Project Vision:

Burrow is a mobile app and responsive website that utilizes a virtual guide to help neighbors build credibility and solidarity in their communities through kind acts.

Challenges:

• Introduce new users to the concept of mutual aid.

• Design an intuitive community board that allows neighbors to post needs, offers, and local events.

• Create a friendly and fun guide to to support users through challenging tasks.

• Inspire confidence in the security of user information.

Competitive Analysis

I then took a close look at three direct competitors: Golden, MyNabes, and MutualAid.

In addition, I analyzed Duolingo’s virtual guide feature and reviewed Craigslist’s bare bones approach to community listing boards.

1

The concept of mutual aid is still unfamiliar to a lot of people, and is even viewed negatively by some.

2

Community board sites like Craigslist need strong search and filter features to function well.

Information architecture

The app uses a co-existing hierarchy pattern.

Users begin their journey at an onboarding slideshow page before signing up or logging in.

First time users are taken through their profile setup with a guide, while return users are navigated directly to the home page.

From the homepage, users can explore offers, events, and requests using a filter menu and search bar. Additionally, a navigation bar can quickly take users to their profile, calendar, or messages.

Wireframes

I started with some quick sketches, then digitized them in Figma.

First Iteration

Next, I created a prototype from low-fidelity wireframes and conducted an unmoderated usability study. Participants were asked to perform a number of critical tasks:

1. Sign up and build a profile.

2. Navigate to the home page and expand an event listing.

3. Request connection with the posting organization and share the event with a friend.

4. Navigate to requests page and post a public request.

5. Navigate to the messages page and ask Ameer where to find the accessibility settings.

A follow-up survey was used to assess problem areas for my next round of designs.

Images or animations are better for explaining abstract concepts than words.

The onboarding flow needs some bright images that tell stories emphasizing the core ideas of mutual aid.

The homepage is too cluttered and community page is redundant.

A tab category selector should be added to the profile and home pages so that offers and requests are displayed one at a time. A third category called “events” will replace the community page.

The guides interrupt the user flow too often and are annoying to some users.

Options should be created and highlighted to easily shut off the guides or ask for their assistance.

Users want the option to keep their location private and target their searches by distance.

A distance selector should be added to both the search bar and profile pages, and location won’t automatically display on user’s pages.

Mockups

Homepage before

Homepage after

Challenge 1

Introduce new users to the concept of mutual aid.

It can be difficult to quickly communicate complex ideas, but simple storytelling with images can break language barriers and inspire action.

The onboarding slideshow also provides some context for the meerkat guides that appear later in the user flow.

Challenge 2

Design an intuitive community board that allows neighbors to post needs, offers, and local events.

The new and improved homepage uses a three category tab selector so that users can quickly view offers, events, and requests. These lists can be filtered or sorted in a number of ways, can be added to a calendar, or shared with a friend.

To serve as many users as possible, I also designed a responsive website that places all of Burrow’s key features above the fold with additional buttons to download the app from Google Play or The Apple Store.

Brand Design

My virtual guides are a mob of meerkats, famous in the animal kingdom for their strong communities.

The series of tunnels they occupy are called burrows.

The brand name was selected to evoke feelings of privacy, interconnection, and home.

Guide Component States

Style Guide