Over five months, I explored the problem space through user research, competitive analysis, and iterative design. The work shown here reflects approved product direction and design decisions made in collaboration with stakeholders during the pre launch phase, with the goal of translating digital intent into real world connection while prioritizing clarity, comfort, and emotional safety.
DESIGN PROCESS
PROBLEM
People across major cities, especially newcomers, expats, and travelers, experience increasing levels of loneliness and emotional isolation. While digital communication is at an all time high, real world connection continues to decline. Existing platforms do not provide a safe, structured, or emotionally intelligent way for people to meet, collaborate, or form meaningful relationships offline. Users need a solution that reduces social anxiety, simplifies meeting new people, and builds trust from the first interaction.
PROJECT GOAL
The goal was to design an end to end experience that transforms digital intention into real world connection. The project aimed to reduce emotional friction, create a clear pathway to join meetups, and build a structured ecosystem for romantic meetups, dinners with strangers, and creative collaborations. The objective was not only usability, but emotional clarity, trust, and safety across every interaction in the platform.
SOLUTION
The final solution is a human centered product built around simplicity, intention, and guided social experiences. Through research, UX strategy, and consistent visual design, NextMatchUp introduces a category driven system that removes guesswork and aligns users with the type of connection they seek. With minimal chat, small group meetups, and thoughtful interaction design, the platform encourages real world engagement while maintaining safety, clarity, and emotional comfort.
USER-CENTERED APPROACH
UNDERSTANDING BEFORE SOLUTIONS
To design for real human connection, I first needed to understand the emotions behind the problem. By asking thoughtful questions and seeking clarity, I was able to move past assumptions and uncover the real barriers people face when trying to meet in person.
COMPETITIVE ANALYSIS
The decision to begin with a competitive analysis helped establish a clear understanding of the real life meetup landscape and the platforms currently shaping how people connect offline. By examining competitors like Time Left, Thursday Event, Creative Lunch Club, and Art of Monday, I was able to identify their strengths, weaknesses, and the gaps users consistently experience when trying to form meaningful in person relationships.
RESEARCH PLAN + INTERVIEWS
RESEARCH PLAN + INTERVIEWS The decision to begin with a research plan helped establish a clear understanding of user motivations, emotional barriers, and connection behaviors. By structuring the plan before conducting interviews, I ensured clarity, consistency, and focused discovery throughout the process.
RESEARCH PLAN OVERVIEW
The user interview process began with developing a structured research plan. This ensured clarity around the discovery phase and outlined seven core components:
- Project Background & Problem
- Research Goals
- Research Objectives
- Research Questions
- Methodologies
- Hypothesis
- Timeline
RESEARCH OBJECTIVES
Understand why people struggle to build real connections in busy cities Identify emotional barriers preventing users from joining meetups Explore how users currently find events or communities Analyze what makes an in-person meetup feel safe Determine what types of activities users prefer Understand expectations around trust, communication, and group size Discover what deters users from attending offline events
USER RESEARCH PLAN: NEXTMATCHUP
Problem
People across major cities feel disconnected and socially overwhelmed. While digital communication grows, real-life connections decrease.
Background
Many people want to meet others but feel anxious or unsure where to begin. Traditional apps focus heavily on chatting instead of real-life connection.
Research Goal
To understand motivations behind attending meetups and the emotions tied to trust and belonging.
RESEARCH INTERVIEW SCRIPT
Interview Goals
• Learn how people discover meetups • Understand emotional barriers • Explore comfort levels with small-group interactions
Introduction
Explain purpose, ask permission to record, build trust.
Key Questions
- How do you currently meet new people?
- What emotions do you feel when attending events?
- What makes a meetup feel safe?
- What types of activities interest you?
- What keeps you from attending certain events?
Context: New city
• Isolated
• Overwhelmed by big events
• Prefers small intentional meetups
Context: Remote worker
• Wants in-person connection
• Tired of chat apps
• Prefers small dinners
Context: Creative
• Loves collaboration
• Project based experiences
• Needs clarity of group size
Context: Introvert
• Overthinks events
• Needs structure and safety
• Prefers guided social settings
USER PERSONA
My user persona funneled information from my competitive analysis and user interview responses into a single representative user that I felt best reflected the audience I was designing for. This persona helped guide the project throughout the design and testing phases. Continuously referencing this document ensured my design decisions aligned with real user behavior and the goals outlined in the project brief.
Based on my user interviews, I identified two key findings: the user’s motivations and the user’s needs. These insights were central to creating the persona and informed the overall direction of the project. (See findings below.)
RESEARCH KEY FINDINGS
I asked for understanding. I asked the right questions and took an empathy driven approach to align with my users’ behaviors, motivations, and pain points. With these insights, I was able to begin shaping a solution and move forward with testing my assumptions.
