EVgo

Table of Contents

EVgo provides a nationwide network of electric vehicle chargers, and needed the capability to design and manage the production of their own cross-platform mobile apps. Their existing app caused significant issues for their customer support team, reflected clearly in poor App Store reviews.

Role #

In 2019 at Artium, I led the design side of this engagement, training and enabling EVgo’s internal design team. I collaborated closely with product managers and engineers across both Artium and EVgo, guiding the design process from research to prototyping and iteration.

Challenge #

The core challenge involved equipping a team with no previous mobile design experience to deliver a seamless, intuitive app experience. Initial discovery highlighted significant user frustrations: range anxiety, charger availability and compatibility confusion, and safety concerns at charging locations.

We began by embedding ourselves alongside EVgo’s customer support team, conducting structured user interviews, and uncovering key pain points to build a clear, actionable roadmap.

Reducing “Range Anxiety” and Addressing Safety #

Maps showed the nearest chargers with availability.

Electric vehicle drivers face significant challenges in locating and reliably accessing chargers. Interviews with EVgo’s support team and drivers highlighted major frustrations:

Real-Time Availability Maps: Comprehensive maps displayed real-time charger availability.
Custom Directions and Safety Reviews: Integrated user reviews and customized navigation enhanced location safety.
Charging Notifications: Implemented alerts notifying users when their charge was nearly complete or if parked incorrectly.
Reservation System: Allowed reservations of charging spots with a 10-minute grace period, limiting misuse and reducing user frustration.

Enhancing Charger Compatibility Clarity #

Filters ensured drivers never visited incompatible chargers.

Users often struggled with charger compatibility due to inconsistent industry naming conventions and unclear vehicle requirements. To simplify this:

Clear Charger Compatibility UI: Designed an intuitive interface explicitly showing charger compatibility at each location.
VIN-Based Onboarding: Integrated vehicle VIN scanning during onboarding to automatically identify compatible chargers, hiding incompatible options from view.

Building a Scalable Design System and Workflow #

The design system respected both iOS and Android design patterns.

A cohesive, scalable design system was crucial to maintaining consistency across EVgo’s diverse product range:

Harmonized Design Patterns: Collaborated with hardware designers to ensure visual consistency aligned with EVgo’s brand.
EVgo Cookbook (Design System): Developed a comprehensive, Figma-based design system tailored specifically for cross-platform compatibility.
Extreme Programming Collaboration: Partnered closely with engineers throughout development, ensuring seamless translation from design to production.

Results #

Though COVID-19 prevented my direct involvement through launch, the foundations we laid resulted in:

Scalable Design System: Enabled EVgo’s teams to independently manage ongoing app development.
Collaborative Culture: Improved internal collaboration among design, product management, and engineering teams.
Enhanced User Experience: Addressed significant user pain points, reducing customer support burdens and improving customer satisfaction.

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