Goodreads Re-design
The Goodreads Redesign is my interpretation of how the Goodreads company can improve the simplicity and efficiency of their mobile app interface to improve the user experience of their readers.
What is the Goodreads Redesign?
As a book lover, I took on this personal project. My role included everything from researching the pain points of the current Goodreads interface, ideating and wire-framing, and re-designing and prototyping the final high-fidelity frames for the new Goodreads mobile app.
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When the user clicks on a story that interests them, they will be led to the details of the book. The book details include the title, author, description, and it allows the reader to add the book to a reading list, rate, and review it. Other than the homepage, the user can also use the search page to browse more books in different genres.
In the "My Books" page, the user can see all the books that they recently added. Below the recently added are all the reading lists created by the user, also known as "bookshelves." The user can click the plus button at the bottom right, giving them the option to create a new shelf.
Under the profile section, the user can see their total added books, followers, and following with friends. They can also add a profile picture and bio by editing profile. Below the edit profile section, the user can access four personalized sections—the favorited genres, favorited books, the reading challenge of the year, and the ratings and reviews written in the past.
The other section next to the about section in the profile page is the updates. When the user completes a book, adds a book to their reading list, creates their reading challenge, and more, an update post will appear. The usr also has the option to write an update post. Friends can interact with the updates.
The old fashioned and outdated appearance of the Goodreads mobile app interface creates an unpleasant experience and navigation for users. Not only are many of the features difficult to locate due to its messy and chaotic arrangement, the organization of the app feels repetitive and overloaded with information. Some of these issues include a confusingly organized recommendations on the homepage littered with articles in-between, a repeat of the same 'search' and 'add book' features on each page, and oddly placed action items. Due to the cluttered and perplexing interface, readers have a tough time continuing as a Goodreads user and began their search for replacement.
Examples
One example of the interface repetitiveness is displayed within these two pages. Under the task bar, there is a separate page for discover and search. Not only are two separate pages unnecessary, they can be condensed into one.
When the user first logs in, they are bombarded with a home page that is filled uncategorized, individually recommended books. Although they mention the genre, Goodreads fails to filter the types of the books they recommend to the user.
An example of a feature that could be improved would be the reading challenge. Currently, the reading challenge list provides no information other than how many books the reader has selected for themselves to read within the year.
Reviews
More examples of repetitive information and action items can be seen through adding shelves multiple times on a page, overwhelming amount of times where the reading challenge can be found, and several spots to add more friends. There is also an overload of action buttons.
Many users of Goodreads left a negative review of ther experience with the mobile app in the Appstore. While these are only some of the user complaints, there are many more critiques about the clunky, unorganized app. In addition, many readers express their concerns with the app on other online platforms as well, such as Twitter, Reddit, and in articles.
I created basic sitemap as an outline and a reference for the changes I wanted to make to the features of the Goodreads interface.
Simplify many of the clunky features and provide a minimalistic feel to the user interface.
Remove any repetitive features causing confusion that can be seen several times across the platform to improve navigation efficiency.
Reformat the layout to clean-up and organize the interface, making it easier to read and locate books.
Goals
Low-Fidelity Wireframes
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54
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My favorite type of books include romance and fiction.
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Major Features and Changes
When the user first arrives at the homepage, there is a featured section at the top that displays the current news on Goodreads, such as book giveaways. The featured section replaces the arbitrary placement of the articles in between books.
The Search and Discover pages were combined down to create one simplified version for searching books. The new search page allows the reader to search the book they want or explore new genres while recommendations remain on the homepage.
Under the My Books section, the user can once again see their Recently Added for easy access in case they would like to add a recently searched book to their bookshelf. The My Books page has also been reformatted from small circular button shapes to larger lists that make it easier to find.
Instead of several icon choices popping up when clicking on 'more' in the old task bar, the new task bar presents a simple profile icon, removing repetitive information.
The Reading Challenge section now provides more information including the reading goals, which books to read, and reading progress.
In the profile about section, the 'Want to Read' and 'Recently Read' section are removed, leaving four reformatted sections—Favorited Genres, Favorited Books, Reading Challenges, and Ratings and Reviews. Creating a post to update status is available only in the profile updates sections with a new pen icon, and the like and comment features were replaced with simpler icons.
Recommended books have been simplified from the cover, title, author, rating, and more to only an image of the book cover. If the user sees a book they are interested in, clicking on the book will bring them to its information. The book information was also heavily simplified down to the most necessary features—title and author, favoriting, rating and reviewing, and a book summary.
The homepage is also organized into three sections—Recently Added, Trending This Week, and Favorite Genre Recommendations. These three sections organize the books on the homepage rather than being individually recommended with different categories each time. With this separation, the user can easily lookup their recent history of searched books and discover books that are popular while still maintaining a separate section tailored to them.
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They Both Die At The End
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On September 5, a little after midnight, Death-Cast calls Mateo Torrez and Rufus Emeterio to give them some bad news: They're going to die today. Mateo and Rufus are total strangers, but, for different reasons, they're both looking to make a new friend on their End Day.
Book Description
Daisy
Sept. 10, 2023
So beautifully written was an amazing message but I really don't know why I was surprised by that. Ouch.
I should have known from the title that this book would be heartbreaking...
Emily
Aug. 25, 2023
Riley
Aug. 18, 2023
Don't let the title fool you. This isn't a book about death, but about life. It's about becoming the person you want to be without fear holding you back. It makes you face your own mortality head on and asks the question, if you knew today was your last day would you be happy with the life you lived? This is truly a book you come out of a different person then you went in.
Aug. 3, 2023
Sam
The best way I can describe this is The Sun is Also a Star meets Aristotle and Dante Discover the Secrets of the Universe.
