Brenno's+Wiki

=  WWW.KEYZZ.COM  =

(temporary name)
=TABLE OF CONTENT =

Abstract Statement of Purpose Mind Map Competitive Analysis Potential Features User Personas SSNiF Analysis Competitive Matrix Workflow/Wireframe Book Cover

=ABSTRACT =



I will create a website targeted at users of short term rentals primarily in Amsterdam. The goal is to develop a user focused interface that is as simple and intuitive as possible. The visual and language will be affirmative and engaging in order to make the user feel confident and comfortable with the service being provided. The website will focus on travelers with an interest in new things and an openness and willingness to experience them, going out of their way to experience the city and meet new people. It will also serve as a travel companion offering tips, useful information and services to improve the travelers experience. The user will be able to search for different kinds of accommodations in Amsterdam including apartments, studios, houseboats, and guest houses. They will be able to check the features of these accommodations as well as availability and compare different options. The users will be able to write a review of the accommodation and upload pictures of their experience to the website as well as to friends and contacts. The web application will also have an intuitive "back office" interface for the owners of the accommodations to update their profiles and availability schedules. The website will also offer a section with touristic tips about the city and the region. The back end structure of the application will allow future expansion to other cities and the creation of other "skins" or front end designs that can use the same database.

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=STATEMENT OF PURPOSE =



When I decided to start an MFA program in web design I knew that I wanted to finish the program with a set of skills necessary to give me confidence and get a job creating user centered and intuitive design. I can say that the biggest my biggest motivation to doing this project is the learning experience itself. The theme of the project could not have been any other than something related to traveling and tourism. I always loved traveling and planning trips, and from the beginning of the brainstorming process I knew that this was the most appealing subject for me. I spent the last summer researching possibilities and exploring different ideas. I found out that there is a growing trend of online searching for short term rentals but it has not been fully explored yet. I have used this kind of services a few times in different countries and I am always surprised that the websites are very confusing and do not reflect the quality of the accommodations.

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=MIND MAP =

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=COMPETITIVE ANALYSIS =

www.tripadvisor.com
- The fact that they emphasize the reviews in order to address the trust issue that potential users might have regarding this kind of service. - The distinction they make between owner management and professional management. Some users might think that because it's professionally managed the unit will have higher standards. And some users might think that because it's managed by the owner they might get better prices. - There's no prominent picture of the unit anywhere. - There's a bit too much information. What is the purpose of the "Popularity Index", for instance?
 * Google Page Rank:** 7/10
 * Scope:** Global
 * Usability:** High
 * Search Engine:** Basic initial search with refinement search within the initial search.
 * Call to Action:** Contact Owner.
 * Map:** Only has maps within the unit description page. No map-based search.
 * Reviews:** Very good reviews. Reviews have a high hierarchical position within the page.
 * Peer to Peer:** The site makes a distinction between managed by owner and managed by property manager companies.
 * What can I take from it?**
 * What should I avoid based on it?**



www.vrbo.com
- There is a possibility of uploading video to the profile. - They make it very clear from the search results page that there is an option for the users to pay using a credit card. Some users might think that it is not possible since they will be paying a person and not a company. - Avoid anything similar to the design used by this website. Very bad design. - It's annoying to show that features are available but are not being used. What's the use of mentioning on all postings that there could have been a video there? That there could have been reviews from past users? That there could have been a detailed calendar with available dates?
 * Google Page Rank:** 6/10
 * Scope:** Global
 * Usability:** Medium
 * Search Engine:** Very basic.
 * Call to Action:** Contact Owner.
 * Map:** There's the option for a map on the unit's page but most owners seem not to use it. There is no map-based search.
 * Reviews:** There an option for reviews but it's not very populated and not well emphasized.
 * Peer to Peer:** Yes.
 * What can I take from it?**
 * What should I avoid based on it?**



