Charmed
End-to-End Case Study
Introduction
Welcome to Charmed, the ultimate app designed to help women connect, build friendships, and grow their personal and professional networks. Whether you're looking for a new friend, a workout buddy, or a mentor, Charmed makes it easy to find and meet like-minded women in your area or beyond. With tailored matches, community events, and a supportive platform, Charmed empowers women to forge meaningful connections and create a circle of support that lifts each other up. Join now and start building lasting relationships!
Details
Role: Product Designer
Tools Used: Figma, Figjam
Duration: 5 weeks
Overview
Problem
Many people find it challenging to form new friendships, whether due to social anxiety, busy lifestyles, or simply not knowing where to meet like-minded individuals. The struggle to connect with others can lead to feelings of loneliness and isolation, which are increasingly common in our fast-paced, digitally-driven world.
Solution
The app will provide a platform for users to connect over shared interests and activities, offering a fun and engaging way to break the ice. This app will encourage users to build meaningful relationships in a supportive and safe environment. The ultimate goal is to create a space where forming friendships feels natural and effortless, helping people overcome the barriers that often stand in the way of making new connections.
01.
Research
Competitor Analysis
In summary, each competitor—Peanut, Meetup, Bumble BFF, and Facebook Groups—offers something unique, but none fully meet the needs of a sisterhood-focused app.
Peanut is a great social network for moms, but might not appeal to all women.
Meetup is a strong contender for meeting up but isn't designed specifically for women and lacks discussion boards and one-to-one connections.
Bumble BFF helps with one-on-one friendships and local events but lacks discussion boards.
Facebook Groups have a huge reach but can feel overwhelming and raise privacy concerns.
There's a clear opportunity to create an app that combines the best aspects of these platforms, focusing specifically on connecting women in a supportive, private, and inclusive community.
User Research
I conducted 5 virtual user interviews with women of different ages and stages of life.
A 34 year-old quality assurance specialist who is a new mom and would like to connect with other moms
A 30 year-old attorney who just ended a friendship with a best friend
A 43 year-old, creative director who just moved to a new state
A 27 year-old, talent recruiter who desires to make more personal connections
A 30 year-old, actress who has a lot of friends but no best friends
We asked the women questions, regarding their past experience with other networking apps and what they would like to see in the future. From the interviews, it can be concluded that there is a gap in networking apps for women to connect with each other.
A supportive, non-judgmental atmosphere where women can be honest and open about their challenges. I’d feel most comfortable if the app focused on building genuine relationships instead of surface-level interactions.
— RM
01. Connect w/ Others
Whether locally or across the ocean, Charmed allows for women to connect with each other. Charmed has discussion boards for all sorts of topics that allow women to chat with each other even from miles away. For those who want to meet girl friends closer to them, there’s a dating site-eque swiping tool that makes it easy.
I usually connect with people through work events, LinkedIn, and sometimes through friends of friends. However, most of my interactions are professional, and I want to expand my personal network.
— HW
02. Create Meet Ups
Charmed simplifies organizing and hosting meetups, making it easy to connect with your community. Whether you're planning a casual gathering, a themed meet-up, or a professional networking event, Charmed streamlines the process and takes the guesswork out of the event planning so that you can focus on the connection part.
03. Build Communities
Charmed fosters vibrant communities by offering groups where like-minded individuals can connect, engage, and collaborate around common passions, whether it's hobbies, professional interests, or social causes. Members can easily share ideas, organize meetups, and participate in discussions, building meaningful relationships over time.
02.
Analysis & Planning
Affinity Map
I created the affinity map to organize the answers from the user interviews in a way that is easier to visualize. The grouping of similar responses, allowed for clearer insights into user needs and preferences. This method highlights key patterns and relationships among the data, facilitating a more structured analysis.
Common themes
A streamlined event-planning process
Ability to find others with similar interests or life stages
Discussion boards that are active, supportive, and have engaging topics
Discussion boards that aren’t too overwhelming or cliquey
Simple, clean, and easy to use
User Personas
POV Statements
I’d like to explore ways in creating an approachable method to meet other women in the area and form lasting friendships.
I’d like to find a quick and effective way for women to connect with women who share interests because they want to build meaningful friendships but have limited time for socializing.
I’d like to explore how to build a trusted platform to connect like-minded women that feel that other social networks don’t offer the authentic, supportive environment they crave.
HMW Statements
HMW create a platform that makes it easy for women to find and connect with like-minded individuals based on shared interests and values?
HMW help women who have moved to a new city quickly find a sense of belonging and build a supportive social circle?
HMW encourage women to participate in local events and activities that align with their personal interests and passions, helping them make in-person connections?
Problem Statements
03.
Design
Sitemap
The main screens I wanted to focus on were a home page, events where users can find all the events around their area or virtual and pertaining to their interests, groups around their area and of their interests, a connect page that allows them to have meaningful relationships, and a profile page.
