Role
Product Design Consultant (Contract)
Duration
January - May 2023
Disciplines
User Research, Mobile Design, Product Strategy, Prototyping
Team
Isabel Zheng (Project Mentor), Michid Byambajav, Gily Yu, Geena Yin
Community Gearbox, a San Francisco-based startup, aspires to foster a sustainable community and promote a circular economy by facilitating item borrowing and lending among its users.
The CEO approached us with the challenge of enhancing the collaborative aspects of this platform, with the aim of making the borrowing and lending experience more enjoyable and rewarding. The objective was to create an environment where individuals lending items not only feel valued but also encouraged to share more.
To address this challenge, our team undertook a structured approach consisting of four key sprints: Research, Synthesis, Ideation, and Prototyping
GETTING TO KNOW THE COMPANY
⚙️ What is Community Gearbox?
Community Gearbox is a platform where people can lend and borrow items for free, hence building deeper connections, decreasing individual consumption, and creating an abundance of shared resources.
“Together we have so much”
THE ASK
⭐️ Problem Scope
HMW Design more collaborative features within Community Gearbox to make borrowing amongst a network of trusting people delightful and/or rewarding, so people lending items feel appreciated and compelled to share more and borrowers think of Community Gearbox before purchasing a new item?
BREAKING DOWN THE HOW MIGHT WE?
Wow, that was a mouthful! Let's break down the problem scope into bite-sized pieces.
1
Enhancing Collaborative Features
How can we design and implement more collaborative features within Community Gearbox to promote enjoyable interactions and foster trust among users who borrow and lend items?
2
Promoting Appreciation and Sharing
How can we create a system that makes lenders feel valued and appreciated for their contributions while also compelling them to share more frequently within the Community Gearbox network?
3
Influencing Consumer Behavior
How can we influence borrowers' decision-making processes, encouraging them to consider Community Gearbox as their first choice before making new purchases of items they may only need temporarily?
DIVING INTO RESEARCH
⭐️ Approaches & Methods
SURVEYS
In our product design process, we initiate our user research with surveys. Given the diverse age range of our user base, spanning from young to older individuals, we have strategically chosen surveys as an effective means to gather insights from various age demographics.
100+ responses
- Identify a variety of potential interviewees that demonstrate unique borrowing/ lending habits
- Understand borrowing behavior
- Understand how demographics and hobbies influence behavior
- Understand the basis of building trust
What do you consider when lending people an item?
- Comfort level with sharing
- Fulfillment through helping others
- Personal Relationships
- Safety and Security
What do you consider when borrowing an item?
- Convenience
- Personal relationships
- Urgency
Helping Feels Good 👍
Satisfaction gained from doing good is a huge personal motivation for people to lend.
Relationships Matter! ❤️
The level of intimacy of relationships dictate the desire to borrow/ lend as mutual trust provides safety & security.
Sustainability ≠ lending/ borrowing 🌿
There is no strong correlation between sustainable habits and the frequency of lending/ borrowing.
USER INTERVIEWS
We interviewed 11 interviewers who key characteristics are: niche hobbies, adventurous, sharing, trusting, community oriented, socially-conscious, on a budget. This diverse group, spanning in age from 18 to 60, is geographically dispersed across Berkeley, Seattle, and Virginia.
Borrowing and Lending Behavior
Documenting detailed accounts of positive and negative past borrowing/lending experiences
Rewarding Experiences
Looking into what makes people feel appreciated and feel a sense of achievement
Digital Communities and Environments
Uncovering favorable digital features that form connections and build strong communities
⭐️ Synthesis
AFFINITY DIAGRAM
Lending Habits
Considerations that factor into lending
Borrowing Habits
Typical behaviors and desires of borrowers
Gratuity
How individuals express appreciation to others
Digital Features
Aspects of digital experiences that people enjoy
CONCEPT MAPPING
Connecting reoccuring patterns to the values, motivations, and priorities of potential users
Community
Accountability, Reciprocal Relationships, Connection
Digital Features
Openness, Goal Oriented, Visual Features
Borrowing & Lending
Familiarity, Saving Money, Exploration, Altruism + Acknowledgement
⭐️ Key Insights
Lending Habits & Altruism
A willingness to lend depends on familiarity, and lenders are motivated by the act of doing good to strengthen mutual respect and aid.
Borrowing Habits
People borrow for temporary and inconsistent usage, saving money, and convenience, since the exchange process can be difficult.
Lending Habits & Altruism
People feel more connected to others in digital communities when there is more unfiltered and casual exchange of comments or content.
Lending Habits & Altruism
People love to be appreciated for their contributions and feel reciprocated through: words of affirmation, IOUs, gifts and being publicly acknowledged.
USER PERSONAS & JOURNEYS
⭐️ Mobile Features
Featured Feats!
- Motivational
- Community-building
Publicizing Borrowing and Lending
- Accountability
- Motivational
Lending Leaderboard
- Public acknowledgment
- Motivational
RATIONALE
We incorporated a borrowing feed, leaderboard, and interactive features to increase accountability and community engagement throughout the app.
- Borrowing feed - A community feed that shows the borrowing transactions of a user and their friends, as a way to stay updated, share photos, and show appreciation.
- Lending leaderboard - A leaderboard between a user and their friends that incentivizes lending through friendly competition.
- Interactive features - Emoji comment reactions that generate community interaction and a more visual interface.
⭐️ Final Designs
Let's Chat!