www.homeaway.com
- very good design. - the search refinement feature is very useful and complete even though it's based on the assumption that the home owners will know how to fill out their profiles to make the refinement viable. - I like that they spend a lot of valuable space on educating the potential customer about how to rent and what to expect in every step of the process. - There's no pictures of the units on the search results page. - There's no map of the location of the unit anywhere, not even on the unit's page. - The design of the unit's page is not as good as the design of the homepage and search results page.
 * Google Page Rank:** 6/10
 * Scope:** Global
 * Usability:** Medium/High
 * Search Engine:** Very good search engine with great refinement tool.
 * Call to Action:** Contact Owner or Manager.
 * Map:** Very few listings with maps and the ones that have maps are not interactive. No map-based search.
 * Reviews:** Not emphasized enough. It's in the bottom of an extremely long accommodation's page.
 * Peer to Peer:** Yes.
 * What can I take from it?**
 * What should I avoid based on it?**



www.flatmates.nl

 * Google Page Rank:** 3/10
 * Scope:** Amsterdam
 * Google Analytics Report:** [|b_baldo_analytics_Flatmates.pdf]



www.flipkey.com
- Really intuitive refinement search interface. - Very good calendar display but it's not interactive. - Very small type size and bad color scheme. - Home page a bit too oversimplified.
 * Google Page Rank:** 6/10
 * Scope:** Global
 * Usability:** Medium/High
 * Search Engine:** Very good search engine design and usability. No map-based search results.
 * Call to Action:** Email Manager.
 * Map:** Regular maps on the accommodation page.
 * Reviews:** Reviews have a very prominent position on the pages.
 * Peer to Peer:** Yes.
 * What can I take from it?**
 * What should I avoid based on it?**

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www.expedia.com
- Good Design - Too much emphasis on price
 * Google Page Rank:** 7/10
 * Scope:** Global/Hotels Only
 * Usability:** Medium/High
 * Search Engine:** Bad. You can't refine search or even list by price until you do the first general search.
 * Call to Action:** Online Booking
 * Map:** You can see hotels on a map and filter the search.
 * Reviews:** Reviews Available but not the focus of the site.
 * Peer to Peer:** No.
 * What can I take from it?**
 * What should I avoid based on it?**



www.travelocity.com
- Travel planning tool's interface. - The silly gnome.
 * Google Page Rank:** 7/10
 * Scope:** Global/Hotels only.
 * Usability:** Medium/High
 * Search Engine:** Very nice travel planning tool.
 * Call to Action:** Online booking.
 * Map:** Very nice interactive map on travel planning tool.
 * Peer to Peer:** No.
 * What can I take from it?**
 * What should I avoid based on it?**



[|www.booking.com]
- Map-based search and refinement search tool. - I like the way they display their prices and always make you feel like you're getting a good deal without emphasizing it too much. - Bad design on map-based search and not properly emphasized.
 * Google Page Rank:** 7/10
 * Scope:** Global/Hotels Only
 * Usability:** Medium/High
 * Search Engine:** Good search engine and good refinement search option.
 * Call to Action:** Book Online and Pay Later.
 * Map:** Interactive map and map-based search.
 * Reviews:** They use reviews in a nice way... a bit different from the other sites.
 * Peer to Peer:** No.
 * What can I take from it?**
 * What should I avoid based on it?**

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General Findings:
- Based on research at alexa.com most of the users of vacation rental websites are women (who have kids) between 35 and 65 years old with some college or graduate education and who browse the site from work. - More than 50% of the traffic in these sites originate at the US. - VRBO.com belongs to HomeAway.com and FlipKey.com belongs to TripAdvisor.com - FlipKey/TripAdvisor charges a lot less than HomeAway/VRBO for their services.

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=POTENTIAL FEATURES AND POSITIONING =

Tourist/Traveller Interface The website will be positioned as the best option for someone who wants a vacation rental in Amsterdam because it is run by locals and all the units are verified in person as opposed to other larger websites that offer units all over the world. Payment can be made using Paypal or credit cards. It will serve also as a travel companion with mapped tips and services around the area, like where to rent a bike, where to order food, pharmacy, farmer's market, etc. Edward Tufte said: "To clarify, add information.". The website should be perceived as a good source of information about the city and the experiences the travelers can have while they're visiting.

