NADA (Not Another Dating App)
Unlike other dating apps, NADA is the app that focuses on real, in-person connections. With existing features to help plan and get on a date faster, and upcoming features aimed at fostering deep connections, NADA aims to remove the stigma against dating apps and revolutionize dating in a technology driven era.
Overview
NADA (Not Another Dating App) was conceptualized after founder Earl Knight added that he was in L.A. attending the BET awards to his dating app profile and asked if anyone would like to join him, leading to Earl meeting his now wife. This experience made him realize most of the popular dating apps prioritize matching and messaging and inspired him to set out to build an app that encouraged building connections in person sooner rather than later. However, he found that the initial concept was too cumbersome and not well-received by users... leading him to seek a designer, passionate about helping people to build meaningful relationships, to revamp the app.
The Problem
The original app required users to match based on proposed dates rather than the profiles of potential matches. After a few rounds of in-person user testing at launch events, it became clear that singles found the original app to be high-effort, time consuming, and even had potential to be financial draining for male users in particular. The information architecture was also confusing and the UI was lacking a modern feel. Being impressed by the feedback I gave in the apple developer panel during a launch event, the founder then reached out to me to join as a co-founder and gave me permission to completely revamp the overall app, feature set and branding.
When I agreed to give NADA an overhaul, I conducted some of my own initial research to better understand general pain points singles have around dating and dating apps. View the resulting strategy deck below:
Problem Details
High-effort, Little to No Reward
Users were forced to primarily match/browse via date plans and profiles were secondary. This meant users of all sexual orientation had to plan and post a date (in addition to creating a profile). Even if reservations and deposits were made, there was no guarantee another user would want to go on the date.
Disorienting Information Architecture
The original information architecture made it difficult to navigate through the app. Users could only post one date at a time, but it was difficult to discern who was interested in the date, who only liked their profile, and who liked whom first.
Dates Aren't One-size-fits-all
Dates should be tailored to the person being taken out. Not only did the original app have no in-app planning assistance - the date was created first. This meant that the person planning the date had to research and plan a date before even knowing whom it was for. Additionally, the profiles were generic and had no insight into user dating preferences.
Little to No Brand Identity
At the time, a dating app centered around meeting in person was a novel idea. However, the "why" behind this approach was lost on the user and the app had no distinctive brand-fueled UI. Disjointed brand personality, colors, and multi-medium messaging were essentially nonexistent. This coupled with a generic onboarding and profile made it unclear to users why NADA was worth the extra effort.
THE SOLUTION
WALKTHROUGH
Design Driven Outcomes
Designs that spoke to users, outcomes that speak for themselves.
Want to know more about my process?
More details surrounding user research, feature prioritization, and usability testing are coming soon...
In the meantime, fill out the form below to ask me more about my process!
