Eat Together

Connecting college students over
shared meals and common interests

Context

Eat Together is a student-run startup app launched in September 2023 at the University of Washington, designed to connect college students over shared meals and interests. The app promotes community building and social connections by focusing on shared values and activities. I joined the team in November 2023 as a UX Designer, where I contributed to improving the app’s design system, user experience, branding, and visual hierarchy.

My Role

UX/UI Designer

Timeline

November 2023 – June 2024

Collaborators

Huy Mai, Pim Jitnavasathien,
Mumtaz Sheikhaden

CHALLENGE/ DESIGN PROBLEM

Inconsistent Interfaces: The app faced inconsistencies in typography, colors, and spacing, resulting in poor information hierarchy and difficult navigation.

Redundant Components: Multiple interface elements displayed the same information, adding unnecessary complexity.

Low User Engagement: Many users expressed hesitations about creating or attending events, a result of weak social interactions and lack of information.

GOALS

Establish a cohesive design system to improve the app’s visual consistency.

Improve user engagement by addressing pain points and hesitations around event creation and participation.

Streamline interface components to simplify development and improve usability.

Research & Evaluation

HEURISTIC EVALUTION

We ran a thorough analysis of user flows and looked at design and workflow inconsistencies.


Key Takeaways:

Lack of visual emphasis on social elements like event attendees

Poor typography and visual hierarchy

User Research: Conducted 20–30 minute interviews and usability tests with 10 users.

Findings:

Users couldn’t easily see who was attending events — creating hesitation around joining them

Desire for more personalized and engaging event recommendations

Design System Development

Colors: Simplified the app’s color palette, reducing redundancies and enhancing visual harmony.

Components

ORIGINAL

ORIGINAL

REDESIGN

Default

Default

Selected

REDESIGN

Pages

ORIGINAL

ORIGINAL

ORIGINAL

REDESIGN

REDESIGN

REDESIGN

Typography: Established consistent font sizes and weights to create a clear hierarchy.

Created a cohesive design system, improving the app’s branding and user experience.

Addressed user hesitations by emphasizing social elements and simplifying workflows

Enhanced the app’s interface for better usability and development efficiency

OUTCOMES

FUTURE PLANNING

REFLECTION

Working at Eat Together was an immensely valuable experience, letting me work with teams of strategists, designers, and developers. Using my skills to manage team meetings, balance individual and collaborative work, and mentoring other designers, I grew in a multitude of directions. As a plus, my programming background allowed me to communicate effectively with developers, making project handoffs seamless

Before my departure in June 2024, I finished up documentation to assist future design and development teams. Moving forward:

The development team will implement our design system for upcoming app features.

In Spring 2024, the team launched a cohort program using the design system to promote consistency in new features.