SIMMS FLY APP CONCEPT
App to find the perfect fly for fly fishing.
What Fly should I use when fishing? If you know what you are doing, once you get to the river you match the hatch. What if you want to start your trip with a fly that will work depending on the time and weather of the river you are fishing? This is what the Simms Find a Fly app is designed to do.
Nothing will be able to compare to actually matching the hatch. However, this is a great start for new users to help learn the correct fly to use based on the time and conditions to get them on the water faster.
Persona and User Research
What type of fly fisher is looking for help on the river? What are they interested in?
I talked with a number of friends that fly fish to see what they have in common and how they are different. Users I interviewed fell under these personas.
New to fly fishing
Roger
IT Professional
Age: Late 40’s
Family: Married, 5 children
Passions: Fishing, camping, dutch oven cooking, family and church
Tech / Social Background
Tech: Android phone and PC laptop
Apps: Facebook, other fishing apps
Overview
New to fishing and excited to learn
Shares with others
Not sure what fly to use when fishing
Uses tech to capture memories
Organized
Fly fished all his life
Derek
Contractor
Age: Early 40’s
Family: Married no children
Passions: Camping, skiing, brewing beer, reading, and biking
Tech / Social Background
Tech: iPhone, PC, Kindel
Apps: Not into social media, eBay
Overview
Wants to make the most of his time on the river
Will match the hatch once he starts
Starts with a fly that he has tied
Recreational fisherman
Ryan
Designer
Age: late 20’s
Family: Married no children
Passions: Climbing, camping, fishing, and mountain biking
Tech / Social Background
Tech: Macbook for work, GPS
Apps: News, Drawing Apps, Not into social media
Overview
Guesses at what to use on the river
Tries one fly and then swaps if it’s not working
Enjoys his time on the river catch or not
Sketches
Idea started with rough sketches on a fishing trip when I didn't know what fly I should use.
I feel like the best ideas come from rough sketches where you can just quickly put down thoughts. By the time high fidelity starts I have the concept worked out by making design decisions in the early stages of the project. I make these decisions in a number of ways including sketching, user journeys, user mapping, wireframes, low fidelity design, and others.
Prototyping and Usability Testing
Let's see how easy it would be to use and improve on it.
After finishing the designs I wanted to make the app a little more “real”. I set up a prototype in InVision and then tested it with a few fishing buddies. Overall response – “where can I download this?” “I wish it was on the market.”
Product Visuals
Product Outcome
What problem would this app solve? Would fly fishers use it? I know I would.
This was a fun concept that I wanted to try to create a product design. I had the idea driving to my favorite fishing spot. I sketched out the idea and designed the app in my free time. I really enjoyed using my skills to design something I have a passion for. Maybe one day I will actually build out the app.
Almost came to life
I was contacted by a local advertising agency in Utah to help with a sales presentation to Orvis Fishing after they found my app online. I skinned the design with Orvis branding to help with the pitch as a concept. Ultimately the agency didn’t win the contract but it was a fun experiment for a sport I love. The search “Simms Fly App” still comes up 1st page on Google for my concept.
