Designing the Pickup Experience in the United States
Setting the Context
Fast-casual dining in the U.S. has evolved to support “order ahead” behaviors, where users place pickup orders through platforms like Uber Eats and DoorDash, and arrive at the restaurant just in time to collect their food. While this saves time, it also introduces challenges around coordination, clarity, and user experience.
Scope
Done as part of a 24 Hour assignment for the position of product designer
Timeline
24 Hours
Decisions that shaped the flow
Introducing the Reorder Section
Fast-casual restaurants in the U.S. heavily support meal customization, allowing users to build meals to their preference. Over time, this leads to users developing a “usual order" that they tend to repeat.
Returning users currently have to go through the entire menu and customization flow again, even when ordering the same meal, making the experience repetitive and time-consuming.
Impact
Reduces time to place an order
Minimizes friction for repeat users
Enables a faster path to checkout
Encouraging Exploration
Food discovery pages often present long, uniform lists of restaurants, which can feel repetitive and lead to scroll fatigue.
A monotonous layout reduces engagement and makes it harder for users to explore new options beyond the first few visible items.
Impact
Reduces visual fatigue during scrolling
Encourages users to explore more restaurants
Improves overall browsing experience
Introducing Flexibility to Navigation
People use different map platforms to navigate their way in the United States unlike here in India where the go to app is the Google Maps.
Forcing a single map provider may not align with user preferences, creating friction when navigating to the restaurant.
Platforms like Uber Eats and DoorDash often integrate maps directly within the app to help users locate the restaurant. While in-app maps provide convenience, users may still prefer navigating through their own map apps based on familiarity, saved locations, or real-time navigation features.
Impact
Gives users flexibility and control
Reduces friction in navigation
Creates a more seamless pickup experience
Indicating Progress
After payment, users are taken through a transitioning confirmation screen, indicating it clearly that their order has been placed successfully before moving to the order details page.
If the user knows that the order is confirmed, why show it on the progress bar again?
Once users land on the order status page, the transition from confirmation to tracking can feel abrupt, with no clear sense of how the process is progressing.
Reinforcing the first completed step provides a clear starting point in the order journey and establishes a visible sense of progression.
Impact
Creates a stronger sense of progress and continuity
Reduces uncertainty about order status
Makes the tracking experience feel structured
Indicating Progress
Pickup experiences vary across restaurants. Some orders are collected from a pickup shelf, others from the counter, while some use drive-through pickup.
If pickup instructions are unclear, users may feel confused when they arrive at the restaurant, leading to delays or unnecessary interaction with staff.
Impact
Reduces confusion at the restaurant
Speeds up order collection
Creates a smoother pickup experience
