Product Designer, Thinker, Creative
JOY ALEMU
BeReal Case Study
Designed a new feature to foster new connections among users
Role
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Product Designer​
Team​
Sole Designer
Timeline​
February 2023- May 2023
Tools and Skills​
Figma, Research, Testing, Prototyping
Made in 2020, and growing in popularity during 2022, BeReal is a social media app designed for authenticity. Its popularity grew due to how refreshing and “real” the app’s message was. However, the app has drastically decreased in the number of downloads monthly as of 2023.
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I downloaded BeReal last year and have continued to enjoy the app. However, I have definitely felt stuck to the same routine where I see the notification, I take a picture, and then look at my friend's post and potentially comment
This is a short process that does not keep the user engaged with the app for long and I typically do not use it for more than 5 minutes a day.
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To better understand user engagement with BeReal, it's important to explore both its strengths and limitations. Though the app successfully promotes authenticity and spontaneous sharing among friends, the interaction does not foster deep connections and can cause interest over time.
In order to understand the decline in the use of BeReal, I conducted user interviews. What I found is...​
1. Users tended to stay on the home page
"The reason I keep using the app is so that I can see what my friends are doing in a short amount of time and feel like I am not missing out on anything.
3. Users avoided the Discovery Page
"When I go on BeReal I stay on the home page because there is not much else to do besides look at my friend’s BeReals"
2. Users liked being able to stay in touch with friends
"I once checked the page when I first downloaded the app and haven’t used it since. I do not feel connected to the random people on it so there is no point in looking."
After a few sticky notes, three solutions were finalized:
Group chats: to communicate with other users in the app
Private Story: user can post BeReal for selected users
Find Near Me: allows user to find other users in their area
Find Near Me
BeReal is a social media app where a user can continue to grow existing connections they have made.
However, users do not have the opportunity to see or meet new users. Therefore, the Find Near Me page will allow users to make new authentic connections and find out more about the communities around them.
Therefore, the Find Near Me page will allow users to make new authentic connections and find out more about the communities around them.
I designed various medium fidelities in order to figure out the layout for my feature. When I was designing this page, I wanted the labels for the different cities and colleges to be easy to view and to join.
With the page on the left, I decided to make the labels of the different cities the main focal point. However, after further deliberation, I found that this was not the most effective way to design the page as well as make it seem seamless with the rest of the app’s layout.h of the app.
Therefore, I opted to proceed with the design on the right. This layout is much more visible to the user as the user can view posts on the different communities before joining a community.
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The introduction of the Find Near Me feature will not only address the user engagement issue but will also enhance the overall user experience of BeReal. With the ability to connect with individuals within their respective communities, users will have more reasons to stay on the app. This, in turn, will attract new users and ultimately contribute to the growth of the app.
There are two parts of the Find Me Feature. One of those parts is the College Feature. It allows students from the same school to see the BeReals of users who also attend their institution. With colleges, there is typically a closer-knit group between the student then the town itself which is why students will be allowed the option of viewing and adding users at their respective universities.,
The second aspect of this feature is the city feature which allows users to view the BeReals of other users in their respective city which will change depending on the city they are currently in. Not every user of BeReal is currently undergoing their education which is why this feature broadens the use.
This is the case study I completed in the Cornell class DPD: Digital Product Design. As I look back on this case study, I still see room for improvement which I think is what makes the design process so beautiful. BeReal is an app that has completely changed the traditional norms of social media through its authenticity. Though the app does not contain as much content as other social media apps, it allows users to show them in their unfiltered state. BeReal has recently been on a decline with user interaction and downloads, but I hope my feature will encourage users to make new connections and meet new people.