Delos Setup App
Using Agile to go from concept to Beta in 5 months
SNAPSHOT
Spring 2021: 5 months
Problem: Delos needed a way to connect their proprietary air-quality hub (Delos Wellness Extension) with third-party sensors (to gather data), HVAC controls (for remediation), and the end-user’s Crestron Home app (for display and control).
Customers: High-end smart-home installers, who sell and install a range of smart-home offerings for homeowners
Users: Field techs who work for the installers - time is money!
Challenges: Lack of insight into specs of third-party devices, no design system or componentized UI elements
My Role: Product Designer
Outcomes:
small external beta program completed before planned showcase at Crestron’s CEDIA booth in November 2021
excellent feedback from installer partners
version 1.0 launched in the Apple App store Dec 2021, last updated (v 2.3) August 2022
continues to be offered by Crestron
Final designs:
THE OPPORTUNITY
Delos Living, which focuses on indoor wellness, partnered with Crestron Home to add indoor air quality data and remediation to Crestron’s existing smart home platform.
Delos understood that in addition to serving end-customer needs within the Crestorn Home app, there is also a big opportunity to provide professional installers with the tools they need to be successful.
As one of Delos’ first forays into creating a de-novo product in-house, and the first that integrates multiple smart / connected devices, this was an opportunity to showcase how Agile methodologies and collaboration between Product, Technology, and Design can help us reduce the time to learnings and to value.
THE REQUIREMENTS
At a high level, the Installer Tool app needs to allow installers to connect a Delos Hub and one or more Kaiterra air quality sensors to a Crestron Home system. To enable remediation based on air quality, the app must also capture data related to thermostat-zones. To encourage future sales of in-line air purification filters, Delos also wanted the app to capture data related to the type and installation date of filters.
NEED FOR A GUI OPENED THE DOOR FOR AN ITERATIVE APPROACH
Our tech team needed a simple GUI as they worked to more fully understand the requirements and dependancies of the Crestron Home system and the Kaiterra air quality sensors. Collaborating with tech at this early juncture allowed us to iterate on the experience and flow as we learned more about the requirements and limitations of these third party devices and systems.
Early wireframes enabled the tech team to create a prototype that they used to test and learn about third-party-device requirements that have significant affects on the overall user experience.
USABILITY TESTING SHAPED DESIGN
I conducted internal usability testing with our installation team. With our tech and product leads excited to take the product to the next level, having data from testers with similar knowledge of smart-home installation tools and processes was key in prioritizing which opportunity areas to tackle first.
early componentization ENABLED EASY STYLE UPDATES
BETA PROGRAM
I used a low-fi napkin sketch to drive conversations around the prioritization of beta-program feedback, and set-up a GoogleSheets document to facilitate tagging and nuggetizing of the feedback and findings.
Some findings, like styling updates, were of minimal scope and were tackled before the release of 1.0.
A significant finding with larger implications was that while our beta customers (owners of installation companies) were knowledgeable about indoor air quality and the benefits of the Delos Wellness Extension, the in-the-field techs (ultimate users of this app) were not. The team planned to design on-boarding and educational materials to test to meet this need.
RESULTS
Gaining the support of internal stakeholders was key in showing the power of a collaborative, in-house product team. Delos’ Chief Communications Officer appreciated the friction-free solution that this collaboration between Product, Design and Technology produced as well as the importance of providing our B2B customers with exceptional tools.
Anthony Antolino, Chief Commercial Officer at Delos, reacting to an internal demo of the Installer Tool
Key points from Anthony’s reaction:
It is simple and intuitive
Our first customer is the dealer, and this will elevate how they think about Delos as a product and solutions provider
This will build an enormous amount of trust within Delos’s dealer community