that needs an easy app experience to find her representatives’ contact info, so she can feel empowered to make her voice heard.

Goal Statement

Our app will let users find their representatives’ names and contact information, which will affect civic-minded individuals by giving them the ability to easily make their voices heard. 

Value Proposition

• Easy-to-use app design

• Reliable, up-to-date information

• Election reminders

• 3 methods of contact information

• Initiate contact directly from app

• Information about representatives   

• Location services or zip code entry for instant info retrieval

My original wireframes included a carousel for recently contacted representatives. But after some users were confused by it, and after learning more about the importance of negative space, I decided to move the “history” functionality to a separate tab. I incorporated this, and a “saved contacts” function, into a bottom menu bar. 

• I included high contract colors, to make sure that all text is easy to see and read. 

• Icons include text, which is important for screen readers.

• I included multiple options for communication, which is useful to people with speech limitations, and also helpful for people who simply do not like to talk on the phone.

• Under the app's settings menu, I included options to change the size of the font, or to change the language of the text. Civic engagement should not exclude people who aren’t strong English speakers.

I conducted a second round of usability testing with the high-fidelity prototype. I again used moderated studies, with 5 participants.

This time, users found the flow to be simple and intuitive. However, it was clear that they needed better visual cues to differentiate the welcome screen and the home screen, so I updated the design so that the menu bar was mostly greyed out on first open.

“I would definitely use this” – study participant C

“I love the color scheme” – study participant D

“It’s really simple and easy to use” – study participant E

The user is the most important person in the design process. If I had not spoken to potential users to discover their needs and frustrations, the app would have turned out completely differently; it would be much weaker.

It was a fun project, and a wonderful learning experience. I feel far more confident in my skills as a UX designer.

It’s clear there is a use for an actual app like this. There is no one database that collects and maintains all information on local, state, and federal representatives. 

Since I do not have the technical knowledge, or funding, to bring the app to life, I may donate my design to a voting rights nonprofit, so they may develop it into a real app if they wish.