Six days to frame the women-only couchsurfing platform

Client
Sisterhome
Year
2022

The challenge

Sisterhome (formerly La voyageuse) is a platform that lets women travel alone or in groups, host and meet other travellers in complete safety. The team called on our expertise to identify journey improvements that were easy and quick to put in place in a very short timeframe. A focused six-day push that gets straight to the point, from mapping the strategic business vision and defining the user needs, through to mocking up the recommendations.

Six days to frame the women-only couchsurfing platform

Project flow

01. Scoping and preparation
02. Co-design workshops
03. Visual identity
04. App UI design
05. Client iteration and delivery

Study detail

User Centered Design Canvas workshop

Defining the user needs while keeping the business priorities in view

Before tackling the page-build phase of the website, it is important in this context to clearly define the user needs while keeping the business objectives in mind. Using the User Design Canvas is an ideal way to combine user expectations with business goals. On one side we define the target audiences, the problems encountered and the users’ motivations and, on the other, list the advantages and solutions of the service. This methodology helps frame the stakes, surface new ideas and build a unique value proposition around the user. We invite you to read 👉 our blog article to learn more about the topic and download the UCDC template in PDF.

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Co-design workshop

Prioritising and co-designing the screens with the project team

Mapping out the user needs and the business strategy gives us a clearer view of what’s a priority to improve on the website.

We then formalise the ideas and the different recommendations on paper to restructure the main pages and revisit certain user journeys.

This playful, visual ideation step lets us step back to surface improvement ideas and identify any new blockers.

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New visual identity

Improving the visual identity by building on the existing one

The unique value proposition and the co-design workshop also helped us identify areas for visual improvement more in tune with the message the platform wants to convey.

A new colour palette and a typeface more in tune with the themes of travel and sharing are proposed.

These “quick-win” recommendations contribute to improving the overall user experience.

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UI adaptations

We wrap up this 6-day sprint by embedding the new visual identity on the main screens (home page, sign-up flow, accommodation page, pricing page…).

We put a “mini design system” in place to make the developers’ job easier in the platform redesign.

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The benefits

It's amazing what you can improve in such a short time!

A time-bound engagement that calls for an effective framing of the client’s needs by focusing on user expectations without forgetting the business stakes, and by prioritising the recommendations in collaboration with all the technical, business and design stakeholders. The Sisterhome project team walked away with:

  • a clearer view of its value proposition,
  • reworked and simplified user journeys,
  • more usable website mockups embedding a modern new visual identity in tune with the message conveyed, and actionable recommendations that can be implemented quickly.
6 days
of UX and UI design sprint work
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Want to discuss your project?

Let's talk about your stakes, constraints and ambitions so we can build the best user experience together.

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