Background

WIP Stands for Work in Progress. This is an app for freelance designers, students, and hobbyists looking to ideate and collaborate with other designers. According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, 19% of Graphic Designers are self employed and working freelance jobs. Estimates have UX/UI around 20-30% of individuals working independently while Painters are around 59%.

The Problem

Many designers and artists working independently struggle to find a community work space that can provide constructive feedback on their designs and process. These freelancers also often struggle to find mentors they can learn from while on the job.

WIP has the opportunity to set themselves apart and be the leader in their community for art, design and other creative spaces.

Project Goals

Create an app enabling users to build a community in the design space of people who can provide valuable feedback and constructive criticism on their work and designs. Ideally, WIP would also allow a user to find not only friends to learn from but also a mentor who can provide guidance. Whether a user is painting a giraffe or redesigning a website for a construction company, WIP will help our users find the teachers and feedback they need to take their designs from good to great.

Research Approach

1. First, we ran a competitive heuristic analysis to see what similar platforms were offering to determine strengths, weakness, and features/tools.
2. Second we conducted User Interviews to determine if users would feel comfortable sharing their work in this type of setting and if so, what they would feel comfortable sharing.
3. Lastly, we conducted a survey to back up our finding in our user interview with quantitative data.

Research Goals

1. We want to determine if users would be comfortable sharing their work and process.
2. We want to know what tools and features would be most useful to our users

Competitive Analysis

User Interviews Findings

1. Users appreciate alternative perspectives and believe constructive criticism strengthens design quality. They noted the importance of getting challenges to initial concepts, as it pushes innovation.
2. Whether it’s a freelance designer or a W2 employee, a user might need an easy way to share with users in different time zones.
3. Open source projects are amazing as long as non-disclosers are in place.

User Survey Results

1. 75% of users would feel comfortable sharing projects publicly and fill it’s important to gain feedback.
2. 100% of users share their work for feedback at least some of the time.
3. Features and tools users would be most interested include; Live Sharing, Recorded Progress Updates, Screenshot/Image Uploads.

Affinity Map

Our user interviews helped us find 6 themes to keep in mind as we move forward.

User Persona

User Insight Statement

Alex, a creative and detail-oriented digital product designer, thrives on collaboration and innovative design tools that improve team efficiency. His passion lies in crafting user-friendly designs and working in environments that encourage continuous learning and feedback. However, he often feels hindered when clear communication channels are lacking or when he doesn’t have access to intuitive design tools and processes that align with his goals.

Problem Statement

Alex needs a way to collaborate effectively with his team and access user-friendly design tools that streamline workflows because inefficient communication and limited resources make it challenging for him to deliver high-quality, user-centered designs on time.

How Might We

...create a space where designers can openly share their WIP projects to gain mentorship, collaboration, and exposure, ultimately fostering a culture of continuous learning and growth?
...ensure safe sharing to ensure no ones intellectual property is stolen?
...create online events and activities that will allow users to connect and collaborate in real time?

Priority Areas

Storyboard

User Flow

Site Map

Low Fidelity

We made some mobile first wireframes and expanded to tablet and desktop. For the most part we kept the same layout but decluttered it and fixed some of the spacing issues.

Style Sheet

High Fidelity

Login Page

Approach

User Test with 5 particpants with 4 tasks.