swing over to

kickup some sand or slide into love by Brooke Hollabaugh

The Problem

Online dating in today’s society still feels cold and impersonal.

Features of current dating apps create feelings of

distrust, anxiety, and stress. The added pressure of

making a romantic connection immediately often

leads to abandonment of these apps, bad dates and

a lack of any meaningful connections. This adds

stress to single individuals who just want a genuine

way to meet new people.

Time stamps are one of the leading causes of stress for frequent users.

The Solution

Why

playdate is an app where you can find a connection

with someone without the pressure of jumping

right into romance, unless you want too. With light

hearted messaging, and a suggestion of fun dates

and activities; playdate helps you set the pace.

Swipe Right for Play, Left for

Date.

?

User Research - Interviews

Interview Insights

B Strong need to separate users intentions for dating (long-

term, casually) so they don’t end up in your matches, and

you have a better chance of finding what you want out

of a relationship

B Surprised to find that user would rather message

and “click” through messaging, rather than hear or see

their date 

B Expectation of a positive experience for user ends with him

deleting the app right after (rush to home plate) 

B Strong use of apps just to meet dates as potential friends,

with no emphasis of serious dating

B User adding potential partner on social media happens

rather quickly (Facebook, twitter) 

B User enjoys the element of surprise 

B Travel seems to be a peak use of these applications

B Frustrated with the low rate of success —often times you

must use the app for an extended period of time to find

a good match

B User can sometimes feel less than human,

or a “Piece of Meat” 

B Messaging gets stale over time

B Tired of being bombarded with so many options 

B Most matches on these apps lean towards casual use,

not long term 

B Bad dates resulted when the user felt the date’s profile

did not match their personality. They felt lied too, and

had to end the date.

User Research - Personas

Bethany, 26The Jaded MillenialMarketing Consultant Washington, DC

Bethany is a young professional living and working in the city. She is

your typical Millennial, constantly glued to her twitter and facebook

for any social updates. This has made her quite obsessive with her

online dating profile, checking constantly and having multiple dates

per week. This has led to a few bad experiences because she found her

expectations were set to high for these potential mates. She finds herself

constantly on and off these apps like waxing moons.

KEY CHARACTERISTICS

• Naive, and slightly insecure• Slightly jaded by her past experiences• Is willing to continue online dating just to pass time• Constantly glued to her phone, Obsessive Compulsive behaviors

GOALS

• Eventually find a longer term boyfriend• At least have a few positive dates she can write home about• Potentially move to a bigger city to pursue career AND love goals

FRUSTRATIONS

• More bad dates than positive ones• Users misrepresenting themselves in profiles• The large amount of people who just want hookups

SCENARIO

Bethany had her first date with a tinder match last weekend. It

went well, until recently. She has been in constant contact with

user for about a week until recently when he has begun the slow

fade. She is constantly checking his profile and notices his time-

stamp shows that he’s been active on the days he’s gone silent

with her. She decides she had it with the app, swears off tinder

and deletes it to avoid the sting of rejection.

User Research - Personas

Jim, 30The Motivated OutdoorsmanSmall Business Owner Portland, OR

Jim is a small business owner living in Portland, OR. He is Christian

and has very strong moral and family values. He has his life figured out

and is ready to find “the one”. Business is booming and he rarely has

time to meet women outside of work. However, online dating has been

a challenge for Jim, because of his search for a quality match. He is

looking for a serious long term relationship in a sea of options that want

something leaning more towards a casual relationship.

KEY CHARACTERISTICS

• Christian, with strong values• Loyal, patient all around good guy• Will take his time for the right one• Outdoorsy type, and isn’t always connected to his phone

GOALS

• Find his soulmate, ready to begin a long term relationship• Find someone who has the same morals/values• Find someone to enjoy the same hobbies/activities

FRUSTRATIONS

• Finding someone who wants more than just a casual fling• Finding someone with the same religious views• Having time to weed through the options to find quality

SCENARIO

Jim is out of town on a church retreat. He decides to open one

of his dating apps to meetup with someone closeby. After about

15 mins of swiping Jim only manages to swipe right on one

woman. He’s feeling frustrated that he cannot filter his options or

at least view more choice matches. After all Jim’s older and his

time is valuable. He wants to connect with the right person and

is overwhelmed by the options. He quickly abandons the app for

human interaction.

User Research - Personas

Lucas, 27The International BaeEDM DJ at Club Chicago, IL

Lucas recently moved to Chicago from Germany. His english isn’t exactly

perfect and he just wants to meet new friends that can help show him

around the city. He DJ’d in clubs back in germany and is passionate about

his music. He is so passionate about music that it rules most of his life, so

his relationships lean more towards the casual side. He is your typical,

“swipe every girl” stereotype and cares more about having endless

options and conversations than serious relationships.

KEY CHARACTERISTICS

• Interested in only casual relationships and new friends• International, in a new city• More interested in conversation than a serious relationship

GOALS

• Make new friends, short-term dating, Casual Hookups• Improve his english by using the apps, and american slang• Explore the city, go to events with new friends

FRUSTRATIONS

• Language Barrier and miscommunication• Cultural Differences• Having women loose interest when they want long-term

SCENARIO

Lucas decides to enjoy the nightlife on his free weekend. He

opens tinder and begins swiping right on every girl in hopes

of making a new friend or having fun conversation. He begins

chatting with many women, but they quickly loose interest

because of his bad english. One match was interested, but was

reluctant to meetup for her lack of trust in the situation. Lucas

realizes he’s wasted time on his phone and talks to the bartender.

