Role
UX Design
Market Research
Timeline
Oct 2024-Dec 2024
Client
Lets Pingle
Team Members
Supervised by a Mentor
Context
Lets Pingle is a social discovery app designed to bridge the gap between digital and real-world connections, using AI to enhance local exploration and social engagement. Targeted toward university students and local communities, Pingle aims to foster meaningful connections with local businesses and inspire users to explore hidden gems within their surroundings
Key Objectives
Simplify the process of discovering local spots and planning social activities.
Encourage local business engagement through user interactions, reviews, and rewards.
Use gamification and personalized recommendations to build an engaged user base.
Understanding the problem
Through both primary and secondary research, I uncovered key challenges:
Digital-Real World Disengagement: The growing digital reliance has led to reduced face-to-face social interactions and community connection, particularly among Gen Z.
Local Business Struggle: Local businesses face challenges in reaching and engaging with the student demographic, lacking direct communication channels to promote offerings.
User Frustrations with Planning: Users struggle with the process of finding local spots and coordinating plans with friends due to time constraints, the inconvenience of switching between multiple platforms, and lack of personalized recommendations.
Competitive Analysis
I conducted a comparative analysis of competitors like Yelp, Snapchat, and Google Maps, identifying strengths and weaknesses:
Competitor Strengths: Extensive user base, robust review systems, and established brand presence.
Competitor Weaknesses: Lack of local social validation mechanisms, limited personalized recommendations, and insufficient integration of social planning with local discovery.
Defining the Solution
Based on my research, I formulated a value proposition that aims to integrate social planning, discovery, and local business engagement into a seamless user experience. Lets Pingle is positioned as a platform that not only helps users find places but also engages them to participate actively within their community, encouraging deeper, authentic connections.
Value Proposition
For Users: Personalized recommendations, activity feeds, and gamification make it easy to discover local spots and plan get-togethers, transforming mundane planning into a seamless, enjoyable experience. For Local Businesses: An analytics-backed dashboard allows businesses to connect with the student demographic directly, leveraging promotions, insights, and increased visibility to engage users.
Key UI/UX Elements
Activity Feeds: Inspired by social media layouts, activity feeds allow users to view friends' check-ins and recommendations, creating a trusted source for local discovery.
Pingle Planning: A centralized calendar and shareable planning feature allow users to organize gatherings efficiently without app-hopping.
Go-To-Market Strategy
To successfully launch Pingle, we devised a comprehensive go-to-market and user acquisition strategy focused on the UC Davis community and beyond.
University Launch Strategy
Campus Partnerships: Collaborate with student organizations to promote Pingle through classroom presentations, tabling events, and social media campaigns.
Referral Programs: Incentivize early adopters to invite friends through rewards, building a robust initial user base.
Localized Marketing Campaigns: Use flyers, email marketing, and influencer partnerships with UC Davis student influencers to amplify Pingle’s value proposition.
Promotional Events with Local Businesses: Collaborate with local businesses to host Pingle-sponsored events, increasing app visibility and encouraging downloads.
Next Steps
Conduct additional user testing on proposed designs
Develop more complex animations for feature connections
Iterate on designs based on user feedback
Implement changes incrementally to maintain user comfort
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