RapidWash Website

Web Design & Development for an innovative startup in the laundry delivery industry.

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Overview

PRODUCT

An on-demand laundry pickup and same-day delivery mobile app servicing California’s Bay Area

ROLE

Branding, Web Design, Web Development:

Discovery, market & competitive research, branding identity, web development, UX testing, SEO & site speed optimization.

PROBLEM

RapidWash App needs to create a website that converts site visitors into product (app) users through

SOLUTION

• Built trust in site visitors through high-quality branding

• Informed users on how the product will help them and answer any questions/objections they may have

• Created a user-friendly experience that allows users to navigate the site and sign up easily

• Converting site visitors into email subscribers, and keep them updated to download the app once it is launched

I also led the Product/UI UX Design of the app, and the Marketing Strategy. You can learn more about that process at this link.

Design Process

I. DISCOVERY

Discovery Session

Market Research

Competitive Analysis

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II. IDEATION

User Research

Wireframing

Sketching

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III. DESIGN & DEVELOPMENT

Branding & Style Guide

UI Design

Web Development

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Discovery

I.  Understanding the app's purpose.

Key questions to answer:

-What problem is RapidWash trying to solve?
-For who, and where?
-What are the brand values & goals?
-What is the business model?

Answers

-The problem: laundry delivery isn’t instant. RapidWash provides the easiest, fastest, same-day laundry pickup, wash, dry & fold service. 
-RapidWash will service customers who live a busy lifestyle, don’t have easy access to laundromats, or just don’t like doing their laundry, in the Bay Area. 
-Their brand values are to provide users quick, reliable, easy & friendly service, with the goal of expanding nationally beyond the Bay Area
-Business Model: users simply sign up, place an order, and receive fresh, folded laundry in a couple hours. Users have the option of one-time or recurring plan options. 

II.  Design Planning for the app's website:

-What is the purpose of the website?
-What pages/features/information does the website need?
-What will the branding identity look & feel like?

Answers

-The purpose of the website is to inform users about RapidWash, create brand awareness, build trust in the service, and convert site visitors into email subscribers and app users once the app is built.
-The site needs a home page, a service page, and sign up features for customers, employees, & partners, as part of a comprehensive email & ad marketing strategy. 
-The brand’s identity, and personality is friendly- making users feel calm, relaxed, even relieved. Ultimately, this is what the service is going to make future customers feel. 

III.  Competitive Research on the laundry delivery industry, competitors' business models, and their branding & design.

-Does this service/or a similar service already exist, in our area or elsewhere?
-What is their business model?
-What are they doing right? What are they doing wrong?
-How could we improve upon what is already out there?

Answers

-Similar services do exist, but don’t have the same offer
Competitor’s business model’s do not typically offer same day delivery. That’s our key differentiator.
-Their services are okay, their UX in general is okay but could be slightly improved. The competitors’ branding & design is not as user-friendly, or visually modern as we plan on. One of the sites was not even fully responsive for mobile, which is losing them a lot of potential customers. 
-We can create a service that is better than existing ones because of our speed, flexibility, improved user experience, and an app that lives in the user’s hand’s anytime they need it.

Market Research & Competitive Analysis

Here are the market research & competitive analysis notes; as well as top competitors:
I focused on 2 services that are most similar to RapidWash, to evaluate what they were doing right and wrong.
I learned some key differences between their businesses & ours. As mentioned earlier, a key selling point in our favor was that other local services promised next-day delivery- not same-day delivery like RapidWash.
Another key point, from a marketing perspective was that the competitors’ websites were outdated, not as user-friendly on mobile, and lacked good user experience design.
Their main advantage against RapidWash, was that they’d obviously rank higher in SEO immediately- so that was a long-term goal to focus on after launch. 

Ideation

USER RESEARCH
Since we’re designing for the user, it’s important to understand who they are, and how to design for them.
Through User Interviews, I answered the following questions:
-Who is the user?
-What different users may we expect? (Customers, employees, partners)
-How did the user land on this website?
-What information does the user need to know, to understand the service offered, how it works, and understand the value of it?
-Where does a successful website take the users to?

Who is the user?
Users who:

  • live a busy lifestyle
  • don’t have easy access to laundromats
  • just don’t like doing their laundry

What different types of users may we expect?

  • Customers: Individuals and households using the service.
  • Employees: Drivers and customer support.
  • Partners: Businesses, property managers, and organizations interested in partnerships.

How did the user land on this website?
Through search engines, online ads, social media, referrals, email campaigns, or partner websites.