Jul. 17, 2023
Jessica
‘for those who need a reminder to make every day count.’
from the moment i read the dedication, i knew this story would be a meaningful one. adam silvera took a heartbreaking moment and turned it into pure poetry. this book is proof that there can be beauty in the unplanned and that its sometimes the unexpected which makes life worth living.
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They Both Die At The End
By Adam Silvera
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4.50 (5,206 ratings)
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4.50 (5,206 ratings)
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On September 5, a little after midnight, Death-Cast calls Mateo Torrez and Rufus Emeterio to give them some bad news: They're going to die today. Mateo and Rufus are total strangers, but, for different reasons, they're both looking to make a new friend on their End Day.
Book Description
Daisy
Sept. 10, 2023
So beautifully written was an amazing message but I really don't know why I was surprised by that. Ouch.
I should have known from the title that this book would be heartbreaking...
Emily
Aug. 25, 2023
Riley
Aug. 18, 2023
Don't let the title fool you. This isn't a book about death, but about life. It's about becoming the person you want to be without fear holding you back. It makes you face your own mortality head on and asks the question, if you knew today was your last day would you be happy with the life you lived? This is truly a book you come out of a different person then you went in.
Aug. 3, 2023
Sam
The best way I can describe this is The Sun is Also a Star meets Aristotle and Dante Discover the Secrets of the Universe.
Jul. 17, 2023
Jessica
‘for those who need a reminder to make every day count.’
from the moment i read the dedication, i knew this story would be a meaningful one. adam silvera took a heartbreaking moment and turned it into pure poetry. this book is proof that there can be beauty in the unplanned and that its sometimes the unexpected which makes life worth living.
They Both Die At The End
By Adam Silvera
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Reviews (1,107)
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4.50 (5,206 ratings)
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Add to Bookshelf
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Reviews (1,107)
See all
4.50 (5,206 ratings)
Write a Review
On September 5, a little after midnight, Death-Cast calls Mateo Torrez and Rufus Emeterio to give them some bad news: They're going to die today. Mateo and Rufus are total strangers, but, for different reasons, they're both looking to make a new friend on their End Day.
Book Description
Daisy
Sept. 10, 2023
So beautifully written was an amazing message but I really don't know why I was surprised by that. Ouch.
I should have known from the title that this book would be heartbreaking...
Emily
Aug. 25, 2023
Riley
Aug. 18, 2023
Don't let the title fool you. This isn't a book about death, but about life. It's about becoming the person you want to be without fear holding you back. It makes you face your own mortality head on and asks the question, if you knew today was your last day would you be happy with the life you lived? This is truly a book you come out of a different person then you went in.
Aug. 3, 2023
Sam
The best way I can describe this is The Sun is Also a Star meets Aristotle and Dante Discover the Secrets of the Universe.
Jul. 17, 2023
Jessica
‘for those who need a reminder to make every day count.’
from the moment i read the dedication, i knew this story would be a meaningful one. adam silvera took a heartbreaking moment and turned it into pure poetry. this book is proof that there can be beauty in the unplanned and that its sometimes the unexpected which makes life worth living.
Reviews (1,107)
4.50 (5,206 ratings)
Write a Review
Daisy
Sept. 10, 2023
So beautifully written was an amazing message but I really don't know why I was surprised by that. Ouch.
I should have known from the title that this book would be heartbreaking...
Emily
Aug. 25, 2023
Riley
Aug. 18, 2023
Don't let the title fool you. This isn't a book about death, but about life. It's about becoming the person you want to be without fear holding you back. It makes you face your own mortality head on and asks the question, if you knew today was your last day would you be happy with the life you lived? This is truly a book you come out of a different person then you went in.
Aug. 3, 2023
Sam
The best way I can describe this is The Sun is Also a Star meets Aristotle and Dante Discover the Secrets of the Universe.
Jul. 17, 2023
Jessica
‘for those who need a reminder to make every day count.’
from the moment i read the dedication, i knew this story would be a meaningful one. adam silvera took a heartbreaking moment and turned it into pure poetry. this book is proof that there can be beauty in the unplanned and that its sometimes the unexpected which makes life worth living.
Jul. 15, 2023
Maru
Hello, unpopular opinion here.
oops.Being honest, I was expecting to feel the feels reading this, but I didn't feel anything toward this book?? *uncomfortable laugh* ok, bye.
Jul. 2, 2023
Teresa
thanks, adam silvera, for ripping my heart out of my chest & making me cry all over the pages of this depressing masterpiece at 12:30 am.
i’m officially never going to recover from this book,,, so uhh,,, peace out while i go continue to cry in a corner
June 29, 2023
Nick
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Because the Goodreads interface is so outdated, there were many issues with the layout and features that needed fixing. In addition, due to the high amount of features Goodreads has, I found it difficult to re-incorporate everything while trying to format the interface in a more simplistic, navigation-efficient way. As I was trying to improve the clunkiness and messiness of the app, I slightly struggled with making decisions on the new organization of categories and information hierarchy. However, despite all these challenges, I resolved them by taking the project step by step. Instead of immediately delving into wireframing, creating a sitemap on FigJam greatly assisted the vision I had for the organization and changes I had in mind for the new interface.
Although I made many new changes to the organization and features of the app, my designs had a stronger focus on interface and layout rather than the full extent of the user experience. During this project, I improved my asset-building skills and was able to apply much of the design principles I learned. However, there are many other issues that could be addressed, such as how users have been requesting for a dark mode or how the app allows unpublished books to be rated and reviewed. In the future, I would like to continue making more changes to the prototyped version that delves deeper than only the appearance of the application. As a book lover who likes to keep an archive of what I read, I would also want to create different versions with less or more features to see which would produce a more pleasant user experience.
Try it out yourself!
Reach me at josalynchow@gmail.com.