GrassMax - 2021

Disrupting an industry

GrassMax - 2021

Disrupting an industry

GrassMax - 2021

Disrupting an industry

Dairy farmers’ livelihoods are based on the quality and quantity of milk they produce. The most important factor for this is the quality and quantity of grass they consume in a season. GrassMax provides tools focused on grass nutrient and grass management. It aims to improve the decisions made on farms that increase the quality and quantity of grass and milk production.

Role

Lead product designer, I was in charge of branding and product design and contributed to the product strategy.

Team

1 Product designer

1 Product owner

2 Full stack engineers

Dairy farmers’ livelihoods are based on the quality and quantity of milk they produce. The most important factor for this is the quality and quantity of grass they consume in a season. GrassMax provides tools focused on grass nutrient and grass management. It aims to improve the decisions made on farms that increase the quality and quantity of grass and milk production.

Role

Lead product designer, I was in charge of branding and product design and contributed to the product strategy.

Team

1 Product designer

1 Product owner

2 Full stack engineers

Dairy farmers’ livelihoods are based on the quality and quantity of milk they produce. The most important factor for this is the quality and quantity of grass they consume in a season. GrassMax provides tools focused on grass nutrient and grass management. It aims to improve the decisions made on farms that increase the quality and quantity of grass and milk production.

Role

Lead product designer, I was in charge of branding and product design and contributed to the product strategy.

Team

1 Product designer

1 Product owner

2 Full stack engineers

Approach

Over a 12 month period we built an completely new product. We partnered with one of Ireland’s largest dairy co-ops and grassland specialists to take a complex topic and simplify it down so that busy farmers can make quick and accurate decisions. Along the way we have conducted user interviews with farmers and account managers and tested our wide ranging concepts with a group of 15 farmers and account managers to ensure we are solving real problems with practical solutions.

Approach

Over a 12 month period we built an completely new product. We partnered with one of Ireland’s largest dairy co-ops and grassland specialists to take a complex topic and simplify it down so that busy farmers can make quick and accurate decisions. Along the way we have conducted user interviews with farmers and account managers and tested our wide ranging concepts with a group of 15 farmers and account managers to ensure we are solving real problems with practical solutions.

Approach

Over a 12 month period we built an completely new product. We partnered with one of Ireland’s largest dairy co-ops and grassland specialists to take a complex topic and simplify it down so that busy farmers can make quick and accurate decisions. Along the way we have conducted user interviews with farmers and account managers and tested our wide ranging concepts with a group of 15 farmers and account managers to ensure we are solving real problems with practical solutions.

Onboarding users

Getting users into and setup on the application was the biggest challenge. I created a minimal and quick onboarding flow to allow users to get in the app, try it out and have the confidence to come back later.

Setting up a farm can be a time consuming process of which most of it is spent drawing accurate paddock boundaries. Small details become very important when repeating a process multiple times. I focused on creating large tap targets, preventing overlapping boundaries, and providing helpful instructions to minimise frustrations.

Onboarding users

Getting users into and setup on the application was the biggest challenge. I created a minimal and quick onboarding flow to allow users to get in the app, try it out and have the confidence to come back later.

Onboarding users

Getting users into and setup on the application was the biggest challenge. I created a minimal and quick onboarding flow to allow users to get in the app, try it out and have the confidence to come back later.

Have I got enough grass?

To answers this question used the concept of rotation length (RL) our focal point - RL is the number days it would take for all the grass across all the paddocks to be grazed sequentially. This number drives all the decisions when it comes maintaining grass quality and keeping cows out grazing.

Users can adjust the settings to make trade-offs and get instant feedback, allowing them to achieve the desired rotation length. Because it can be difficult to chose the best course of action, we included advice. There are specific suggestions made based on whether the farm is in a surplus or deficit.

Have I got enough grass?

To answers this question used the concept of rotation length (RL) our focal point - RL is the number days it would take for all the grass across all the paddocks to be grazed sequentially. This number drives all the decisions when it comes maintaining grass quality and keeping cows out grazing.

Users can adjust the settings to make trade-offs and get instant feedback, allowing them to achieve the desired rotation length. Because it can be difficult to chose the best course of action, we included advice. There are specific suggestions made based on whether the farm is in a surplus or deficit.

Have I got enough grass?

To answers this question used the concept of rotation length (RL) our focal point - RL is the number days it would take for all the grass across all the paddocks to be grazed sequentially. This number drives all the decisions when it comes maintaining grass quality and keeping cows out grazing.

Users can adjust the settings to make trade-offs and get instant feedback, allowing them to achieve the desired rotation length. Because it can be difficult to chose the best course of action, we included advice. There are specific suggestions made based on whether the farm is in a surplus or deficit.

Compliant nutrient plans

To create compliant nutrient plans, we need to gather multiple sources of information and perform complex calculations. To make this process easier for our users, we aimed to automate it as much as possible without compromising their trust.

Farmers can easily create, adjust, and share farm-specific plans with just a few taps. They can view nutrient applications on a map to plan their spreading routes, and each paddock displays planned and applied applications and nutrients, which they can update as needed.

Compliant nutrient plans

To create compliant nutrient plans, we need to gather multiple sources of information and perform complex calculations. To make this process easier for our users, we aimed to automate it as much as possible without compromising their trust.

Farmers can easily create, adjust, and share farm-specific plans with just a few taps. They can view nutrient applications on a map to plan their spreading routes, and each paddock displays planned and applied applications and nutrients, which they can update as needed.

Compliant nutrient plans

To create compliant nutrient plans, we need to gather multiple sources of information and perform complex calculations. To make this process easier for our users, we aimed to automate it as much as possible without compromising their trust.

Farmers can easily create, adjust, and share farm-specific plans with just a few taps. They can view nutrient applications on a map to plan their spreading routes, and each paddock displays planned and applied applications and nutrients, which they can update as needed.

Results & impact

We released the first version of our grass management product to 50 dairy co-op customers. We allowed people to manage their grass with just a few taps — and helped people to understand their grass growth.

Pilot expanded to 300 users

The product has been well receiveded by the initial cohort and the dairy co-op has agreed to exapnd the pilot.

High level of engagement from testers

The test cohort saw their feedback being implemented quickly which kept the feedback flowing.

Results & impact

We released the first version of our grass management product to 50 dairy co-op customers. We allowed people to manage their grass with just a few taps — and helped people to understand their grass growth.

Pilot expanded to 300 users

The product has been well receiveded by the initial cohort and the dairy co-op has agreed to exapnd the pilot.

High level of engagement from testers

The test cohort saw their feedback being implemented quickly which kept the feedback flowing.

Results & impact

We released the first version of our grass management product to 50 dairy co-op customers. We allowed people to manage their grass with just a few taps — and helped people to understand their grass growth.

Pilot expanded to 300 users

The product has been well receiveded by the initial cohort and the dairy co-op has agreed to exapnd the pilot.

High level of engagement from testers

The test cohort saw their feedback being implemented quickly which kept the feedback flowing.

© 2023 Joe Williams. All Rights Reserved.

© 2023 Joe Williams. All Rights Reserved.

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