Dating App Case Study

MAIN CONCEPT

Tinder is a dating application that is most frequently used amongst people between the ages of 18 and 29. Being a past user, I found that my main issue with the app was the lack of safety features built in. So, I wanted to share my experience with building a young dating app that makes the safety of their users a top priority. In a 2016 article written by VICE it linked dating apps to a disproportionate amount of reported rapes. It more specifically talked about how these numbers will only increase saying that over the past five years the reports of sexual assault linked to online dating rose 450% in the past five years.

IDEATION

Young people shouldn’t have to choose between expanding their dating options and feeling safe. Which is why having a dating app that revolves around safety was a no brainer to me. As we progress into the era of technology, meeting people online will only go and become increasingly more popular. Especially with a dating app whose target audience is so young (18–29) this feature of safety is extremely important. According to the National Crime and Victimization Survey, it’s estimated that between 10-29% of women are a victim of rape or attempted rape since starting college. This statistic just didn’t sit right with me, which made me start thinking about how we can try to reduce this number. Which is how I came up with an app that has a built in three-step safety check that ensures the safety of our users from the moment you match until the moment you leave the date.

PROBLEMS-FROM USERS

Three different personas that I used when making the app, all of which are college aged girls.

1. Receiving nasty and vulgar messages from matches that were unsolicited and unexpected
2. Feeling anxious to actually meet up with any of the matches they connect with through tinder.
3. It’s hard to tell who your match really is behind the screen especially if there is no insight to previous dates.

Design

As far as Design challenges went, I knew that I wanted to have a similar feel as other young dating apps such as Tinder and Bumble. So like those apps my new app would have a swiping function to match with people in your area. As for the color pallet, I went with a purple pallet to symbolize loyalty and safety. This choice would be straying away from the identity of other apps such as Tinder that uses a pink pallet and Bumble that uses a yellow pallet.

Displayed above is my color pallet used throughout the application. Although a purple color pallet, I thought that a light red would be fit for notifications.

Safety: Swiping

This dating app would be revolved around the concept of dating safety from the moment you enter the app. While you swipe, each potential match will show up with one of three banners. A purple banner symbolizes that the ratings they’ve received across the board from previous matches, are deemed safe (4.5 stars or higher). A white banner indicates that someone is a new member and hasn’t yet been approved or denied by enough people. A red banner indicates that the person is at risk to get removed from the app at a rating of 4 to 4.4 stars. Anyone who gets a rating under 4 stars gets removed from the app and is deemed a safety hazard.

Along with the banners as an indicator of safety, once you open a person’s profile, there’s more information about the person’s safety history. The format of the information is similar to Tinder or Bumble, consisting of basic information and a short bio. What is slightly different is that you’ll also see the person’s average rate they received out of five and, how many people rated them.

Safety: Messages

I believe that the online dating experience starts from the moment you match, and it should be positive from the beginning. The first safety-check is during those initial moments, during messaging. Nasty and unsolicited messages shouldn’t have to be a part of the Online Dating experience! The first safety feature on Vault ensures that you feel safe and comfortable purely over messages. You can access this feature either through the Rate button under your match’s message or through the shield icon, also known as the Safety Center. Once you’re in the feature, a series of questions show up as a pop-up asking about the overall experience up to this point. It’s important to remember that you can use the Rate:Message feature as many times as you want through out the conversation. We encourage users to use the feature at many different points in the conversation, during both positive and negative interactions.

Safety: On Date

To ensure user safety during the date, there’s the On Date! feature. On this feature, the app serves as your best friend. Before going on your date you’ll share your location with the application and set a five mile radius as to where you “should be” during this date. You can go in and manually change this radius at any point before or during the date, since we know plans can change. If you move outside the radius without changing it, the app will send you a push notification asking if you’re safe. If you respond yes, the app will redirect you to update your five mile radius. If you respond no, the app will send police your current location.

Safety: After Date

Once you’re done with your date, the next safety check begins. Similar to the quick survey given when you rate your match’s messages, once you’re done with your date you can rate how the date went. This survey is about your safety and comfort on the date to give future matches a better sense of whether or not they’d feel safe on a date with their date.

Overall, I’m happy with how my app turned out from the idea to the prototype. With my idea, I hope to ultimately alleviate date anxiety that most women feel before going on a Tinder date or Bumble date. I plan on continuing to work on this app throughout the semester and can’t wait to see where this project takes me!