In a world where high rental costs and economic challenges have become a reality for many, sharing a flat with strangers has become a necessity rather than a choice. This rising trend led me to ponder what would later pose the challenge of this project conducted using the Design Thinking methodology:
Empathy: The Starting Point
The Design Thinking methodology is built upon deeply understanding users and their needs before brainstorming solutions. In our case, I immersed myself in people’s reality by conducting research consisting of 125 surveys, 4 interviews, and a focus group involving four individuals aged between 22 and 27 years old.
🔍Research. In Search of User Needs and Expectations.
The research phase had two distinct objectives: to identify the most common issues when sharing a flat with strangers, and on the other hand, to understand the preferences and priorities of users when choosing a roommate.
First, I conducted a survey to gather quantitative data on the problems and preferences of users when sharing a flat. This survey was completed by 125 individuals, yielding results worth noting. More than 80% of people who have shared a flat with a stranger acknowledge having had problems with them, with cohabitation conflicts being the biggest challenge they face. Furthermore, it is crucial to note that over 90% of the respondents consider it very important to know the profile of the tenants when searching for a flat.
Once the initial findings were obtained through the surveys, I proceeded to gather the experiences, concerns, and expectations of individuals with different backgrounds through interviews. Despite the diversity in their profiles, all interviewees had one thing in common: the experience of sharing a flat.
When collecting information, I didn’t want to rely solely on the perspective of people who have rented a room in a shared flat. I also considered it essential to have the experience and opinions of homeowners who are interested in renting out their property.
In this way, I designed different interviews to address the four interviewed profiles in the best possible manner: three individuals aged between 22 and 27 years who have been sharing a flat for years, and a 34-year-old man who has been renting out his flat since 2020.
Despite the differences among the interviewees and their experiences when it comes to sharing a flat, several testimonies were echoed throughout the interviews:
- Due to high rental costs, sharing a residence has become almost obligatory nowadays.
- The lack of information about tenants in a residence when searching for a room in a shared flat generates insecurity.
- Most problems when sharing a flat arise due to incompatibility and cohabitation issues.
After analyzing both the interviews and the surveys, we identified the four insights.
👤User Persona. Understanding Your Users to Design Better Experiences.
With the information obtained, I created what would be our user persona, and although initially, I considered two different archetypes (tenant and homeowner), I ultimately decided to focus on the user interested in renting a room in a shared flat.
With the narrowed-down insights and the defined user persona, I began to glimpse what should be indispensable in my solution:
- When searching for a place to rent a room, it should be possible to know the profiles of the people living in it.
- Quantifying the compatibility the user would have with the tenants of the property would help generate greater confidence when renting a room.
🗣️Focus Group. Innovation Through Co-creation
Although I began to understand what needed to be included in my solution, I still needed to determine its form. To do this, I decided to conduct a focus group to gather the opinions of potential users regarding what the design of the solution should be and the way to implement it. The group consisted of 4 individuals aged between 22 and 25.
The most notable findings from this discussion, which lasted a little over 60 minutes, were as follows:
- Everyone agreed that the real estate market was dominated by Idealista.
- Designing a new feature within an existing real estate portal would make more sense than creating an entirely new portal.
- This feature should allow users to find properties where there is some assurance of good cohabitation with the tenants.
The feelings at the end of the focus group were positive, indicating that there was indeed a need to address the problem at hand. Now, I only needed to find answers to two questions that lingered in my mind:
The Data Universe and Decision-Making.
As I always say: A solution lacks meaning if it cannot be substantiated with data. With this premise in mind, I delve into desk research, aiming to gather, analyze, and synthesize readily available data
💻Desk research. The Data Universe and Decision-Making.
In my quest to better understand the real estate search market in Spain, I turned to the platform www.similarweb.com to obtain valuable information about the market share of the leading companies in the industry.
The results were revealing:
Idealista stands out as the undisputed leader in the property search market in Spain.
Now that I knew it truly made sense to focus on creating a new feature for www.idealista.com, I needed to reframe the initial challenge:
With the challenge properly reframed, desk research led me to delve into how Artificial Intelligence and Data Science are currently applied in the analysis of compatibility between individuals.
The application of these technologies in the RRHH sector is booming, as evidenced by the success of Accenture in developing an internal tool that analyzes both structured and unstructured data from company employees to understand “each employee’s skills, making project management and internal profile assignments easier.” This tool has yielded such positive results that it has been scaled and offered to clients (more information here).
But, what are structured data and unstructured data?
While structured data is organized and quantifiable, such as survey responses, unstructured data is a rich and diverse source of information that, although less orderly, can be immensely valuable.