- Website tour and how to use video guide - Travel Companion with mapped tips and services around the area, like where to rent a bike, where to order food, pharmacy, farmer's market, etc. - Map interface where the traveler will be able to see the location of the apartments available. - Pictures and videos of the units as well as location map and street view, average temperature and weather forecast. - User can make special requests such as cleaning service, food, etc. - Guestbook feature (Reviews) - Check for last minute deals and discounted prices - Travel Inspiration feature with questions about user's tastes and suggestions about where in the city he should stay. - Compare and Save feature comparing vacation rentals to hotels - Authentication by FlipKey.com or something similar. - Possibility of integration between the calendar and a GoogleWave-based calendar. - The user will be able to send only one email to the owner with request to several different accommodations.

Owner Interface - Website tour and how to use video guide - Possibility of creating an availability schedule for the unit and have more than one unit per profile. - Possibility of setting a maximum and minimum price to be charged per day according to the availability and vacancy rates of the unit. - Possibility of integration between the calendar and a GoogleWave-based calendar.

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=USER PERSONAS =

Juhha Huskonnen
Juhha Huskonnen is 47 years old, Finnish, married for 22 years to Maya, father of Anni, 19, and Jarkko, 16. He lives in Tampere, Finland in a house he grew up in and 5 years ago bought from his father. Juhha is a professional musician and music teacher at the local high school. His wife is also a teacher. They both love to travel. As it is common in Finland, they do not always travel together. Depending on who is on vacation and how much money is available sometimes Juhha travels with one of the kids, sometimes Maya is the one who travels with one of the kids and sometimes the couple travel alone on romantic getaways. Juhha is always paying attention to budget airline deals around Europe and is very proud to say that he once bought a multi-destination ticket from Helsinki to Budapest, Athens and Istanbul for only 180 Euros per person for him and his wife. Two years ago he decided to try and stay at a vacation rental instead of staying at a hotel in a trip to Bruges, Belgium. It was a great experience and he specially enjoyed the feeling of being part of the routine of the city as a resident instead of just as tourist. He and his wife went to the local farmers market, found a wonderful cheese store hidden in very tinny residential street that they are sure they would never have found if they were staying at a hotel, and made friends with a Swedish retired writer that lived next door to their rented studio with whom Juhha still exchange emails. I has been 8 months since his last vacation trip and Juhha now wants to take the whole family to Amsterdam. He has been there a few times and always wanted to stay at one of the many houseboats that are so peculiar to the city. While searching for vacation rentals in Amsterdam on the web he came upon myproject.com. The interface is very friendly and they have a whole section dedicated to houseboats. He also likes the fact the the site seems to be specialized in vacation rentals in Amsterdam and because of that it offers tips and services specific to that city. Juhha already found a great houseboat with two bedrooms on the Prinsengracht right next to the Amstel River. He compared the prices with a 3 star hotel stay for 4 people and realized that he will save 55 euros per night on average. His wife as hesitant about staying at a houseboat at first but after reading some of the reviews she realized that there's nothing to worry. It also helped to watch a video that was available about another houseboat similar to the one that they decided to rent. The whole family is looking forward to the upcoming trip. Even Jarkko (the younger kid) is happy because the houseboat has high speed internet and he will be able to take his laptop on the trip.