User Flows
Creating a Meet Up
Wire Frames
Bringing ideas to life
Transforming abstract ideas into wireframes is an important part of the design process. This stage simplifies complex thoughts into basic layouts that show how a product works and how users will experience it. Wireframes help designers share their vision by highlighting key features and interactions without the distraction of color or details.
So much was going into the app that it the challenge was to fit so much without overwhelming the interface.
Color Scheme
Branding
Because the app was inspired by the friendship bracelet trading during the Eras tour. I wanted to play into the dreamy colors and the rounded text without sacrificing accessibility.
Font
Logo
High Fidelity Wire Frames
The high-fidelity wireframes for Charmed provide a detailed look into the design and functionality of the networking app, highlighting specifically for women to connect through meetups and discussion boards.
These wireframes showcase a clean, intuitive user interface that emphasizes ease of use while fostering meaningful interactions. With features like seamless event creation and active discussion forums, Charmed empowers women to build strong networks based on shared interests and experiences. The design prioritizes user experience, ensuring that each element—from profiles to event pages—is both visually appealing and functional, creating a supportive and engaging community space.
Connect
Three ways of meeting people:
Matching 1 on 1 with another person via swiping
Participating in discussion boards
Continuing conversations from discussion boards, event pages, and from matches
From the interviews, our participants have expressed the desire to make connections. The three ways makes it easy for introverts and extroverts to meet someone.
Dashboard
The dashboard is the main screen that gives users a quick view of their upcoming events, new messages from other users, and the groups that they are in.
Let us help
Making initial contact is difficult. We borrowed the idea from dating apps and built a swiping feature in this one to connect two users together without the pressure.
Swipe up or click on the profile to open their profile page and find out more of their bio and interests..
The user’s profile
Groups - Topics - Discussion
If a user needs to be eased in before tackling in-person groups and events, the Discussion Boards can offer just that. Some groups will be more location-based.
Other discussion boards could be open to everyone so women can connect with women anywhere and everywhere.
From the research, one of the concerns is that the discussion might veer off-topic and that it might be difficult to find conversations with others with shared interests.
I chose to design these discussion boards to narrow in on specific topics to help guide discussions and keep them flowing.
Easy Planning
Event planning can often feel overwhelming, but making it easier is a priority for many. Women during research have highlighted a desire for simplified processes and resources. A user-friendly platforms, and easyplanning tools can significantly enhance the experience.
Incorporating pieces from other event planning apps allows for tried and true organization. This tool can allow users to easily RSVP, get suggestions for events, and share details, which fosters a sense of community.
Moreover, offering pre-made templates for invitations, schedules, and décor ideas can save time and reduce stress. Ultimately, facilitating easier planning helps ensure that hosts can focus on what really matters: creating memorable experiences for their guests.
Event and Explore
What makes Meetup a success is the ability for users to connect with other users that are local or have similar interests. One of the feedback that I got from the user interviews is the desire to connect with other people more naturally as we move to a more technology-advanced world.
Events and Explore page help users find activities near them to meet other people more organically off the screen.
04.
Test
User Testing
Objectives
The goal of this usability test is to evaluate the ease of use, user satisfaction, and overall experience with the app's core functionalities: event planning, meeting people, discussion boards, and meetups.
Specifically, we want to assess:
How intuitively users can navigate the app.
Whether users can easily connect with others, post on discussion boards, and join/organize meetups.
Results
Discussion Boards
Browse and Join a Discussion
Results: All 5 were able to navigate to the final page. 1 had a little difficulty but was still able to find it in less than a minute
Meetups
Find a Local Meetup
Results: All five were able to find where they would go to find local meetups.
Create a Meetup Event
Results: All thought it was easy to navigate where to create a meetup event.
Send a Message
Results: All five were able to find where to send messages.
Prototype
The prototype is a high-fidelity representation of the end to end process of Charmed, an app designed to help women find friends and support.
It features a clean, user-friendly interface with intuitive navigation elements that guide users seamlessly through booking steps.
Key screens include:
Explore groups and events locally and virtually
Meet new people through a swiping process, like dating apps
Connect with others through discussion boards and chats
Profile page
Create plans
Lessons Learned
Inspired by the friendship bracelet trading at Taylor Swift’s eras tour, I realized that there was something special about sisterhood. While creating this project, I wanted to integrate a wide array of resources for women to connect with each other, both in person and virtually. Through the interview and testing, I realized that it’s an app that is needed.
Creating an app like Charmed provided several key lessons. First, understanding the target audience's needs is crucial. Building a networking app specifically for women meant focusing on features that foster trust, inclusivity, and safety. We learned that designing user-friendly interfaces is essential for encouraging engagement, so simplicity and intuitive navigation were top priorities. Second, fostering genuine community requires balancing both online and offline interactions, so seamless integration of meetups and discussion boards was vital. Lastly, consistent user feedback during the development process helped us fine-tune features, highlighting the importance of adaptability and active iteration to meet user expectations and ensure long-term success.