And after the research, the idea is born:
A tool from Idealista designed to help you find a home where compatibility with your flatmates is ensured.
- ideaMatch analyzes the user’s profile through the analysis of both structured data, using a personalized questionnaire that presents situations related to cohabitation, and unstructured data, through the analysis of the user’s social media profile.
- The tool allows you to understand the compatibility between a user and the tenants of a property, showing the degree of match in a percentage.
- Once you become part of the property, you can rate both the property itself and its owner, as well as your fellow flatmates. This adds value when choosing a home.
From Concept to Reality.
The concept was clear: to include a new tool in an existing portal, such as Idealista’s. How to do it? By redesigning the website through the implementation of new elements.
Modal Window. First and Foremost.
The presentation of ideaMatch is carried out by activating a modal window when visiting the website to display relevant information about ideaMatch and encourage the user to take the questionnaire.
The ideaMatch Questionnaire: The First Step Towards Compatibility.
Once the tool has been presented, and if the user chooses to start the questionnaire, a new pop-up window will open with the personalized ideaMatch questionnaire.
As seen in the wireframes, once the questionnaire is completed, the user has the option to connect with their social media, thereby obtaining a more in-depth analysis of their profile.
Redesigning the Room Search in Shared Flats
Everything seen so far was entirely new on the website, but how to redesign the rest? To do this, on the room search page, I decided to include a toggle that activates and deactivates ideaMatch, so that when it is in the “ON” state, the search results are modified to include the following elements:
- An indicator of the compatibility percentage with the property located in their respective cards. This is calculated as the arithmetic mean of the compatibility percentages of all the tenants in the property.
- A new filter that allows sorting the results by compatibility from highest to lowest.
- A filter that allows narrowing down the search results based on a minimum and/or maximum compatibility percentage.
The high-fidelity redesign of the page would look like this:
Redesigning “Your Account.”
With the creation of ideaMatch, the “Your Account” page needed to have a different scope. Until now, you could only edit your basic profile information and the description with which you presented yourself to the owners of the properties you were interested in.
The arrival of ideaMatch changes everything:
In the “Profile” section, you can manage not only your data but also everything related to your compatibility profile. Here, you will be able to do everything from retaking the ideaMatch questionnaire to connecting with your social media or selecting your preferences and interests.
The high-fidelity redesign ends up looking like this:
A new section called “Your Property” is created and added, where the user will need to enter a registration code provided by the property owner.
Once the registration code is entered, the user will be able to review all the information related to their property, from contracted expenses to the profiles of their flatmates or the property owner.
In addition to this, each of the aforementioned can be reviewed through a rating and review system to provide greater transparency to future interested parties.
A Design System: The Foundation of Everything.
When creating a digital product, the efficiency and consistency of its design are crucial in the development process. Choosing a design system has not only allowed us to maintain consistency in design but has also greatly facilitated agility in iteration and adaptation as IdeaMatch evolved.
For its creation, we meticulously inspected the components of Idealista’s website that could be of interest and replicated and categorized them based on different properties.
Typography and Color
The typography used by Idealista is Bernino Sans, used in its SemiBold and Regular variants.
Regarding color, the platform’s primary color is green (E1F56E), while the secondary color (B62682) is used for various components. The color used as an accent, primarily associated with links, is blue (145BC7).
MUCHAS FOTOS
Value Proposition and Business Model of IdeaMatch
IdeaMatch’s value proposition lies in its ability to provide roommate matches that go beyond financial aspects. Thanks to IdeaMatch, the Idealista portal is committed to connecting people who share similar values, interests, and lifestyles. We have used unstructured data analysis, personalized surveys, and a user-centric approach to create a system that identifies compatibility on a deeper level.
Regarding the business model, a subscription-based model has been adopted. We offer a basic experience for free to attract a wide audience, and then provide a premium subscription that unlocks additional features and exclusive benefits for those seeking a more advanced and personalized experience. This model allows us to continue providing a high-quality service and continually improve the tool.
Conclusions
IdeaMatch represents a fundamental shift in how people search for shared living spaces. Technology has been combined with empathy and research to create a more meaningful and satisfying experience. Thanks to this tool, potential conflicts are minimized, improving the quality of cohabitation.
The use of unstructured data and advanced analysis, including information from social media profiles, allows for unprecedented accuracy in the search for compatibilities.
Users not only find a place to live but also a home where cohabitation is harmonious and enriching.
Future Possibilities
The ideal evolution of IdeaMatch would be to centralize everything related to rental management and cohabitation on the Idealista platform.
- This could include payment of all expenses through the platform, from monthly rent to the security deposit and common expenses.
- It could also involve organizing household tasks, purchases, and schedules through “Your Property.”
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