Project Overview

As a product designer, I was tasked with designing a chat platform as an additional feature for Innopolis University's professional community platform “Club”. The goal of the chat platform was to allow users to communicate with each other in real-time, share knowledge and resources, and build stronger professional connections.

Research

To start the design process, I conducted research on existing chat platforms and interviewed potential users to understand their needs and pain points. From this research, I identified key features that were essential for a successful chat platform, including real-time messaging, group chats, and file sharing.

User Personas

Based on the research, I developed user personas that guided the design process. Our primary personas were Anna, a recent graduate looking to expand his professional network, and Maria, an experienced professional looking to mentor others and share knowledge.

Design

With the user personas in mind, I started the design process by developing wireframes and prototypes. I focused on creating a clean and modern interface that was easy to use and allowed for real-time messaging, group chats, and file sharing. I also designed features such as message notifications and user status indicators to improve the chat experience.

Final look of the chat:

The process of creating chat:

Adding participants to the chat:

Development

After finalizing the design, I worked closely with the development team to ensure the chat platform was built on a scalable and secure architecture. We implemented features such as real-time messaging, group chats, and file sharing, while also ensuring the platform was optimized for performance and user experience.

Launch and Results

The chat platform was launched as an additional feature to the professional community platform. The user feedback was overwhelmingly positive, with many users finding the chat platform to be a valuable addition to the existing platform. Users were able to communicate in real-time, share knowledge and resources, and build stronger professional connections.

Since its launch, the chat platform has seen steady growth in user engagement and activity. Students of the Innopolis University have been able to connect with each other in real-time and expand their professional networks, leading to new job opportunities and collaborations.

Conclusion