Blob

"Blob” is a social media app geared towards Gen Z users and fosters inclusivity for marginalized communities. It provides a safe space for anonymous sharing of common interests and ratings without relying on words as a form of communication---eliminating any form of hateful or harmful speech. Users are represented by non-anthropomorphic “Blobs” to avoid reinforcing stereotypes based on human characteristics.

Team: Lucia Pineda, William Choi, Deedee Kwon, Amaris Gil

The Problem

Subcultures created through social media can leave marginalized communities feeling excluded.

The Question

How can the internet be more inclusive, and how can we encourage more of these positive communities?

Features

Entice

Meet other blobs (users) around the world with similar interests

Engage

"Follow" other blobs Rate other blobs' content or add posts that interest you to your profile

Explore

Discover more content online to add to your profile from various sources

Evolve

The more you interact with "Blob", the more your blob will grow! Blob colors change with your interests.

Design Process

Understand

Define

Sketch

Decide

Design

Understand

The first step we took is to understand our marginalized communities through research: Who are they? And why are they feeling excluded?

Marginalized communities include (to name a few):

People of color
Low income individuals
People with disabilities
Women
LGBTQ community
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Factors that lead to marginalization online:

Cyberbullying
Lack of representation
Negative stereotypes

Define

We researched keywords that bring people together such as security, support, and similar interests. We then created a bunch of "How Might We" statements to help frame our insights into questions that can be solved.

We picked the questions that we thought had the most potential such as:
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How might we connect people with similar interests?
How might we monitor content to ensure non-toxic behavior?
How might we prevent negative stereotypes online?

Sketch

We utilized "Crazy 8's," a brainstorming technique involving rapid sketching of wild and imaginative ideas, to create diverse concepts for further development.

👾 We had a lot of fun exploring a range of creative ideas, including gamification elements, social media integrations, and user engagement strategies 👾

Decide

After sketching our concepts, we presented them to each other and other teams. We voted for the best concepts through dot voting and combined the ideas that we liked the most. This helped us construct our final problem statement:

How might we create a fun way to explore common interests in a safe online space for everyone?

Design!

We resolved to address the root causes of online marginalization, excluding physical attributes and harmful speech entirely. To achieve this, we opted for a mobile application as it aligns with the preferences of most Gen Z users and offers easy accessibility.

Proposed Solution

Anonymous Representation

To avoid reinforcing stereotypes based on human characteristics

Content Sharing as a Form of Communication, Not Words

To steer clear of cyberbullying and harmful speech

Shared Interests as a Basis for Exploring

To foster genuine connections

Persona

To gain a deeper understanding of our target audience, we developed a persona representing our ideal user. Meet Isabel. She is a female undergraduate student part of the Gen Z generation. Isabel likes to explore new things and has unique interests--but is always anxious about cyberbullying. Her main need is a safe space to share and explore her interests with like-minded people.

Style Guide

Our style guide draws inspiration from space's captivating colors, reflecting excitement, universality, and otherworldliness. As the Blob community evolves, these colors and categories will grow and shift, serving as a starting point. The design aims to infuse fun and wonder for a visually engaging and memorable user experience.

Brining Concept to Life

We gathered a bunch of rough ideas that we thought had the most potential for a user-friendly interface. We then narrowed them down to create multiple designs that simplify each feature. Finally, we added interactive objects and features to enhance the overall experience.

Blob Evolution

BLOBs offer diverse representation, making them an excellent alternative to actual human images/avatars, effectively reflecting the rich diversity among us. As your interests evolve, so do your blob's size and colors!