Local Finds
Tools
Illustrator, InDesign, Lightroom, Figma
Role
Ideation, research, style guide creation, design (UX/UI, visual), prototyping
Duration
September to November 2023 | 3 months
Overview
LocalFinds is a platform inspired by uniting local communities. The goal is to raise awareness for local businesses and encourage community members to shop and support local. The motto is, “Shop quality in your community”.
Problem
Small businesses struggle to compete against big-name stores. Individuals want to support local but they have trouble finding stores that are suitable in price, rating, and location. Based on rising inflation rates, the takeover of online shopping, and the difficulty of attracting loyal customers makes owning a small business harder than ever.
Solution
LocalFinds is a digital app and website that encourages individuals to shop in their local community. It will display a variety of businesses within the categories of shopping, services, and events so community members can get involved and support local. To help both sides, LocalFinds seeks to promote small businesses through awareness. It is easy to get lost in a sea of competitors. LocalFinds offers these businesses a platform to better market themselves. With LocalFinds, individuals can easily find a local business in their community by using filters to specify their needs.
Mobile Design and Features
Landing Page
Users can easily sort through different categories of local businesses including shopping, services and events.
Promotions
Users will be suggested promotions based on the type of businesses they save and regularly view.
Business Profile
Users can see an in-depth overview of a business including an about page, their products, an image gallery, and reviews. If a user wants to go to the business immediately, they can simply click a button that opens the address in their maps app.
News
If users want to get updated on their local community, there is a news section to read about current events, businesses, upcoming fundraisers and more.
Saved
Users can save stores they like to come back to later.
Desktop Design
The Process
Competitive Analysis
After doing some research on different competitors, I found that the app I was seeking to create was quite niche. The biggest competitor was Shop Local Canada. The website had a very similar concept but it lacked content. Many of the businesses lacked an online site to view the products. Uber Eats is a successful competitor because it finds local restaurants for users. It allows users to set filters and scope the various restaurants in the city.
Design Program
The Brand
The Story
LocalFinds is inspired by being involved and supporting the community. Small businesses in our communities compete against big-name stores that don’t value their customers. Small businesses are the heart of a community, but we understand it may not be easy to find these hidden gems and get a glimpse at what they offer.
Visual Identity
Takeaways
After working hard to create a functional design. I went back to Figma to narrow down my screens and clean up the final design aesthetically and technically with Figma components and auto-layout. Throughout this process, I learned how to focus on UI and create a clean and functional design.
This final project taught me so much about building a brand from the ground up and bringing it to life. It was rewarding, challenging and exciting. This project allowed me to take the time to master Figma. I went through lots of trial and error to see what worked in my design and what did not. I enjoyed the process of envisioning the branding and marketing materials. In addition, I was able to be creative and create a brand that I was interested in. I used creativity, critical thinking and hard work to create a project I am proud of.
