While we were doing research on how we could approach the design of the new IRD mobile app, we noticed there was a common pattern that arose out of going through each task. Everything could essentially be broken down into a simple flow chart. And when we say everything, we mean everything. Starting from knowing what to do, to knowing what prerequisite information is required, to actually filling out forms.

In addition we noticed that along the way, the Inland Revenue website had an abundance of useful information regarding every step of the task being completed. However, the problem was that it was often disconnected to the context that the user was currently in, making it difficult to find said useful information.

Once we realized this, we started to brainstorm ways in which we could take advantage of this fundamental characteristic of the website, and try to link the flow chart nature of the website, along with making context specific information readily available. Which brought us to the Guided Flowchart Navigation approach.

This approach is a lot simpler than it sounds. Basically it comes down to breaking all the whole of IRD into a gargantuan flowchart, and writing an algorithm that traverses the flowchart depending on user input, and context. OK 'simple' may be a bit of a stretch, but only on the implementation level. The idea is at it's core is still very simple. Think "20 questions", but... bigger.

By using this approach, the user no longer has to be troubled with trying to find information, and locate application forms. They are literally hand held through the whole process via a stream lined set of questions that eventually take them through to where they need to be.

Not only that, but EasyIr would help users complete a proportion of the forms for them. Save the user having to pull out dusty calculators, and getting writers cramp due to re-writing their name and address 300 times, all this could be done for them, making the process that much faster. And fun!

Security is one of those problems that there just doesn't seem to be a silver bullet for, especially when there are things like the Heartbleed bug cropping up. Putting in place barrier after barrier may add more security, but can quickly degrade the user experience. So what approach can we use to maintain a high degree of security, but still be simple and easy?

Well the one thing we have to our advantage that EasyIR is a mobile application, thus automatically unlocking two factor authentication. Similar to the way in which a lot of New Zealand banks are doing with their mobile apps, by registering a specific device to a particular account with a password/PIN, IRD can be more confident that any interactions with EasyIR are coming from a legitimate source, and therefore more readily give user specific and privileged information.

Let's face it, when life gets busy, dealing with IRD applications is probably the last thing you want to do. Getting penalized for missing important due dates makes it even worse. If only there was a personal assistant to manage your IRD applications, enquiries and feedback! Well with EasyIR, we came up with the Dashboard to take care of all this for you.

When you sign in the Dashboard will be the first thing you see. Giving you a summary of all tasks and applications that are specific to you. This includes completed forms that you can reference, pending tasks that you may have left to complete at a later date, and urgent tasks that require your immediate attention. All of which have a direct connection to the Flowchart, allowing the user to quickly jump to a particular section if they need to.

One of the main problems we were trying to address was the communication problems that exist between users and IRD. Not only from the user to IRD, but also from IRD to the user. So we thought to use push notification could be taken advantage of rather than traditional means of communication, which can often be ineffective.

We want EasyIR to be the bridge to a healthy relationship between IRD and it's users. And, we all know, like any relationship, we believe that 2 way communication is key to keeping everyone happy chappies.

As mentioned in the Guided Flowchart Navigation section, there is an abundance of helpful information on the IRD website. However the problem is that there is a disconnect between the information and the context that the user may currently be in. Useful information should not be hard to come by, in fact it should be as easy as a single click of a button from where you currently are, or in our case, a swipe of the finger.

While we were exploring the flowchart structure, we noticed that it was very easy to link up specific help information to a particular section the user was currently on. So we tried thinking of a way we could tie this information into the general flow of the app. And so Swipe For Help was born. At every step of the way, additional information that is specific to the question in context is at the users fingertips. Literally.

As we were fleshing out the user experience for EasyIR, we were always thinking about the difference in user experience levels. We did not want to "dumb down" the experience of filing a tax return for someone who is an expert in the field. So we had to think of a way to cater to both ends of the spectrum. This is where the Quick Search idea came from. It's pretty much Google, but IRD-ified... "IRDoogle"?

Basically we wanted a way to shortcut to a particular form or task that the user knows they need to complete, but do not want to be troubled with going through the guided navigation to get there. So by having a search bar available in the dashboard, the user can quickly type the application name or keywords to get around the app too. In addition we could build a 'popular tasks' section which will auto update based user interaction, or time of the year.