For Anhui Jianzhu University, improve usage of books in the library and make it easier for users to participate in the construction of library resources.
Hi, you can always check the Table of Contents with the right bars ➡️.
This project focuses on a critical service design and user experience challenge within the Anhui Jianzhu University Library system.
The institution spends large annual investments to construct its library resources, yet faces the problem of inefficient resource utilization:
The fundamental strategic question guiding this research became:
How might we "save" these ignored books and cut down unnecessary waste investments?
The overarching goal of this initiative was twofold:
Improve the usage of books in the library.
Make it easier for users to participate in the construction of library resources.
To address the above strategic challenge, this project redesigned the library system as the core outcome driven by mixed-methods research:
This outcome includes:
- The BookHero System Redesign: A complete UX and service redesign proposal for a unified mobile and web platform, focusing on seamless resource discovery and acquisition.
- Resource Co-Construction Framework: A set of design principles and features that transform users from passive consumers into active contributors, thereby boosting the quality and relevance of the library's resource ecosystem.
For better understand the current situation, a set of three research methods was adopted.
Qualitative Research
In-depth interviews with library officials (Vice Curator) and typical student users to uncover behavioral patterns and specific pain points.
Quantitative Analysis
Analysis of historical Top 200 student borrowing numbers to verify the scale and trend of the utilization problem.
Systematic Evaluation
Diagnosis of the existing Library System Map and user touchpoints to identify bottlenecks and points of operational friction.
The research revealed three critical dimensions of the problem, proving the need for a fundamental systemic redesign:
1. FRICTION IN RESOURCE CONTRIBUTION CHANNEL
- Rationale: The existing user-to-library resource recommendation channel is a severe service design failure, relying solely on two high-friction pathways:
- In-person Office Submission: Requires users to physically visit the library office to fill out a recommendation form.
- Website Login: Requires logging into the complex library website for online submission.
- Strategic Implication: This limited and cumbersome channel acts as a foundational barrier, preventing students and faculty from easily contributing their expertise and suggestions. This failure directly contributes to the purchase of irrelevant resources and, subsequently, the problem of low utilization.
2. FACTUAL EVIDENCE: QUANTIFYING THE WASTE
- Core Finding: The analysis of borrowing data clearly demonstrated a significant, continuous downward trend in physical book utilization, directly confirming the financial and operational waste outlined in the strategic challenge.
- Implication: The problem is not perceptual; it is a measurable structural failure that requires a data-informed intervention.
3. PLATFORM LIMITATION: FRAGMENTED TOUCHPOINTS
The current digital system for accessing to the library includes a smartphone App （ChaoXing Mobile Library） and a Web-based library system.
More about the App (Click/Tap on the Black Triangle to view/hide.)
This is the university library's official mobile platform. While it provides essential self-service functions like personal borrowing inquiry and access to massive digital resources (over a million e-books and literature metadata), the platform offers limited UX support for the discovery and location of physical books.
More about the web system (Click/Tap on the Black Triangle to view/hide.)
This platform provides a wide range of services for both faculty and students, offering access to both book and non-book resources. Crucially, it hosts the existing mechanism for recommending books and databases, allowing users to contribute to the construction of the library's resource collection.
- Existing App (Chaoxing Mobile Library): The current mobile solution is heavily biased towards e-resources, offering limited support and poor UX/UI for physical book acquisition.
- Existing Website (OPAC/Official Site): The system features severe interoperability failure; different service components are isolated, preventing a seamless user journey for tasks like discovering a new book and locating it on the shelf.
⬅️ This diagram reflects the trends of users' borrowing books and the top 200 students' borrowing number distribution, which can show the usage rate situation of library.
According to the questionnaire process and the deep interview, three typical personas which can represent most students users of library resources can be concluded. As there is no data from teachers, the following steps would focus on students users.
Lukas (The Dedicated Planner)
Core Motivation: Builds knowledge systematically through structured, long-term reading lists.
Key Need: Requires integrated digital list management and real-time stock status to support continuous learning and planning.
Jane (The Efficiency Driver)
Core Motivation: Seeks maximum efficiency to minimize logistical time and friction.
Key Need: Requires instant and precise physical location data to optimize the "query-to-fetch" acquisition process.
Bruno (The Community Contributor)
Core Motivation: Driven by social engagement; assesses and discovers resources via sharing.
Key Need: Needs a low-friction social mechanism (e.g., ratings, sharing) to translate personal discovery into community value.
The user journey map based on the interviews is shown below:
Three Key Pain Points are:
- Information Lag: Users struggle to get timely information of book resources (newly arrived & extant ones availability).
- Locational Friction: Users cannot quickly find a book's exact shelf position.
- Social Void: Lack of tools for sharing, rating, and peer-reviewing books.
The synthesis of quantitative borrowing data, system touchpoint analysis, and the core needs of Jane, Bruno, and Lukas revealed three fundamental structural deficits in the existing service ecosystem.
