To refine the problem a bit more, I conducted 4 user interviews with 2 amateur models and 2 amateur photographers. Overall, I identified main needs and goals of my users and summarized them in my personas: amateur models (represented by Gerone) and amateur photographers (represented by Gloria). I knew that safety needed to be a priority, but so did ease of connecting with others, all while promoting the socialization aspect of forming new friendships with other creatives. I kept these main needs in mind throughout the rest of the design process!

Information Architecture

The next step was to figure out what features I wanted to include in my app! I first went straight into competitor research (let’s scope out the competition!)

Above is a feature inventory that I did with 4 competitor products. The Hub and Model Mayhem are online platforms for connecting professional photographers and models for bookings. Flickr is also an online platform, but it emphasizes the showcasing of photos and is mainly a place where people upload their photos for storage. Instagram is a popular social media app that amateur photographers and models currently use to find each other and plan collaborations, according to my user research.

I noticed that browsing by style and showcasing work were 2 features that all 4 competitors generally shared. I knew that I also wanted to include both these features (or something similar), especially viewing content by style, since one user need I identified was to find creatives that match their creative vision for collaborations. Beyond these 2 features, all 4 competitors showed fluctuating inclusion of features such as direct messaging, being amateur friendly, and including safety precautions. This was something that I definitely wanted to address with my own app, given that all 3 features are integral for connecting amateur creatives with new people in a safe environment.

With these do’s and don’ts in mind, I went on to formulating the IA of my app!

I conducted 2 closed card sorts and 1 open card sort to test how users grouped and organized the features I had planned for the app. I was pleasantly surprised to find that the way users organized the information during my card sorts was extremely close to how I had initially organized it as well; however, one thing that I did change was the content under my “Explore” category. Initially, I only had “Search bar with filter” and “Top posts in user’s area” under “Explore”. However, users also seemed to expect recommended posts based on user data (i.e. posts generated based on user’s preferences in style of photography, whether they were searching for photographers vs. models, etc.). I felt like this was a very fitting feature to add, given that finding people based on what they are looking for was also a need users expressed during user interviews. Given this, I reflected any changes to my site map (pictured above!).

While I was planning out the main flow that my users would go through while using my app, I ended up creating 2 main user flows, since I felt both were incredibly important and unique features that my app would be most commonly used for. The primary user flow (pictured on the left) outlines how users would find new profiles and potentially start a new connection with them. The secondary user flow (pictured on the right) outlines the process of scheduling a day and time for people to meet up for potential collaboration, whether it be planning their next shoot while virtually meeting via video chat, or setting the date for an in person shoot!

Paper Prototype 1.0

Above is the first iteration of my paper prototype. Based on usability tests, there were some major changes I had to make to the search and scheduling feature to make the purpose of both features more clear to my users. Click through the slideshow above to view all sketches!

Paper Prototype 2.0

Above is the second iteration of my paper prototype. After conducting another round of usability changes, there was positive reception to the changes made to the search and scheduling feature that improved the organization, clarity, and UI of the app. However, users were still confused about what the search icon overlapping the user’s profile picture was for (refer to the slideshow for paper prototype 1.0). Originally, I used this search icon to indicate users that were searching/open to collaborations. However, I needed to clarify this to users…

Mid-fidelity Wireframes

I translated my sketches into something more concrete by creating mid-fidelity wireframes. One notable change I made was to the “Searching for Collaborations” icon that users complained about in usability tests for the paper prototype. I replaced the magnifying glass icon to a “Seeking Collabs” label, and users responded a lot more positively to this clearer indication of a user’s openness to collaborations.

Mood Board

Here is the mood board I used to inspire the theme of the app.

Creative Space

Tone

Moody, Eccentric, & Innovative

Geometry

Creative Space maintains structure while utilizing rounded edges to straddle the border between what’s restricted and what’s free

Voice

Curious & Mellow. Creative Space might say “We are both similar, but different. I want to learn more about you.”

Messaging

“This is a safe, creative space. Everyone deserves to build a community with other art-minded people in the world.”

Color Use

Creative Space’s color palette balances the worlds of warm and cold, familiar and unknown.

Hi-fidelity Wireframes and Interactive Prototype

And here is the final deliverable! I am super proud of how the screens turned out. hehe :-)

Feature - Super liking

One major focus I had was to ensure that users felt confident enough to reach out and start conversations with other users. To accomplish this, I implemented a “Super Like” feature. Under anyone’s profile, there is an option to super like them to show that you are interested in connecting with them. Similar to how Tinder uses super likes, a user would not know who super liked them unless they were to super like the user back. If two people super like each other, a new conversation will appear under in their Conversations Center, prompting them to start a new conversation. Therefore, there is no risk in super liking anyone and users can connect with others without fear of rejection. Whew!

Feature - Search & Explore

Another primary purpose of this app is to help creatives find creatives! During the sketching process, I soon realized that a simple search bar would not be sufficient for my users. Users typically didn’t have a specific person in mind that they want to find, but instead wanted to search generally for photographers, models, or potential shoot locations. To make this process easier for them, I used a floating action button to access the search engine, which helps emphasize the clear action users can take on the explore page if they want to find something more specific.

As I said previously when discussing my site map, I originally planned to have the explore page only show top posts from the user’s location. However, I realized that this page could be an opportunity for the user to view content by their interested style. Therefore, I changed the explore page to be not just top posts in the area, but posts recommended to the user based on their search history and other user data that indicates what style of photography they are interested in.

Feature - Scheduling

During user interviews, almost all users reported that they used Instagram to plan meetings or shoots with other people. Again, I wanted to make the collaboration process as easy as possible for users, so I created a scheduling feature as a primary feature of the app. Users can access this feature either straight from their home screen or in an individual conversation that they are having with an individual or groups of individuals. Using this scheduling “plug in”, users can plan meetups by aligning availabilities. The plug in asks for a name for the particular meeting, and the days and time range of availability. Then, the app asks the user to fill out their own availability. This information can then be sent over in conversations, where receiving users can then enter their own information and plan the meetup accordingly.

Feature - Safety

And finally, safety. Safety was such a big concern that I wanted to address so that users always feel safe and secure while using the app. Within user’s profiles, they are asked to provide some link that confirms their identity as an amateur creative, whether that be a link to a portfolio, Flickr account, or even to their own social media. Furthermore, I purposefully included displaying the follower count on a user’s profile. Checking for previous work, other social accounts, and follower count are the most popular ways my users check for legit-ness of an account before collaborating (according to user research).

If this app were to be further developed, I would additionally want to integrate a verification system that helps weed out people who may be posing as someone else. Options to block and report suspicious or intrusive users would also be something that I would want to integrate to provide extra safety and peace of mind to users.