Early 2020 I was the UI/UX lead of a team of 4 on the development of Studypeers, a new online social media platform for university students and professors.
One of the main objectives was to develop a prototype easy enough to use not only for Gen Z, but a wider age group and social background—older students and professors alike. Given that the site was intended to serve as not only a social media platform but also a learning tool and a marketplace, the process needed to be carefully taught in order to avoid confusion and a decrease in user engagement.
After the initial research phase and benchmarking, we managed to nail down the core functionalities we wanted to work on, and the sketching began.
We started with a set of sketches and low-fidelity wireframes on paper and in Adobe XD to test out some ideas. These were discussed in team meetings, and in some cases, we carried out preliminary user tests after prototyping. Users were set up in scenarios where they had to create new items, and heat-mapping exercises helped us determine the understanding of the labels and elements placed on the interface. Using these methods we were able to pinpoint unaddressed and new problems—such as pages missing certain information of functionality or missing pages/steps—before creating a high fidelity mockup.
Working closely with the client, the team started developing on the look and feel of the landing page which was to determine the design direction of the actual user interface of the application. We presented mood boards as well as two vastly different designs.
The client showed a strong preference for style A, thus we created a unified component style system employing colourful icons and smooth gradients that we kept expanding as new and new functionalities were added to the project. This also served as a reference sheet for all of our designers and later, the developers, and it paved the way to the high-fidelity mockups.
We created each screen for both desktop and mobile showcasing possible scenarios and personas. The finished screens were sent from Adobe XD to Zeplin and handed over to the development team.
This project has given me great experience and knowledge developing a digital product in a team and staying user-centered while also considering the needs and preferences of stakeholders. Additionally, it helped me to become more organised and to develop better management skills, should it come to a team or myself.