Pet GP

The solution

Discovering users and digging deep into their problems

Neil Young, Discovery Lead, began the project’s first stage with the Pet GP, Discovering users and digging deep into their problems, needs, wants, and goals to make informed design and functionality decisions based on evidence, not an assumption. He used the following techniques and methodology:

• User Persona Development
• Empathy Mapping
• Competitor Research Review
• User Journey Mapping
• Information Architecture
• Analysis and Reporting

Two crucial user journeys

After rich research and detailed analysis, Neil arrived at two key audiences to prioritise and design for:

The Pet Owner (non-customer) – Critical / Emergency / Immediate Case

Here, a pet owner is looking for advice, and their pet requires immediate help. In this instant, they would need to go to a Vet.

Pet Owner (customer) – General Enquirer / Researcher

Here, a pet owner is looking for advice, and their pet is not in immediate danger. Therefore Pet GP can help through a live chat or video call.

An initial Mini Assessment / Triage Process

To address both key audiences’ problems, Neil suggested we create a digital tool or “mini-assessment / triage process” using a set of questions for the user to answer, then send them on an appropriate user journey, directly addressing other users’ needs.

Attract. Inform. Convert.

The emergency helpline tool

On the homepage, we wanted to highlight the emergency helpline tool – the triage process we discussed above – so that it would be easily accessible and easy to find. We also felt that a simple promotional banner at the top of the page would make it highly visible to users and catch their attention.

‘How does it work?’

We then needed to highlight and explain easily and clearly Pet GP’s core offerings. So we designed a “How does it work?” block – a section of the website that can be used, moved, and added throughout the website, on any page, by the PetGP team using WordPress Content Management System. Plus, we suggest having a whole page in the navigation dedicated to ‘How does it work?’ for a further in-depth explanation of their services that is always visible to the user.

Social Proof and simple blog filters

We also made sure to include social proof by adding testimonials from customers, helping instil trust in potential users when deciding whether to sign up for an account.

In addition, we designed the Pet GP blog with simple filters that allow users to navigate and find the content they need, which helps them find pet-related information faster. This instils trust in the information and services Pet GP provides and creates a platform for future Search Engine Optimisation (SEO) efforts.

Clear Call to Action

The final core feature to mention for the site is the use of clear, consistent Calls to Action on the navigation and throughout the site using the copy “Sign Up” and “Login.” These buttons lead directly to the free and paid Pet GP online portal we’ll now explore.

Mobile first online pet portal

Pet GP portal has a mobile-first responsive design that is clean and simple, with a strong focus on ease of use.

It was important to us to ensure that this platform was highly usable on any device, so it’s 100% responsive and optimised for different screen sizes. Users can seamlessly move between devices, from desktop computers to mobile phones or tablets.

We also made sure that the core pages are easily accessible from the left navigation bar, which included:

• Dashboard: where users can see all the essential information about their pets and the service Pet GP can do for them
• Tips and advice: rich information through videos and articles with easy-to-use filtering
• Account: where users can update their knowledge and manage their Pet GP services
• Pets: which lists each of your pets and allows you to track vaccines
• Help: a contact page with a form that’s sent straight to the Pet GP
• Logout: effortlessly log out with one click

Introducing a three-tiered price model

Initially, the paid service would have two subscription tiers that a user could choose from: 

• A free subscription with limited features 
• A monthly plan with all features

However, to help enhance the offering and attract future revenue streams, we suggested an annual subscription, allowing customers to subscribe for a year at a discounted price. We also suggested this would help increase customer retention and attract new ones as it provides more perceived value, benefiting everyone involved.

Flexibility, speed, security and scalability

WordPress was chosen as the content management system for Pet GP’s site because of its ease of use, flexibility, and focus on search engine optimization.

The development process included many stages: planning, frontend development, backend development, database work, system administration, QA testing, deployment, and maintenance.

Pet GP was no exception, built to the highest standards with careful consideration to produce secure and clean code, structured properly for maintainability, has good performance characteristics, and will perform at it’s best.

Tech Stack

• Frontend: PHP, WordPress with Tailwindcss
• Backend: PHP, WordPress
• Database: MariaDB