Ear Buds
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- Prototype
- Case Study
The project brief was to design the iOS and Android version of a native mobile app, designer’s choice, that followed both iOS and Material Design guidelines and solved a specific user problem. I chose to design a music-based dating app with the objective of helping users find partners on the basis of shared music taste.
My Process
Research
I did competitive research on 3 of the major dating apps on the market that are largely used by the target audience demo: Tinder, Hinge, and Bumble. This was made easier by the fact I’ve used all three myself so I’m very familiar with their interfaces. The fundamental issue I found with all three was that they miss the mark on interest-based dating - that is, specifically matching people on the basis of shared interests, which affects compatibility.
Ideation
Based on the huge gap in the marketplace of existing apps, I conjured up Ear Buds - a dating app that narrows in on a specific interest-based niche, music fans/aficionados, and is specifically designed around that as the main focus for matching its users. As unique key features, users can plan dates within the app by viewing and sharing concerts with their matches, share playlists (our modern day mixtapes), and engage in an interactive gamification feature. All of this has the goal of leading to more in-app matches and better quality dates. Taking into account all the familiar required tasks users would have to complete within a dating app, as well as tasks involved in the aforementioned features, I mapped out a user flow diagram.Rectangles represent screens, trapezoids represent user actions, yellow circles represent the successful completion of key task flows.
Wireframe
I first sketched paper wireframes for all the screens from my user flow diagram, and I then digitized theminto my first set of mid-fidelity wireframes, for both iOS and Android devices, applying design elements from both the HIG and Material Design guidelines for each OS. I added some new screens along the way for onboarding/walkthroughs for first-time users, and empty screen states. I then sent these mid-fidelity wireframes over to some peers for review to make sure all my elements made sense and the layouts worked, as well as prototypes to run a navigation test. Based on feedback received, I refined these screens and then moved on to the final design.
Design
To come up with the visual design for this project, per my usual process, I created a moodboard compiling imagery that captured the feeling of the app, drew colors from these images, and created some unique design elements that I would use throughout the app, and then got to work on my high-fidelity wireframes. I created a full prototype (for both iOS and Android versions) and shared it with friends/key users for them to test the functionality of the app, ease of navigation, and gathered feedback on the design elements and anything else they wanted to see. I then tweaked the design and added a few new screens (one tester gave me the idea that it would be nice to share playlists with matches through the app) and had my final set of screens!
Prototype
Here is a prototype of my final screen designs - try it out and let me know what you think! I welcome all constructive feedback to improve my work.
View PrototypeConclusion
I received overwhelmingly positive feedback from key users/peers saying they wish this app existed in the marketplace and that they’d love to see it developed, which has been very encouraging for me as this was a personal project. Future plans for the research and development of the app would be to (1) measure engagement within the app, length of time users spend within the app and within their match queues, average number of matches amongst users, and gather direct feedback to gauge early success or identify pitfalls; (2) Improve upon common glitches and fill usability gaps based on user feedback and usability tests; and (3) ideate future iterations of the app that may include supplemental usage scenarios/experiences like concert buddies or pro (networking with other musicians or industry people for those in the music business), or music meetups.