Bridge

Networking App for UK-Based Asians during a global pandemic

DURACTION

4 Months ( From research to mockup)

ROLE

Product Designer - Research. UX. UI. Prototype

01
Project Overview

Background

As we’ve been forced to practise social distancing during the past several months, our team found many people have mental health issues.

So we want to create a project to develop a solution for this. Focusing on Taiwanese and Hongkongers, who WFH and need to keep their mental health positive.

Challenge

Because of the lockdown in the UK, our interviews only can be done virtually. This means we will lack the opportunity to observe and immerse ourselves within the full feeling and emotion of the interviewee.

Many of the people in our team are from different time zones , so it can become quite difficult to arrange meeting.

02
Research

What we found in the
"Clubhouse" event ?

Clubhouse is a trending social networking APP amongst Taiwanese people everywhere in the world.  At this special time, Clubhouse is the perfect platform to have live conversations with people from all over the world. We made use of the immediacy and interactivity of the platform to perform team research.

Here is the 6 most insightful information we found from the event

Start with interests

  • Connect to people through common interests
  • Joining groups that have a certain hobby or interest online is a great way of making new friends during lockdown

Keep connections during lockdown

  • Regular online calls/video chats are efficient to maintain friendships during lockdown
  • Scheduled and repeated calls help people maintain that essential companionship that we may be lacking during lockdown

Create new connections

  • Attending meetup events to broaden social circle
  • Utilize social network APP and dating APPs to create connections beyond daily life

Be goal-oriented

  • Having clear goals motivates people to overcome the obstacles  their lives
  • Valid purposes give people strong reasons to stay in a foreign country

Be proactive

  • Being prepared and optimistic is critical for people to adjust their life to fit in a different culture
  • The willingness to trying new things and step out of your comfort zone is a massive factor when adapting to different cultures

Pursue inner strength

  • People have more time to be with themselves during the pandemic. While connecting with others is become more difficult than usual, looking for strength and stability that comes from within an individual an important lesson for people over the world.

Learn from an "Expert"

Building bridges between people

  • Connect to people through common interests
  • Joining groups that have a certain hobby or interest online is a great way of making new friends during lockdown

Keep connections during lockdown

  • Regular online calls/video chats are efficient to maintain friendships during lockdown
  • Scheduled and repeated calls help people maintain that essential companionship that we may be lacking during lockdown

Start with interests

  • Attending meetup events to broaden social circle
  • Utilize social network APP and dating APPs to create connections beyond daily life

Learn from  "People"

Selective associations

  • If you want to make friends, always remember to put quality as the main priority.
  • Join groups that can help you get the most useful information.

Focus on mental health

  • Don’t be afraid to seek psychological counselling if you are struggling
  • Self reflect on yourself as you change and adjust and make an effort to improve

Strong determination

  • The first arrival in the UK may be tough initially, but if you have a clear goal in your mind and stay optimistic, you will always find a solution to any obstacle

Immersive & Analogous Inspiration

Immersive  Inspiration

Clubhouse

Unfortunately, during the pandemic,  we can’t immerse ourselves physically in any meaningful contexts. Therefore, we took the opportunity to be involved in the community that Club House created...

What we like:

  • Easy access: easy to join and leave
  • High engagement
  • Variety of topics
  • Different privacy rooms

What we don't like:

  • No access to previous rooms/events
  • Hard to search for rooms
Immersive  Inspiration

Analogous  Inspiration

Meetup.com is a great platform for people to create opportunities to make new friends. Its inclusivity and diversity is the perfect ground for people to build their connections.

What we like:

  • Meet people based on topics  (interests/events/local areas...etc)
  • Versatile: meetups can be about everything
  • Casual
  • Having the control to throw your own event/group
  • Allowing users to meet new people outside their comfort zones or usual groups
  • Calendar feature to see all the meetup events

What we don't like:

  • The diversity of users can also be too broad or overwhelming
  • Users have no context of previous meetups
  • Users have to keep up with all the event updates by repeatedly visiting the website

04
Problem

How might we?

Insight

In the epidemic, we only have social media to contact our friends, that’s so boring!

HMW

How might we increase human relationships and satisfy our spirit under the pandemic?

Insight

To gel every groups and association.
‍

HMW

How might we enhance the cooperation between every groups and association?

Insight

Could choose helpful and interesting social actives.

HMW

How might we build partnerships and gather every Taiwanese in the UK?

Why

During the coronavirus pandemic, everyone WFH, so it hard to make friends as usual.
The way we connect has completely changed. Especially as non-local people,  blend in the social circle will become harder.

How

How to improve the lived experience and  fit in the social networking?
The target audiences are the Taiwanese and Hong Konger who stay in the UK for more than one year.

What

We want to design an APP  called “  Bridge “, the main functions are integrated information and hold online activities.  The aim is to reduce the adjustment and adaptation period for the first time to go to the UK.

“ Adelina is an office worker who comes from Taiwan, she needs an easy app experience to fit in the UK because this is the first time she works in the UK ”.

06
Final Product

Summery

Having similar experiences of studying or working abroad, we have deep compassion for how people might struggle to fit in a different society. We understand the importance of social connection, especially during the pandemic, we feel the urge to help and support those who may have lost some of their own. This is what Bridge is designed for: to rebuild their connections and link people together.

In Bridge, we aim to create an online society specifically for Asian immigrates. The APP allows users to browse through various topics that they might find enjoyable, as well as meeting people from a similar background who can speak their languages, whilst at the same time sharing similar interests. With the valuable experience and information being shared throughout the platform, Bridge will guide users through the tough time of initial accommodation in the UK.

Bridge wants its users to feel as if they belong while spending time with us. Our mission is to break down barriers and replace them with a digital bridge that connects different culture with different people.

User Goal & Business Goal

Discover Product

User Psychology

I need a social app where I can connect to others with the same interests as me.

User Need

Try to find an app that can help user to connect with someone.

Business Goal

Be the best product compared others in the market.

Business Need

Explain Bridge’s purpose and core functionalities.

Understanding & Exploring

User Psychology

I saw Bridge on the App store. Maybe  I can try it first.

User Need

Check the description and functionality of this App.

Business Goal

Convince user of the value of Bridge and drive them to download.

Business Need

Explain how it works and how it benefits the user.

Sign Up

User Psychology

I will sign up since there’s no fee and hope this is what I need.

User Need

Register on Bridge.

Business Goal

Successfully make the user register.

Business Need

Create smooth and prompt onboarding  experience & get user data.

Discover Event
And Group

User Psychology

I want to find an interesting topic or group that I can join and make a connection with others.

User Need

Browse all the events and groups and then select ones they like.

Business Goal

Deliver the best experience for customers to make sure they will return.

Business Need

Supervise the events and topics to ensure they are positive and interesting.

Process Of Using Bridge

User Psychology

I hope it will regularly inform me about the latest events that I am interested in.

User Need

Select the topic of interest and turn on some reminders.

Business Goal

Ensure repeat use of users.

Business Need

Regularly send notifications to the users.

After Using

User Psychology

I want to return to see if there are any interesting events.

User Need

Register on Bridge.

Business Goal

Ensure smooth end to end experience.

Business Need

Get user’s feedback & attract new users.

Journey Map

Thank you for watching !

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© Emily Lin 2022