UX Mapping - Experience Map

ONBOARDING PERSONALIZATION BROWSING SELECTION COMMUNICATION

focus

Inflections

navigation

task

Pathfinding

THinking

conversion

login profile/questions play/date suggest/accept text/ image

jim lucas bethany

# of Dates# of MatchesProfile Completion Usage

First timer, unsure of exp.

FB/Email Signups

More specific, and decisive Knows exactly what he is looking for in a mate

Find a good christian girl, is straightforward in suggesting a date

Good communicator, but unsure of app use, not always on phone

Spends most time on profile to have more common denominators with matches

Swipes both ways, to get max number of options Consistent in selecting

Terrible with communication leads to circular path

Constantly browsing, high usage A.D.D in choices, and unsure about either option can leave experience at any point

Attractive so communication happens frequently, but quicly repeats cycle of browsing, boredom

UX Mapping - Journey Map

Enter the Online Dating Game

DELETES ALL DATING APPS

LOOKING FOR SOMETHING SERIOUS?

BEGIN USING TINDER

SWIPE RIGHT?

Message match back?

Successful date?

Successful date?

Accepts Date?

WAS IT SUCCESSFUL?

No

No

No

No

No

No

No

No

YES

YES

YES

YES

Potential Match

Begin Messaging

First Date

JUST KEEP SWIPING

BEGIN USING OKCUPID

CREATE EXTENSIVE PROFILE

SEARCH FOR MATCHES

quickmatch

WAIT FOR MATCHES

Talks for several wks

Talks for several wks

ANSWER TARGETED questions

This process is cyclical

and never really stops.

Similar to tinder if you

match you can message the

user or like.

Talking fizzles and leads

to messages with other

users

All paths that don’t lead

to a match fall into a dark

hole of swiping. no other

interactions happen to

better your chances of a

more successful match. MESSAGE A MATCHLIKE A MATCH

Wait for message

YESYES

YES

Competitive Analysis

Tinder vs OkCupid

View full competitve user flow analysis, here.

Welcome onboarding Screen

LOGIN W/ FACEBOOK YESGO TO ACTIVE/HOME

SCREEN

NO

LOGIN W/ EMAIL EMAIL CONFIRMATION

GO to settings page EDIT Profile

YES

update images/social/questions

NO Change filters / Prefs No help support

No

delete account

Swipe through potential matches

YES

Swipe left for date Swipe right for play

suggest fun activity suggest romantic date

NO

sandbox or save for later

not interested / pass

NO Connections page

MATCH

FUN MEssaging camera

Draw

suggest date or activity

YESNO

User Flow

Product User FlowView full product user flow, here.

Business Goals & UX KPIs

Business Goals

QUANTITATIVE

1. 50% Increase of daily match rate (based on only 12% resulting in matches per day with more than 1 billion swipes per day)

2. Equalize the ratio of men to women using the app 50:50 (based on the 60:40 ratio of men using dating apps to women)

3. Increase usage of app from once a day to at least three times a day.

4. 80% of users complete their profile for better matches

5. 30% increase of in-person dates resulting from online connections (based on 1/3 of people who never met a date in-person)

QUALITATIVE

1. Does the brand help remove feelings of stress/anxiety when online dating

2. Do users perceive that their profile helps set them up for success and portrays accurately their personality in a fun and interesting way.

3. Is the messaging experience helpful in connecting users to their matches in a more engaging way.

4. Do users believe that the app helps them engage with connections for a longer period of time.

5. Do users feel romantically and socially optimistic about connecting with others using the app. (social discovery platform)

To help remove the stigma and pressure of

instant romantic dating and increase the

number of meaningful connections for single

individuals based on their specific needs.

Create a fun, light-hearted experience, that

keeps users from being stuck in the messaging

conundrum and engages them in face-to-face

dates and activities with other users.

UX KPIs

Card Sorting

Card Sorting

Trends & Patterns

B Preferences, filters, help were typically grouped with settings or editing profile

B Event suggestions varied from being grouped in connections to the active screen

B Many social features (instagram/spotify) were grouped under connections tab to share with potential matches

B A clear distinction between app settings and personal/discovery settings

Sitemap

Wireframes

Active Screen Match Screen Connections Screen

FEATURES

- Settings- Connections- Go Back- Sandbox- Matches- Name & Details- Play / Date- Not interested

FEATURES

- Messaging- Avatars- Proposed Date- Accept Message- Suggest Another- Keep Playing

suggested

suggested

suggested

suggested

FEATURESLogo -

Calendar -Back to -Search -

Suggested Date -All, Lovers, Friends -

Matches -Suggested Activity -

FEATURES

Logo -Calendar -

Back to -Search -

Suggested Date -All Lovers, friends -

Matches -Suggested Activity -

Wireframes

Profile Screen Profile (Cont.) Chat Screen

Wants to .

25 Friends in Common

Instagram

Question Roulette

1

2

3

4

Follow

See More

FEATURES

- Edit Profile- Photos- Name, Bio, Loc.- Sugg. Date- Friends in Common- Instagram- Top Interests

FEATURES

- Twitter- Spotify/Music- Trend Questions

John Doe

Send

FEATURESGo Back -

Avatar/Name -Settings -

Matches/Photo -Name/Timestamp -Suggest Play/Date -

Draw Box -Chat/Send -

Camera -

FEATURES

Go Back -Avatar/Name -

Settings -Matches/Photo -

Name/Timestamp -Suggest Play/Date -

Draw Box -Chat/Send -

Camera -