The Project

Creating a tailored solution for the Indian market to facilitate finding and cohabitating with a flatmate:

This was a personal project that I executed within a span of 4 months. The inspiration for this project stemmed from informal conversations with colleagues and friends, aiming to address a persistent issue in the Indian housing market. My role encompassed the entire design lifecycle, from research to prototyping.

The Problem

Recent graduates or individuals relocating to cities in search of job opportunities often encounter a significant challenge—

The absence of a unified and streamlined platform for finding compatible flatmates. This challenge is aggravated by the uncertainties associated with independent living, commonly referred to as "adulting."

Primary and Secondary research

To comprehensively address the problem at hand, I carried out primary and secondary research through live interviews and competitor analysis. This strategic approach allowed me to delve into the details of the challenge and gain a profound understanding of the user's perspective.

• Conducting a total of 10 one-on-one interviews remotely, I engaged with both familiar and unfamiliar individuals. These interviews, conducted over Zoom with the interviewees' consent, were carefully planned. To prepare for the interviews I followed a lengthy process from:

  User Journey Mapping -> Affinity Mapping -> Writing all possible questions -> Preparing a reference questionnaire

Empathize and Discover

The research findings highlighted several pain points in the current scenario:

• The single existing app attempting to address this issue in India faced dissatisfaction due to poor UX, UI, and negative reviews, rendering it ineffective in tapping into the market.

• People resorted to hit-and-trial methods, such as putting up Instagram stories, seeking recommendations from colleagues or family members, and posting on open Facebook groups, illustrating the lack of a streamlined solution.

• Utilizing existing Facebook groups for flatmate searches resulted in issues like spam, privacy concerns, unfiltered content, and an overall stressful experience for users seeking flatmates.

• Apart from difficulties in finding flatmates, users also faced problems once they started living together, indicating a need for a holistic solution that extends beyond the initial connection.

• 4 Categories emerged during the process of: finding a flatmate -> living with a flatmate:

  1. Personality Aspects, 2. Behavioural Aspects, 3. Household Chores, and 4. Financial Aspects

...

The final outcome was a unified linear platform - a mobile app - that not only connected people with potential flatmates, but also guided them on living together once a match was made.