Date Idea Generator
Adding a Feature to the Bumble Dating App
Click on image to view screenshots from our final prototype of the Date Idea Generator feature.
In this design thinking exploration, my team added a Date Idea Generator feature to the Bumble dating app for mobile. We did this to prolong and embolden the excitement users’ experience when matching and messaging while using the dating app. We were able to do this while maintaining Bumble’s brand values and mission to be a social network rather than just a dating app. We discovered that this feature, when implemented, could not only be easily added into the already existing app, but that it could be expanded to include third party integration. Thus, it would be a welcome addition for Bumble's already existing third party integrations with Spotify and Instagram.
Skills Used: User Research, Brand Research, Persona Creation, User Flows, User Interface Design, User Interaction, Prototype, Usability Testing
The Problem
Because we could not interview stakeholders, we needed to determine that the proposed feature would fit in with Bumble’s value proposition to its users.
We did this by asking ourselves questions to get started as well as to provide ourselves the direction we wanted to pursue.
Why do users prefer Bumble over other dating apps?
Why is our intended feature not included yet?
What is a safe way to organize group activities using Bumble?
How would this new feature be integrated into the existing native app?
Discovering How to Begin
Brand Research
Researching Bumble’s brand was crucial to uncovering how we intended to continue with our research as well as the direction that our design would take overall.
In my research, I found that Bumble does not just consider itself a location-based social application that facilitates communication between interested users. It does so while challenging antiquated rules of dating by empowering female users with the ability to initiate the first contact with matched male users.
Therefore, Bumble is
“a viable social network that strives to connect and encourage women to stand in their power and believe in their success.”
We took this insight as a substitute for what success might look like for Bumble and its brand. Our team strove to maintain what the Bumble brand exudes throughout the rest of our process.
Gaining Insights into User Needs
While we recruited for user interviews, our team performed task analyses and feature inventories to glean insights on what competing mobile dating apps offered and how users go about completing tasks to get a sense of why Bumble’s value proposition would be preferable over its competition and to better prepare ourselves for user interviews.
User Interviews
Bridging from our initial research, I conducted user interviews with people who used dating apps in general, and Bumble in particular. The interviews provided us with insights that began to point us in the direction of why a date idea generator feature would be valuable for Bumble’s users as well as the problem our team was looking to solve for them.
Affinity Mapping
We received as much data as we could from our user interviews and used a research technique known as affinity mapping to bring forth all of the underlying themes. From this activity, we uncovered user insights to aid us in our persona creation.
Using Insights to Create a User Persona & User Flows
Persona Creation
I produced a primary persona that would guide us throughout the development phase. Carrie is a Bumble user that goes on frequent dates and needs a way to generate first date ideas to keep dating fresh and exciting.
User Flows
I produced two user flows to illustrate how our user goes about interacting with the Bumble application in order to reach the goal of going out on a date--one without the Date Idea Generator feature and one with. The user flows provided us with the ability to envision where the Date Idea Generator feature would best fit into the overall dating app user experience.
User-Centric Ideation
Design Studio
We conducted a Design Studio to get all of our design ideas on paper. We were adamant about keeping our user persona’s needs in mind as we went about generating the feature’s visual appearance as well as its functionality. We, then, synthesized our initial sketches into low-fidelity wireframes. Using Figma, a digital design software, we eventually produced a high-fidelity prototype.
User Survey
It dawned on us that there could be numerous possibilities for first date ideas. Therefore, we also conducted a user survey to discover what date ideas users might want to see when using a date idea generating feature.
Testing Our Prototype Design
Usability Test Plan
I wrote the Usability Test Plan to determine if the added Date Idea Generator feature could provide the user with an efficient manner in which to produce date ideas while interacting with the person they matched with in conversation mode.
Prototype Iterations
We produced several iterations of clickable prototypes combined with two rounds of usability tests.
While the feature proved to be highly usable and an enjoyable experience overall, the usability test results demonstrated that users needed an alert icon to be able to discover the “Call to Action” button that would then usher them to the Date Idea Generator.
Conclusion and Next Steps
With our added feature and the design thinking exploration that we did, we successfully emboldened the excitement that the Bumble dating app brings to its users online dating experience by putting the users’ needs first whether they are looking to go out on dates for fun, building long-term relationships or looking to find their life partners.
Based on the success of the tests, we discovered that the Date Idea Generator feature could be expanded to include third party integrations to further help users to not only come up with date ideas, but come up with date ideas that take into account a user’s GPS location and the businesses that are located around them.
We also discovered that there could be an infinite number of date ideas generated once implemented and information architecture methods should be pursued in order to produce manageable categorization of date ideas for the most optimal user experience.
Final Prototype
View a recording of our final clickable prototype.