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Danny Hatters & Andrew Johnson
Danny Hatters and Andrew Johnson are a gay couple living in Melbourne, Australia. Danny is 32 and works as a scientist at the University of Melbourne. Andrew is 28, originally from the US and works as a project manager at the biggest casino in Australia. They met 6 years ago in San Francisco while Danny was working on his post-doc at UCSF. They moved back to Melbourne (where Danny is originally from) 3 years ago and they're saving to buy their first home. Andrew's family is from Atlanta and last year they had a huge family reunion party there. Andrew thought that would be a good chance for him to introduce Danny to his family and stop by San Francisco to see his friends since they hadn't been back yet since the move. He started researching airfare prices and realized that it would be relatively cheaper to buy a round-the-world ticket with 10 stops instead of buying regular tickets from Melbourne to Atlanta and San Francisco. They then changed their plans and took a 5 week 10 stops trip/adventure around the world stopping in Kuala Lumpur, Delhi, Cairo, Budapest, Madrid, Amsterdam, New York, Atlanta, San Francisco and Honolulu before going back home. They did not want to spend too much and wanted to really experience the local culture of the cities they visited so they decided to stay in vacation homes whenever they could. Danny thought it would be a nice opportunity to try different house styles and layouts, and maybe get nice decoration ideas for the home that they were planning to buy. Andrew is a natural planner and 6 months before the trip he already had everything booked and the whole trip on a spreadsheet. He had plenty of time to research the best location and prices of all the places they stayed. He bases a lot of his decisions on reviews and through FlipKey.com (a web site that verifies the quality of vacation rentals and offers user's reviews) he found myproject.com. He liked the friendly interface and the fact that he could choose how to visualize the results for his searches on a map. In his opinion the best feature of the site was the availability schedule and the fact that he could check for availability 6 months in the future and make the reservation with an "Early Bird" discount. The trip was a success and they had a lot of fun while in Amsterdam. They loved that the studio they stayed had a computer connected to the internet and that on myproject.com they could find answers to all the practical problems they had:public transportation, where to rent bikes, how to get to the beach and neighboring cities, and even where to order pizza one night that they decided to stay in. They used different websites to stay in vacation rentals in Madrid and New York but none of them was as complete and as easy to use as myproject.com.

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Mario Ramia
Mario Ramia is 42 years old, originally from Milan, Italy, and has been living in Amsterdam for 15 years. He works as a system analyst for Oracle and 6 years ago bought a 3 story building in the Jordan district two blocks from the Westerkerk and Annie Frank Huis. The building has 6 one bedroom apartments but two of them are already occupied by long-term tenants. Mario is living on one of the apartments on the top floor and rents the three other apartments as vacation rentals. He has profiles on several different websites and for a while he even thought about creating his own website but he came upon myproject.com and decided to use its back office interface to manage his properties. The calendar feature is very easy to use and intuitive and is the only calendar that he keeps up to date of all the different sites that he uses. He can easily see the all the future bookings and even change the prices according to the vacancy rate. He creates special prices for users who want to stay more than 3 nights, for users who book in the last minute, for single users and he also includes bikes on the price in case the client wants to rent one of his 5 bikes. He likes how clear and easy to use myproject.com is for his clients and even when he receives booking requests from other websites he always respond the emails adding a link to his properties at myproject.com in case the potential client wants more details about the units.

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Mika Bakkish
Mikka Bakkish is 50 years old and shares his time between Amsterdam and a small village next to Alicante in Spain. He moved to Amsterdam when he was 18 to study and after graduating met Mar Rubio, from Spain, with whom he got married and lived with for 20 years until she passed away 8 years ago. They lived in Spain for 15 years in a house she inherited and that now belongs to him. He is now dating Patricia, a retired American woman from Philadelphia that he met in Amsterdam while she was on vacation 2 years ago. Mikka is also retired. The truth is that he never really worked much in his life. His parents supported him until the end of college and still give him a share of the profit from the family business in Israel. His late wife Mar inherited a lot of money from her parents when she was still young and that was enough to provide a comfortable life to the couple for many years. He now lives from what is left of that inheritance as well as from the money he gets from renting the apartment in Amsterdam and the house in Spain. Mikka likes to plan his life well in advance and that allows him to know when each one of his houses will be vacant and therefore available for rental. At first he was very worried about renting his properties away but after researching the internet for a while he came upon myproject.com where he was able to watch a video describing the whole process as well as read the online forum dedicated exclusively to homeowner and the issues they have to deal with when renting their apartments for short term users. He created a very detailed profile describing all that is allowed and what is not allowed in his unit and never had any problems with it. He very rarely meets the clients who are staying there because he is usually out of town by the time they arrive and leave but he receives many good reviews. Every summer he likes to do some kind of home improvement (like painting or putting new shelves) and after that it's very easy for him to upload new pictures to the unit's profile at myproject.com. Last winter Patricia made a home movie of the canal in front of their place while it was frozen and there was people ice skating in it. Mikka uploaded the video to the profile and the apartment is already fully booked for the whole next winter. His only complain to myproject.com is that it is not available in Alicante.

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=SSNiF Analysis =

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=COMPETITIVE MATRIX =

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=WORKFLOW/WIREFRAME =

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=BOOK COVER =



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