This marks the transition from the diagnostic phase to the strategic action phase, where these deficits are directly translated into actionable design opportunities. These opportunities ensure the BookHero solution is laser-focused on improving resource ROI and driving user co-construction.
Design Opportunity #1: Eliminating Information Acquisition Friction
Strategic Goal: To solve the user pain point of "information lag" and optimize efficiency for Jane and Lukas.
Design Opportunity #2: Enabling Low-Friction Resource Acquisition
Strategic Goal: To solve the pain point of "locational friction" and provide real-time control over the borrowing process for high-efficiency users like Jane.
Design Opportunity #3: Incentivizing Community Co-Construction & Assessment
Strategic Goal: To solve the "social void" and the "structural bottleneck" of resource contribution, leveraging Bruno's need to drive resource ROI.
BookHero's primary design strategy was to replace the fragmented, service-centric ecosystem with a unified, user-centric system, fostering active contribution.
- Principle 1: System Unification: Eliminate the interoperability failure between the existing App and Website by designing a single, cohesive user experience across all touchpoints.
- Principle 2: Contribution Incentive: Integrate social and assessment mechanisms (reviews, ratings) as primary front-end features, making user contribution (resource recommendations) the most fluid and low-friction path.
The BookHero App redesign is structured around four interconnected modules—Search, Collects, Borrow, and My—to strategically resolve the core pain points and capitalize on the three design opportunities. These integrated functions work synergistically to replace the previous fragmented touchpoints with a unified, low-friction mobile experience centered on efficient discovery and active user contribution.
App Functional Architecture: The Blueprint of Interconnected Modules
The new mobile architecture organizes the complex array of library services into four highly interconnected core modules (Search, Collects, Borrow, and My). This structure ensures that every function, from resource discovery to active loan management, is integrated rather than siloed.
Web Information Architecture: The Framework for System Unification
The Website's Information Architecture (IA) was simplified and reorganized to mirror the App's four-module logic, eliminating the functional chaos of the previous OPAC/official site. This structural alignment guarantees cross-platform interoperability and a seamless user experience, regardless of the device used.
OPPORTUNITY #1: ELIMINATING INFORMATION ACQUISITION FRICTION
Strategic Goal: To solve the user pain point of "information lag" and optimize efficiency for Jane and Lukas.
Unified Information Hub:
Consolidates key data (stock status, exact location, and Douban rating) into a single, scannable view, eliminating the friction of cross-system lookup.
Integrated Planning Tools:
Allows users (like Lukas) to create personalized reading lists and custom shelves, supporting systematic learners by integrating their long-term learning goals directly with the library inventory.
Proactive Information Flow:
Delivers timely, personalized notifications for new book arrivals based on user-subscribed interests, ensuring users stay ahead of the discovery curve.
OPPORTUNITY #2: ENABLING LOW-FRICTION RESOURCE ACQUISITION
Strategic Goal: To solve the pain point of "locational friction" and provide real-time control over the borrowing process for high-efficiency users like Jane.
Precision Location Guidance:
Delivers real-time shelf location data and integrates it with intuitive guidance, ensuring users (like Jane) move quickly from query to the exact physical position.
Consolidated Borrowing Control:
Provides users with a clear, consolidated view of their active borrowing status (due dates, renewals, fines). Optimizes the borrowing lifecycle with one-tap actions and ensures essential status transparency within the active loan period.
OPPORTUNITY #3: INCENTIVIZING COMMUNITY CO-CONSTRUCTION & ASSESSMENT
Strategic Goal: To solve the "social void" and the "structural bottleneck" of resource contribution, leveraging Bruno's need to drive resource ROI.
Social & Review Integration:
Incorporates easy-to-use ratings, reviews, and sharing (with social media) features to provide peer-to-peer validation for book quality (Bruno's need).
Low-Friction Contribution Channel:
The integrated review/sharing mechanism serves as the primary, low-friction pathway for users to recommend new resources, replacing the outdated office/website submission process.
Please check the Figma file for UI design via link:
SOLUTION SUMMARY: THE VALUE LOOP
The BookHero proposal successfully closes the strategic loop identified in the initial research. By resolving fragmented touchpoints and the structural bottleneck of contribution, the platform shifts the library from passive storage to active discovery and user co-construction.
VALUE VALIDATION: THE UNIFIED BOOKHERO JOURNEY
To validate the system's efficiency and integrated experience, the updated User Journey Map (UJM) demonstrates the seamless flow for all user types. This map proves how the new architecture resolves friction, transforming the complex resource acquisition process into a single, collaborative, and efficient action.
STORYBOARD: A RED BOOK
Bruno shares, he shared this new book with Lukas.
Lukas finds this book good, and leaves reviews with his computer on the website.
Lukas trusts Bruno and borrows the red book.
Jane finds Lukas’ review useful, and using the app mapping, she finds the red book.