kinnect
Project Type: iOS Mobile, Planning, Organization
Project Stack: Figma, Notion, Google Suite, Maze
Timeline: 3 weeks
My Role: Interaction Lead
Team: 2 Product Designers
kinkofa (KIN-koh-fah) ‘go get yo’ kin’, empowers Black families to rediscover their ancestral roots and uncover untold stories. Through the platform, users upload DNA test results, establish connections with long-lost relatives, and collaborate on preserving family narratives. At the heart of kinkofa's mission lies the facilitation of Black family reunions, recognizing them as more than events - they represent resilience, cultural legacy, and enduring familial ties.
Our goal was to boost kinkofa's brand awareness and customer acquisition while simplifying the black family reunion experience. We built kinnect to test their hypothesis: family reunions could be a crucial first touchpoint for target users, especially those new to kinkofa or family history.
Initial Problem Discovery
What problem am I trying to solve?
Kinkofa wants to get rid of the complexity surrounding the organization and participation in culturally significant Black family reunions, while aiming to simplify planning, foster connections, and honor traditions on a user-friendly platform, ultimately enhancing the experience and accessibility of these deeply personal events.
My Role
As the designated Interaction Lead for kinnect, I collaborated with the Research Lead and Project Lead to manage design and project files and was in charge of the design phase.
Some of my other responsibilities were:
Leading user-centered design.
Conducting discovery interviews.
Creating interactive prototypes for testing.
Organzing design documentation.
Stakeholder communication and iteration.
User and Market Research
The aim was to create an iOS native mobile app for kinkofa called kinnect. We set off by exploring our problem space where we figured out the user and business problem and what is working well and what isn’t.
Competitor Analysis
How could we differ from the competitors?
Centralized Management: Streamline your entire event planning workflow with a single, unified platform.
Dashboard Customization: Tailor your event dashboard to your specific needs and team preferences.
Effortless Navigation: Experience intuitive design and user-friendly interfaces for seamless event management.
Stakeholder Interviews
We conducted interviews with event planners and attendees including some who were already using Kinkofa's genealogy platform. We gathered diverse perspectives on the highs and lows of family gatherings, uncovering valuable insights into their needs and desires.
Insights:
We learned that our users are mainly planners.
They maintain organization by adeptly utilizing tools like Google Suite for planning, along with other project/task or invitation apps to manage diverse tasks.
Their strategic approach encompasses orchestrating all event planning logistics efficiently.
As skilled delegators, they actively seek assistance when required, understanding that shared responsibility ensures effective completion of tasks.
We saw this as an opportunity to meet one of kinkofa’s goals, which was to engage other family members so that planning is a more collaborative experience especially with younger generations. Understanding the characteristics of a planner shapes our understanding of who our target audience is.
Primary User Profile: Barbara
Secondary User Profile: Amelia
They consistently prioritize the guest experience, particularly in activities and food, aiming to create enduring memories for attendees.
Problem Statement
As family reunion attendance is growing, users like Barbara need a way to engage younger generations in planning family reunions because they want to get them involved with preserving family traditions.
Our problem statement led us to reframe user needs and insights into actionable questions:
How might we develop an inclusive and collaborative platform that allows family members of all ages to easily contribute ideas and suggestions for reunion activities and traditions?
How might we use storytelling techniques in a digital platform to connect younger generations with the history and traditions of the family, giving a sense of connection?
How might we recognize and celebrate the contributions of younger family members in planning and preserving family traditions while continuing to engage in family legacy?
From our How Might We statements, we were able to create user flows that helped as a guide when building our first iterations of the app.
Our first user flow wanted to highlight the decisions a planner would be making when adding new members to the planning committee, both existing kinnect members and non-kinnect members, as well as assigning members a task on the planning dashboard. Having this user flow helped us design a flow that was quick and simple for a busy planner.
Our second user flow focuses on decisions that planners would make when sharing photos and videos with other members and attendees on kinnect. We wanted to give the option to share with both current and non-members of kinkofa, so we had to make sure we included different methods of sending these digital stories via the kinnect app.