The Big Question

Going green can seem daunting for any homeowner or small business. Common questions we ask ourselves how much will it cost? Will I really save money? Is going green right for me?

Why were we created

1st Step Solar was created to to be a simple fun and interactive way for the solar curious to see how much going green can save them. Just by entering your zip code and tilting your phone you can see a live breakdown of how solar energy can save you per year!

Inquiries

An uprising trend of people and companies making efforts to “Go Green” and reduce carbon foot prints. One of the ways is Solar power.
Concerns that switching to solar power is both complicated and expansive.
Apps and resources that are on the market today are complicated and use very technical lingo such as Azimuth that can be very off putting to the average homeowner and small business.
Creating a simple non threatening way to get solar curious information about solar energy and show the long term savings.

Personas

Outdoorsy Chic Homeowner

**Age:** 33
**Personality:** Organized, Outdoorsy, Eco Friendly
Sara is a young homeowner owner that is eco conscious. She uses technology on a daily basis such as phones and computers. She is not afraid to of Do-It yourself projects and getting her hands dirty in the backyard growing her own produce. She Loves to find new ways to be eco friendly, but likes to keep to a budget. She hears from her friends about 1st Step Solar and how easy it is to convert to solar power and instal the panels. Sara downloads the app and starts consider to buying the kit to instal her own solar panels on her home.

The Green Brewer

**Age:** 39
**Personality:** Adventurous, Ambitious, Laid back
Zack owns his own Brewery and is always trying to find new creative ways to update his brewery. Zack has been hearing more and more about other bars going green. He decides to look into solar power, seeing all costs to hire professionals to instal, he decides it is not in his budget. One day on app store finds 1st Step Solar app starts exploring the app. Finds that buying/installing Solar panels is not a costly or daunting as he initially thought. Excited by this he shows his friends visiting his brewery the app and starts up discussion about how they all can easily can make the transition to converting to solar energy.

Ideations

Client presented one page App concept for 1st Step Solar to work hand in hand with the website. Main goals of the phone app was present how much a person would save by converting to solar energy in a personalized manner that can understood and shared easily via, cocktail parties, book clubs and any social outings.

After looking over the initial wireframe it became clear that some of the terminology used in the solar industry would not be understood. However using the such terms was must to incorporate in the app for two purposes:

Educate and get the the user familiar with industry standard terms
Have the app have relevancy that to the solar industry

From here the decision was made to include informative pop - ups that would have definitions of Azimuth and Tilt.

Wireframes and Mock-Ups

The first initial wireframe followed very closely with the initial concept. User testing of other solar apps found that including interactive elements has more appeal
This design challenge was met by adding a compass, which would turn and spin and the user did taking advantage of iOS compass widget. This would give the relative information of cardinal direction in a format that would be familiar to most people.
Secondly the total years saving and year payback number was moved in a separate card. Breaking up the Solar panel placement data from the savings information made a the focus on the savings.
The cost break down was divided out further where the user would slid up from the bottom to reveal a more depth breakdown of how the cost was calculated without hinderance from the moveable elements.
After looking over the initial wireframe it became clear that some of the terminology used in the solar industry would not be understood. However using the such terms was must to incorporate in the app for two purposes:
**Educate and get the the user familiar with industry standard terms**
**Have the app have relevancy that to the solar industry**
From here the decision was made to include informative pop - ups that would have definitions of Azimuth and Tilt.

Deliverables

In the end the decision was made to have a welcome page built into the app. Besides giving precedence to the App’s name 1st Step Solar and that info was sourced from PVWATTS.com an opening page would also show a simple tutorial to explain the main function of the app and help negate user error. Here are some of the design goal:

Client wanted the app to be so simple that minimal instruction would be used and the example was Ikea directions and branding.
Have color scheme not be only green, client wanted the app to feel fresh and read as eco friendly but be able to stand out from other apps.

Public Reception

Featured In:

PV Magazine, March 7 2019
PV Magazine, March 6 2019
Office of Energy Efficiency & Renewable Energy
American-Made Solar Prize
National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL)
U.S. Department of Energy (DOE)

Competing in the American-Made Solar Prize as Team Catalyst with the project 1st Step Solar.

About the American-Made Solar Prize

The American-Made Solar Prize is a $3 million prize competition designed to revitalize U.S. solar manufacturing through a series of contests and the development of a diverse and powerful support network that leverages national laboratories, energy incubators, and other resources across the country. The American-Made Solar Prize is directed and administered by the National Renewable Energy Laboratory and is funded by the U.S. Department of Energy Solar Energy Technologies Office

Lessons Learned

1st Step Solar app was an experience that taught me a lot about designing for more technical and marketing a product for a specific audience. These were some takeaways:

Design a interface that is simplistic, easy to use and fun that conveyed the purpose with minimal explanation.
Work within a tight deadline to have the app design that both accomplishes design needs as well as technical
Successfully create an App that met design goals set out by the client.

A Designer with a background in Print

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