Jack Reports
a unidirectional navigator for the truck driver community
Introduction
Over the decades, innovators continued to come up with interesting ways for users to track their movements on a map. For example, in the 1920s, drivers wore wrist maps like a watch. A small map was embedded where the watch dial would normally be found. In 1909, an ad described a scrolled map attached to the steering wheel. An Italian company Touring Club took this step further in the early 1930s by tethering the map scroll to the speedometer. In fact, this was the first device that attempted to show a person’s position in real-time.
Inspired by the history of navigation devices, we tried to reevaluate the way truck drivers move around today.
These are the first devices for automobile navigation: a wrist map by Plus Fours Routfinder, Baldwin Auto Guide, and Iter-Auto.
Target audience
Jack Reports is an app designed for truck drivers in the US, a very specific audience with their own needs and preferences. A series of user interviews helped us better understand their mental model as well as their main intent – to get to their destination on time with as little distraction as possible. Unlike ordinary drivers, truckers cannot park or turn wherever they want. And they don’t care what happens to the left of the road, because they can’t get there fast enough anyway.
Problem
Jack Reports was originally launched as an ai-driven and community-supported database of truck-related places. Drivers used the app while planning their trips and then switched to a conventional navigation app. As a result, drivers tended to lose focus every time they needed to check the updated status of places on their way.
Highway is a new app mode that represents any route as a straight line.
Solution
By introducing the Highway mode, we want to help truckers focus on exactly what they need most while driving:
- 🚚 The shortest way to the destination
- 🚔 Police inspections on the way
- 📦 Weigh station schedules and cargo requirements
- ⛔️ State borders with estimated waiting time
- 🚧 Road accidents, dangerous zones, bridge clearance
- ➡️ Highway exits and rest areas available on the right
Jack Reports wireframes and navigation between screens.
There are two main modes in the app:
- Highway works best if you know your route very well and want to keep an eye on the most important places along the way.
- A conventional map view is useful if you want to take a look at the entire route and review more places nearby.
Drivers can also read details and check the current status of any place as well as read reports and updates from other members of the community.
US road sign collection featuring Highway Gothic typeface.
The app UI design was inspired by the brutal yet fascinating layouts and distinctive typography of American road signs.
How to measure success
The final thing to do before the launch is to make sure we define KPIs indicating the success of the solution. If the unidirectional navigation mode is successful we’ll see:
- A dramatic increase in the time spent by drivers in the app per session, as well as the retention rate;
- Improved NPS (to ensure the time increase doesn’t impinge on service quality);
- Either retained or improved number of subscribed users.
