Toyota Kinto. Designing a mobility app for the global customer.
Agency
Ogilvy
Role
Design Lead
Output
Design Direction
UX/UI Design
Overview
Kinto is the smart mobility service by Toyota that provides subscription-based leasing, car sharing and ride services. With a global cultural push towards environmentally conscious ways to travel, their ambition is to provide seamless and effortless mobility to their customers around the world.
Working with Ogilvy, our challenge was to provide a vision for an app experience that supported the global customer and Kinto’s three core services. As design lead I was responsible for leading the UX and design direction.
Research and Discovery
Defining the global customer
With a tight project timeline of just 6 weeks, our research phase was short and intense. Our goal was to define who we were designing for – the global Kinto customer.
We kicked off by running a series of client workshops to gather insights on Kinto’s existing customers and services, as well as studying client data on customer demographic and market segmentation. We also conducted our own research into MaaS (mobility as a service) to help us better understand consumer behaviour and attitudes towards subscription-based car services versus ownership.
“In the sharing economy, the focus is no longer on ownership but on service – mobility is much more important than having your own car.”
We learnt that local markets have their own unique social and cultural differences which influence consumer behaviour. However, one significant consistency we found across all markets is that millennials are more inclined to use subscription based car services over car ownership.
With these insights we created a series of proto personas which were allocated to each of Kinto’s three core services based on their needs and goals. These personas were used constantly throughout the project to guide design decisions, priorities, and create empathy amongst the client and my team.
Ideation and Design
Setting the design direction
Moving into the design phase we sketched out a ton of ideas for the core app experience, considering how the information architecture could support all three services. As we explored and re-worked concepts, a high-level view of the app anatomy began to develop. Sketches were turned into wireframes and low-fidelity prototypes which were then user-tested for validation.
At the same time we explored the apps UI whilst working within Kinto’s existing brand guidelines. Our initial focus was designing to iOS standards but our visual language and interaction was also designed to consider Android.
The Solution
Adapting the interface to the service
We designed the user experience so that the home screen became the main point of reference, adapting to each of Kinto’s three core services depending on customer usage. To support the global customer we also considered how the interface changed depending on location, as well as adding moments of personalisation and offerings based on usage.
The Solution
Considering all touch points
Our early discover showed that each of the three services have their own unique level of customer interaction with Kinto’s Share seen as being the primary service which customers could potentially use daily. With this in mind, we considered all touch points throughout the customers end-to-end journey, allowing them to seamlessly search, locate, book and manage their car, as well as offering features like a digital car key and car finding abilities.
The Solution
Renting a car like you’re purchasing one
Kinto’s Flex is the premium rental service for customers who want more ownership and a longer term subscription option. Considering this, we designed the experience to feel like the customer was buying a car, allowing them to configure the cars specifications and subscription plan to their taste.
Documenting the design foundations
Throughout the project I worked closely with Toyota’s brand team to help them evolve their existing digital guidelines and component library. As my team refined the UI and interaction, we were able to establish design standards for foundational elements like typography styles, colour usage, motion and interaction.
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