Work

About

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Work

About

Resume

Actually

Actually

Actually

Actually

Social media that’s actually authentic.

Social media that’s actually authentic.

Social media for those with FOMO

Social media that’s actually authentic.

Designing a new social media platform for millennials who struggle with FOMO and self-identity

Designing a new social media platform for millennials who struggle with FOMO and self-identity

Designing a new social media platform for millennials who struggle with FOMO and self-identity

Designing a new social media platform for millennials who struggle with FOMO and self-identity

VIEW PROTOTYPE

No, it’s not Instagram

Actually is a new social media platform that tackles the current demands of social media for perfect, polished and curated.

Timeline

July - Sept 2023

My Role

UX Researcher

UX Designer

UI Designer

The Problem

Millennials struggle with comparing themselves to others on social media.

Millennials struggle with comparing themselves to others on social media.

But my initial problem space was FOMO, and I had assumed only one context.

Working on my capstone whilst at a party...because FOMO

Working on my capstone whilst at a party...because FOMO

Have you ever felt the Fear of Missing Out?

Have you ever felt the Fear of Missing Out?

Have you ever felt the Fear of Missing Out?

Experiences from which one is absent
Comparing your experiences to others on social media

Secondary research led to new knowledge!

It was actually while conducting secondary research that I learned more about FOMO in social media, especially in the context of comparison to others.

It was actually while conducting secondary research for FOMO that I learned more about FOMO in terms of social media, especially in the context of comparison to others.

69% of Millennials experience FOMO

69% of Millennials experience FOMO

69% of Millennials experience FOMO

😩

😩

39%

39%

39%

feel envious.

😒

😒

30%

30%

30%

feel jealous.

😢

😢

21%

21%

21%

feel sad.

Source: Strategy Online

Source: Strategy Online

Source: Strategy Online

Real People.
Real Problems.

I conducted interviews with my target users to learn about their pain points, motivations and behaviours in their experience with social media.

Participants

Young Adults

25-35 years old

Format

1 to 1 in Person

Video Call via Zoom

“I tend to compare myself with others on social media who are ahead of me in their life stage.”

“I tend to compare myself with others on social media who are ahead of me in their life stage.”

“I tend to compare myself with others on social media who are ahead of me in their life stage.”

Vivien

Vivien

Vivien

Age: 29

Age: 29

Age: 29

Social Media Usage:

Social Media Usage:

Social Media Usage:

2+ hours daily

Abigail

Abigail

Abigail

Age: 29

Age: 29

Age: 29

Social Media Usage:

Social Media Usage:

Social Media Usage:

2+ hours daily

Lowell

Lowell

Lowell

Age: 30

Age: 30

Age: 30

Social Media Usage:

Social Media Usage:

Social Media Usage:

1+ hours daily

It came down to three things.

I wrote down pain points, behaviours, and goals onto sticky notes as ‘interview insights’. Through the affinity mapping process, I was able to identify 3 main themes.

Identity
Social Relevance
Quality Control
VIEW TASK FLOW

Remember the problem we discussed earlier?

Identity

Identity

Identity

Millennials struggle with comparing themselves to others on social media.

There is a difficulty in discerning which is authentic, and this authenticity is sought.

There is a difficulty in discerning which is authentic, and this authenticity is sought.

There is a difficulty in discerning which is authentic, and this authenticity is sought.

🙋🏽‍♂️

can we sidebar real quick?

can we sidebar real quick?

can we sidebar real quick?

This was not the direction I had originally intended to explore.

I started this project excited at the idea of looking further into the FOMO that I’ve experienced, not wanting to miss out on fun that my friends were having.


BUT, hearing from people about their struggles with identity made me really excited to consider how I could design a better experience for them!

I started this project excited at the idea of looking further into the FOMO that I’ve experienced, not wanting to miss out on fun that my friends were having.


BUT, hearing from people about their struggles with identity made me really excited to consider how I could design a better experience for them!

I started this project excited at the idea of looking further into the FOMO that I’ve experienced, not wanting to miss out on fun that my friends were having.


BUT, hearing from people about their struggles with identity made me really excited to consider how I could design a better experience for them!

👋🏽

okay back to your regularly scheduled case study

okay back to your regularly scheduled case study

okay back to your regularly scheduled case study

So who is our target user?

Alice is a talented visual storyteller, finding joy in capturing genuine moments while grappling with the pressures of online perfection. She is a user persona created from the interview insights I received.

Frustrations

Frustrations

Frustrations

  • Feels the pressure to follow how everyone posts such perfectly, curated pictures

  • Tends to compare self with others who are ahead in their life stage

  • Feels the pressure to follow how everyone posts such perfectly, curated pictures

  • Tends to compare self with others who are ahead in their life stage

  • Feels the pressure to follow how everyone posts such perfectly, curated pictures

  • Tends to compare self with others who are ahead in their life stage

Goals

Goals

Goals

  • Wants to feel more secure when browsing social media

  • Enjoys the good benefits of social media, so she wants to use it in a healthier way

  • Wants to feel more secure when browsing social media

  • Enjoys the good benefits of social media, so she wants to use it in a healthier way

  • Wants to feel more secure when browsing social media

  • Enjoys the good benefits of social media, so she wants to use it in a healthier way

How do we help people like Alice?

How do we help people like Alice?

How might we empower millennial social media users to reframe their negative and unhealthy beliefs so they can use social media in a healthier way?

How might we empower millennial social media users to reframe their negative and unhealthy beliefs so they can use social media in a healthier way?

How might we empower millennial social media users to reframe their negative and unhealthy beliefs so they can use social media in a healthier way?

Considering people like Alice

Knowing that Alice feels the pressure to post perfect and curated pictures, I decided on an appropriate solution.

Creating an Authentic Post

As a Social Media User, I want to create a post that shows two sides to a story so that I can encourage and foster a more authentic experience for myself and my community.

VIEW TASKFLOW

I know, I know, I’m not an artist.

But these sketches were the humble starting point for what would eventually become the final visual design!

Feed
Photo Selector
Post Details

User testing my first prototype really humbled me.

What about a tab that you could pull down to reveal what’s actually happening??

I really thought that this was such a cool and revolutionary idea!!

Actually…

People are creatures of habit!

5 users later, noone tried to drag the tab.

I learned that my users were already used to a certain type of action (swiping across the photo) to receive what they were looking for (other photos).

But it led to a great final product!

There’s always two sides of the story.

Your feed will contain posts that contain two sides to the story

Create your own authentic post

Cultivate a story that shows more to the story than what someone first sees

Share it with others

Be a part of the community that you want to foster greater authenticity in!

So have I solved identity issues for all social media users?

I don’t think so.

But in a social media world full of pictures of perfect vacations, relationships, and fancy dinners…

Actually is a step towards greater authenticity

Some additional thoughts.

Some additional thoughts.

🤔 What if I chose a different epic?

🤔 What if I chose a different epic?

🤔 What if I chose a different epic?

It’s really exciting to think about the other epics and how they might look like as additional features. I was considering an onboarding process that could understand a user’s sensitivity and preferences and organize/curate their feed as appropriate!

🔍 Exploring “Social Relevance”

🔍 Exploring “Social Relevance”

🔍 Exploring “Social Relevance”

As a whole, Actually and ‘FOMO’ was such a rewarding and fun project to explore, and the time constraints of a Bootcamp meant that I had to focus on 1 Theme. However, I think Actually will be of greater value and impact to users as it tackles these other themes as well.

Thanks for reading!

Other Work

Patients First

Patients First

7shifts

7shifts

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© 2024 Suph Sabanathan