What information does the user need to know?
What services are offered, how pickup and delivery work, pricing, service areas, turnaround times, and key benefits of convenience, time savings, and reliability.

Where does a successful website take the user?
Toward submitting the email form for updates, and once app is launched toward downloading it.

I conducted more extensive User Research on the UI/UX Design of the RapidWash app. You can learn more about that process at this link.
WIREFRAMING

I created wireframes for these eight pages with a focus on business goals and user experience instead of visual design, for now. Elements such as color, branding, and styling will be addressed later, allowing me to prioritize functionality and content structure.

To create a user-friendly experience, I ensured the site would be easy to navigate, and accessible.

I also aligned the wireframes with business and marketing goals by identifying the information users need about the service and placing it where it would be most effective. Multiple sign-up opportunities were strategically incorporated throughout the site.

Additional considerations included:

  • A clean, simple layout that communicates information clearly without overwhelming users
  • Email sign-up forms on the landing page and other key pages
  • Consistent visual and architectural hierarchy
  • Illustrations to support understanding of the service
SKETCHING

I followed the wireframing stage with sketching to explore the brand’s visual identity. I envisioned a creative, unique, friendly design- that was also simple and modern. I created some sketches that visually communicated those qualities.

Sketching allowed me to generate ideas quickly before moving into digital design tools. Inspired by the laundry theme, I explored visual elements such as splashes, waves, drips, and other aquatic motions. One concept featured a whale mascot that users would encounter throughout the site. While I liked the idea, I decided against it because it risked overshadowing the brand, required significant illustration work, and could have slowed the project timeline.

Instead, I chose a more subtle aquatic theme that complements a laundry service- while maintaining focus on the brand’s core purpose.

Design & Development

BRANDING IDENTITY

We wanted the branding style to be calm & cool. Soothing, but also fun. I decided on a combination of two complementary colors: blue, and orange. Blue conveys a calm & relaxation, while orange gives it a sense of fun & joy. I was careful to select a palette that is very light- not too dark, bright or gaudy & instead opted for modern, soothing color tones that are easy on the eyes, keeping in mind that this will also be the color palette for the app, in order to maintain consistent branding across all channels.

USER INTERFACE

After having the wireframes and layouts of the website planned, the content users needed, website sketches, and a branding identity, it was time to create the User Interfaces (UI.)

I create the initial UI on Figma, because it’s more efficient to create 2-4 design mockups there, share with my client for feedback, implement any feedback or changes before jumping straight into the website build. Once I’ve got  approval on the site design, we know exactly what we’re developing and build efficiently.

WEB
MOBILE
WEB DEVELOPMENT

With the final design approved, I moved into development. I set up the hosting, domain, and SSL, then connected everything to WordPress and Elementor for design and development. I also used Photoshop and Illustrator for photo editing and illustrations.

I adopted a mobile-first approach, as most users would access the site on mobile devices. Since the website’s main purpose is to clearly explain the service and guide users to the app, the build process was straightforward and required no complex functionality. The final result is a simple, effective experience optimized for both desktop and mobile- and high conversion rates.

You can visit the live website here.

This checklist helps set your startup or business up for success. I included these services all my websites.

Responsiveness, accessibility, and fast site speed all directly affect user conversion rates.

Site Performance & SEO

SITE PERFORMANCE

Good site performance increases the amount of people that search engines will show your site to, as well as increases site visitors’ conversion rates. Once the site is completed, I test for:

  • site speed (both on web & mobile)
  • SEO
  • Accessibility

It’s important the site functions optimally on the back-end, and in real-time for our site visitors. 
Most websites neglect their site performance, and it costs them. A fast loading, accessible website will retain more 

I ensure my websites all perform well on site speed, accessibility, best practices and SEO.

Additionally, I test my websites vs. competitors to ensure we are on the right track. For example, this was our main competitors’ site performance: 

SEO BASICS

The best free way to get lots of visitors to your site is through SEO (Search Engine Optimization).

Good site performance plays into SEO, but there are additional steps to ensure the website is SEO-ready:

CONCLUSION

FIRST WEBSITE ✅

Rapidwash.app was my first website I ever created. 
I, and more importantly my client, are both happy with the results.
For it being my first website, everything went rather smooth, as I already had experience with Figma, Photoshop, Illustrator, and research.
If I would’ve done anything differently, I’d have streamlined my design process. I did use WordPress & Elementor for the first time for this project, and have since created custom templates, styles, and use stock illustrations as part of an efficient, end-to-end design process.

If you liked this case study, check out how I created the RapidWash App!

RAPIDWASH APP