This key findings document outlines what I learned through research and how those insights informed my next steps.
KEY FINDINGS
NextMatchUp has an opportunity to support users seeking meaningful real life connections by addressing two core areas:
Providing clarity and emotional reassurance throughout the process of discovering and attending meetups. Users want transparency around event purpose, group size, and expectations. The experience should feel guided and intentional, similar to having a trusted host present rather than navigating social situations alone.
Creating an approachable and welcoming experience that removes the pressure typically associated with social and networking events. A lighter, human centered tone helps reduce anxiety and makes participation feel more accessible, especially for users who feel overwhelmed by large or unstructured gatherings.
DEFINE PHASE
Following research synthesis and one-on-one interviews, the Define phase focused on turning insights into clear direction. At this stage, the goal was to align user needs, business goals, and product constraints before moving into solution design.
Rather than jumping directly into features or screens, this phase helped establish what success looks like for both users and the product, ensuring that design decisions stayed grounded as the project moved toward launch.
ALIGNING USER AND PRODUCT GOALS
To stay focused, I evaluated the project through the lens of overlapping user and business goals. Research showed that while users want real-world connection, they also need reassurance, clarity, and emotional safety before committing to social experiences. At the same time, the product must encourage engagement, trust, and repeat participation.
Providing clarity and emotional reassurance throughout the process of discovering and attending meetups. Users want transparency around event purpose, group size, and expectations. The experience should feel guided and intentional, similar to having a trusted host present rather than navigating social situations alone.
Creating an approachable and welcoming experience that removes the pressure typically associated with social and networking events. A lighter, human centered tone helps reduce anxiety and makes participation feel more accessible, especially for users who feel overwhelmed by large or unstructured gatherings.
CORE LAUNCH FEATURES
To ensure NextMatchUp launched with a focused and realistic scope, features were prioritized based on approved product architecture, user research, and launch readiness. These features represent the core experience required for the initial release, designed to support trust, clarity, and real-world connection.
IDEATE
Every strong product starts with a clear plan. Before a single screen is designed or a feature is built, this phase focuses on understanding the problem, defining the scope, and aligning on the right direction.
Ideation is where ideas are explored, assumptions are challenged, and structure is created. It lays the strategic foundation that guides design decisions, user flows, and functionality throughout the rest of the project.
WHAT THIS ENTAILS
- Sitemaps
- User Flow
- Low – Fidelity Wireframe
- Hi – Fidelity Wireframe
SITEMAP
This site map translates research and planning into a clear structural overview of the product. It visualizes how content and features are organized, ensuring users can navigate the platform intuitively.
By defining categories and their relationships early, the site map established a solid foundation for scalable navigation and helped align functionality with user expectations across multiple sections of the app.
USER FLOW
The user flow was designed to map out each key step a user takes within the app, from onboarding to completing core actions. By structuring the flow into clear progression stages, it ensures users move through the experience intuitively without friction.
This approach helped validate decision points, reduce drop offs, and align each screen with the user’s goals, creating a seamless path from entry to successful task completion.
Lo-fi Wireframes
I began the wireframing process with low fidelity sketches using paper and pencil, starting from the desktop experience. This allowed me to quickly explore layout options, define key components, and clearly label each element before moving into digital tools.
HI - FIDELITY WIREFRAME
The high fidelity wireframes were designed specifically for mobile, focusing on clarity, speed, and ease of interaction. Each screen was crafted to support natural thumb reach, clear visual hierarchy, and intuitive navigation, ensuring users can move through the experience effortlessly.
TEST
WHAT THIS ENTAILS
- User Testing
- Affinity Mapping
- Priority Revisions
USER TESTING
After completing usability interviews, insights were organized using affinity mapping to identify recurring patterns and themes across participant feedback. Notes from each session were grouped based on shared behaviors, concerns, and motivations, allowing patterns to emerge naturally without imposing assumptions.
USABILITY TESTING NOTES
- Clear category intent helped users quickly understand why they were matching
- Users felt more comfortable engaging when profiles felt structured and purposeful
- Guided prompts reduced friction when starting conversations
- A clean layout helped users focus on people instead of features
- Users wanted reassurance about what happens after a match
- Better explain how NextMatchup differs from dating or social feeds
- Surface safety guidance and expectations earlier in the flow
- Highlight why matches were suggested to build confidence
- Simplify onboarding to reduce early drop off
- Clarify next steps after matching to encourage action
AFFINITY MAPPING
To validate early assumptions and uncover potential friction points, one on one usability interviews were conducted with users who actively participate in social meetups and community driven experiences. The sessions focused on understanding trust signals between participants, confidence in joining matches or groups, communication expectations,
