INTRODUCTION

CLIENT: Gaylaxy is a whimsical space themed dating app that empowers gay men from all walks of life to chat, make friends, and date by providing local events that will enable them to hang out in a low stakes, casual, and fun way.

OBJECTIVE: When it comes to gay dating apps, there is one question that always pops up… “Looking?” The answer is loaded, a lot of men know exactly what they are looking for, but what about the ones that are looking for something more? For many users the main purpose of these applications is to ease the convenience of casual encounters. While that is fantastic for some, there are also a number of gay men who want to experience an alternative way of meeting men in their area, not in a gay bar or through the currently available apps. Gay men are looking for a dating application and local events that will enable them to hang out and get to know other gay men without the expectation of a sexual connection.

METHODS: User interviews, usability testing, interactive prototyping, branding, findings report, card sorting, love letter/break up letter, competitive analysis, annotated wireframes

TOOLS: Figma, Zoom, Google Suite, Keynote, Miro, Illustrator, Procreate

RESULTS: INTERACTIVE PROTOTYPE & FINDINGS REPORT

To achieve the goals of this project we began with the discovery phase to gain a base knowledge of gay users and their dating habits on and off line. We then we applied our research findings and let that be our guide in our design decisions.

JOURNEY

COMPETITIVE ANALYSIS

I downloaded several of the most popular datings apps and ran a Competitive Analysis of Gaylaxy’s peers and found a lot of similarities and areas to develop further. Not only did I look into the most popular gay dating websites in The United States, but also looked into the most popular dating websites, regardless of demographic served.

I was analyzing the following:

• Features

• Consistency

• Feedback

USER INTERVIEWS

I set-up remote interviews across the country with a diverse group 10 LGBTQ+ identifying participants about their experiences with dating and using online dating apps. My goal was to identify their pain points when dating and evaluate their behaviors online. I synthesized my data on Google Sheets and found many recurring themes. These themes would then define my app design

I evaluated for:

• Demographics

• Challenges in gay dating scene

• Current dating patterns

• What apps they use and how

• Chatting patterns

• Privacy and safety concerns

• General feelings on long term connections and NSA connections

• Generative research

• Storytelling

Using Miro, I organized information into key takeaways. These findings would drive my app design.

CLICK HERE TO READ MY INTERVIEW SCRIPT

CARD SORTING

During interviews with the participants I asked them about their preferences in regards to dates. I came up with a list of 40 date ideas. The dates were separated into categories such as active dates, food centered, watching something, and unique and quirky. Then I had the participants rate them on a scale of very desirable, desirable, neutral, undesirable, and very undesirable. With this ranking I was able to determine that for first dates participants leaned toward food centered and entertaining dates so that they could get to know their date better. In the research I also found that participants DO NOT want to sweat and do an active date such as playing sports or working out on their first time meeting, and honestly I don’t blame them.

The reason I asked participants about what their date preferences are like is because in initial interviews 8 out of 10 participants found it hard to come up with date ideas that are fun and unique and have enough moments for conversation. This will be further expanded upon below during the prototype.

LOVE LETTER/ BREAK-UP LETTER

I asked my participants to write their dating app a love letter or a breakup to uncover their deep rooted feelings about how the app make them feel. I uncovered a range of responses, however the majority of them were resounding “break up letters” which I found VERY interesting.

CLICK HERE TO READ ALL THE LETTERS PARTICIPANTS WROTE

KEY TAKEWAYS

• Users feel like the gay community is small and it is difficult to meet people in a real life setting. There doesn’t seem to be places to affiliate that aren’t in a bar setting. Additionally, the options get even more constricted depending where you live.

• Being out as a gay person, there are safety concerns. Catfishing is super prevalent on the apps, which makes it hard to feel safe. Users said that they do not trust a profile if it doesn't include a picture or a description of who they are/what they are interested in.

• There is a disconnect between what people are looking for vs. how they act. Meaning, people aren’t clear on what their expectations are, which leads to misunderstandings and resentments. 

• Through the love letter/breakup letter exercise I was able to identify that a lot of gay men wanted to “breakup” with the dating apps. Many of them stated it was because casual sex isn’t as fun as it used to be or they have a different set of standards that makes it hard to find a connection on the currently available apps. Additionally, I asked users to describe their app as a character from a film/tv/book and a lot of them came back with very dark answers.

• For older users who participated in the study, I found that there were higher rates of dissatisfaction in the apps. Primarily because other app users discriminate against them because of age and body type. They often get asked for money (to even meet up with another user of the app) or get verbally abused for even reaching out in the first place.

