Back
Barclays Cycle Hire

Evaluating and Iterating Mobile Cycle Hire

1 min read
Design Research
Service Design
travel & tourism
technology
situation & task

Mobile application testing with target audience

Barclays Cycle Hire is a public bicycle hire scheme in London, United Kingdom. The scheme was launched on 30 July 2010 and the operation of the scheme is contracted by Transport for London to Serco Group.

The scheme is sponsored, with Barclays Bank the first sponsor from 2010 to 2015, and we were approached to test the iPhone application, working in conjunction with Profero. The scheme now covers approximately 65km2 of the capital, with over 8,300 hire bikes available from the 15,000 docking points spread across central and east London.

action

Practical insights

Spotless was asked to gather practical insights during user interviews to ensure the mobile application made sense to the target audience.  We worked with Profero to review personas created for the target groups e.g. business commuters, day trippers and people visiting from abroad.

We tested the mobile application to ensure that key use journeys were being met by the target audience.

at a glance

Methods

User interviews, persona review, usability testing

MOMAs Award

The project was awarded ‘best use of location based services’ at last year’s MOMAs (Marketing on Mobile Awards) organised by The Drum.

Result

Report on differences between what users expected an Argos app to be able to do and what it was being designed to do

Spotless package recommendation

Elevate Your Existing Business

OUTCOMES & RESULTS

Suggestions & improvements

We identified suggestions and improvements to the mobile application, particularly around mapping, displaying routes and listing out the nearest available bike rack from your current location.

The project was awarded ‘best use of location based services’ at last year’s MOMAs (Marketing on Mobile Awards) organised by The Drum. The app has also been downloaded over 180,000 times.

CREDENTIALS

Direct insights from our valued partners, capturing the essence of Spotless collaborations.

“Spotless don’t retell stories, they get to know our business, repurpose our insight, identify the gaps and create innovative solutions."

Nicola Charlton, Research & Insight Manager
Tyl by Natwest

"We required 'out of the box' thinking, meticulous attention to detail, an instinctive understanding of game design and a high-level of UX expertise. We got all of this and more."

Producer
Ubisoft

"Spotless worked with us as our business partner, always going the extra mile to ensure our needs were met in a professional and timely manner."

Sharon Stinton, Learning & Development Leader
GE Money

more CASE STUDIES
View all