Threesquares - A Case Study in Healthy Eating Made Simple
Meal Planning
Role: UIUX design
Year: Feb 2024 -November 2024
Overview
ThreeSquares is a digital meal-planning platform designed to help users maintain a healthy lifestyle with personalized meal plans, grocery management, and pantry tracking. It simplifies nutrition planning, ensuring users eat well without the stress of organizing meals and shopping lists.
What really is the challenge?
Users struggle with meal planning, grocery shopping, and finding culturally relevant healthy meals. Many lack time, knowledge, or motivation to create balanced meal plans that fit their dietary needs and lifestyle.
What could the solution be?
ThreeSquares is a digital platform that simplifies meal planning, nutrition tracking, and grocery shopping. The app integrates AI-driven meal recommendations, pantry management, and grocery shopping features, making healthy eating convenient and personalized.
Target Audience
- Busy professionals looking for quick and nutritious meal solutions.
- Students managing food budgets and planning meals efficiently.
- Fitness enthusiasts tracking calories and macronutrients.
- Families seeking culturally relevant, healthy meal options.
Research & Design Process
Pain Points: Users find meal planning time-consuming, often forget ingredients while shopping, and struggle with maintaining a balanced diet.
Behaviors: Most users rely on impulse buying rather than structured grocery planning.
Needs: Users want a tool that suggests meals based on available ingredients, tracks grocery lists, and offers easy-to-follow meal plans.
Competitive Analysis
Existing meal-planning apps provide meal suggestions but lack seamless pantry tracking and grocery integration. ThreeSquares differentiates itself by offering:
AI-powered meal customization.
Localized meal options, including Nigerian cuisine.
Grocery delivery integration.
User Personas
'I want to eat healthier, but I don’t have time to plan meals.'
- Maintain a healthy diet despite a busy lifestyle.
- Reduce reliance on fast food by cooking more at home.
- Easily generate grocery lists based on her meal plans.
- Lack of time to plan and cook meals.
- Difficulty finding quick, nutritious meal options.
- Forgetting to buy ingredients, leading to food waste.
"I need meal plans that support my fitness goals."
- Follow a nutrition plan aligned with his workout routine.
- Easily track calories and macronutrients.
- Build credibility through positive reviews and eFind Nigerian meal options that fit his fitness goals.ngagement.
- Generic meal plans that don’t consider his dietary needs.
- Difficulty finding high-protein Nigerian meals.
- Managing pantry stock and grocery shopping efficiently.
A Usable Design System
The Chatter design system consists of essential components that form the foundation of the platform, ensuring a seamless user experience. It also serves as a key reference during developer handoff, allowing developers to efficiently implement individual components throughout the development process.
Splash Screen
Visually engaging introduction to the ThreeSquares app, reinforcing its mission of balanced nutrition and easy meal planning.
Smart Meal Planning
AI-driven recommendations based on dietary preferences and health goals, helping users plan their meals efficiently.
Meal Prepping & Recipe
A dedicated feature that helps users organize meal prep schedules, providing step-by-step recipes tailored to their dietary needs and available ingredients. Users can batch cook, set portion sizes, and store meals efficiently, reducing food waste and saving time.
Pantry Management
Users track ingredients at home and receive meal suggestions based on available items, reducing food waste and optimizing grocery shopping.
Mobile App & Job Board
The profile screen serves as a hub for both individual users and business owners. Users can showcase their event history, saved businesses, and written reviews, while business owners can manage their listings, respond to customer feedback, and engage with the community. Privacy and preference settings allow users to control their visibility, adjust notifications, and fine-tune AI recommendations to personalize their experience further.
Key takeaways
ThreeSquares is a game-changer in meal planning, designed to make healthy eating effortless. Addressing pain points and incorporating smart features empowers users to make informed food choices and build sustainable eating habits. As we move forward, we aim to enhance user experiences and broaden our impact on global nutrition.