LOW-FI WIREFRAMES

After conducting the user interviews I had a better idea of what was lacking from current dating app experiences. Now that I had my base knowledge it was time to get going on my wireframes. I used my favorite sketching app, Procreate to quickly sketch my ideas down. At this point in my process I had the working name of Queerstellation, but I wasn’t in love with it, but I wanted to drive home the theme of connection.

USABILITY TESTING

During the usability testing phase of the project, I interviewed a few of the original participants. They gave me a lot of great insights after I presented them with my low quality wireframes. Here are some of their insights:

• “Would love a double date option, where you and your friend could link profiles and find some cool people to hang out with”

• “Colors are TOO cool, but I love the aesthetic, looks very different to other dating apps”

• “Add a cute game icebreaker”

• “Feels very playful and fun, especially the zodiac stuff”

• “I love the access to their socials, makes it easier to vet them”

• “Love the google/FB login”

• “Would love a metric for how comfortable they are with meeting or how introverted they are.”

• “Invisible mode for when you’ve met someone, but aren’t ready to delete the app”

• “Travel mode for when you’re in a different city”

• “HATE the name”

• “Having the events section totally takes the pressure off”

• “Verifying with a drivers licence gives enough user friction and trust with clients”

• “Give people specific prompts so it’s easier to fill out an “about” section.”

• “Map constellation definitely invokes the community feel, very tasteful”

• “Like the incentive to go out and save money”

• “Like that it looks more like a social media site as opposed to a dating app. Looks clean and professional”

• “Send location in the DM’S”

These suggestions were taken into account and I altered my design to fit what the users needed to ensure the best experience possible. After I had these conversations I was able to move forward with the branding portion of my design.

STYLE GUIDE

Branding is one of my favorite things to work on. Having had experience in this field, I was really looking forward to creating the art. I wanted to have a very colorful brand that was light and fun. To start, I put on the Britney Spears “Oops…I Did It Again” video to get my creative juices flowing. It was a quick sketch exercise that I do when brainstorming. I created some sketches and then worked on the one I thought had the most legs. Also keeping in mind the feedback I received from users.

Also, during this time I had been working on a side musical project and I remembered that I had a song called “Gaylien”. That is where I got the idea to name my app “Gaylaxy” instead of “Queerstellation”, it just didn’t roll off the tongue in the same way.

FINAL WIREFRAMES

ONBOARDING

Based on the research, we found that a lot of times users are having a hard time connecting with other users on the app because of a lack of clarity in needs and wants. This is addressed immediately in the onboarding with two screens explicitly stating Gaylaxy app’s mission “a place to meet someone special” or “a place to make new friends”

With a more robust onboarding we are ensuring that users build more thoughtful profiles with information that will let other users know more about them. This helps with the flow of conversation.

Additionally, having identity verification does two important things: weeds out those who aren’t here for friends or connection and builds trust with the users because now there is a higher chance that people are who they say they are. Catfishing is a major problem, as stated above. This can help alleviate those issues. Furthermore, id verification is already commonplace with healthcare, banking, and other dating apps, so it won’t be too much of a mental model jump.

GAYLAXY MAP/EVENTS

Remember how earlier I had told you about the card sorting exercise designed to uncover what dates users liked? This is the reason! 

The stars are events going on in the user’s orbit. Not only does the map display users by proximity, but it also shows events that are hosted by local vendors. This serves as a two pronged benefit.

• Not only are users checking out local businesses, they can also book directly or send it to another user as an invite! They can also see who else is interested in the event! Additionally, they are getting a discount code from using this app for local services.

• The second benefit is that we can generate income by having vendors advertise their businesses. It’s a win-win!

PROILFE

With the profile, I wanted to ensure that the user’s image was large and in charge, displaying all their personality. In contrast to other dating apps, we require folks to share several images of themselves. They can also link up their social media profiles to really show off their personalities, and spare other users the time of researching their new love interest.

There’s a favorite option to make sure you can find users easily. In the onboarding we gave users prompts to better develop their profiles so they could connect. Its a mix of personal questions and dating questions so they can get better matches. Additionally there is a verification checkmark and their horoscope sign, since people love astrology and this is a cosmic themed app.

In my usability testing someone had suggested adding a “send me a game” option as an ice breaker. This is intended to make users have an easy in to starting a conversation, in a way that is fun and low pressure.

CONCLUSION

The users shared very interesting data, and with more time and resources I would love to further develop this. Learned that in order to form lasting connections one has to be honest and kind, and being behind the screen of these applications can make it too easy to commodify people’s emotions and bodies… on the other hand these apps can give users a community to bloom in, a fun night out with friends, and hope of finding love… or at least a lover.