Our concept đź’™
We have decided to come up with a concept for an App that people can use for the BHC community. The BHC community is an online community that brings people together along with up to date news and as well as the avenue to advertise businesses/products.
Users sign up and have an option of which BHC community they would like to be apart of by searching or choosing an area they want to focus on (Location based). This can always be changed or updated later on if the user wishes to be apart of another BHC group or moves to another area etc.
There is also an option for users to find the communities that they belong to, via a tag, filter or sort option so that more discussion pertaining to that specific location can have dialogue, without being flooded with messages that have nothing to do with your area or interests.
Users can have a few different area options but are limited to 3/5 options. In other words, the user can only focus on so many areas at once.
Target audience đź’™
Residents from all over South Africa that are part of the BHC community, and others that are craving that sense of community and belonging from the ages of 18 to 65.
Our Inspiration đź’™
The inspiration behind the app lies in the core need for a sense of community. And even with existing online platforms for community groups, there is still the “warmth element” lacking, whereby the app is too broad, you are bombarded with things that don’t always interest the user, or the platform has this hierarchal structure, where some users feel like their voices aren’t really heard. We feel as this app really caters to making the user feel part of something, that they have chosen to be a part of, that is interesting and important to them.
User experience đź’™
We would like to design an app that is easy for users to use and easy for people to communicate to each other. A platform where users can see and hear what they have chosen instead of being bombarded with topics and subjects that do not interest them. We would like to create a platform with a sense of warmth, a loss of hierarchy and communication, as well as information, to be spread across locations. We would also like this platform to help users feel belonging and to feel like they are not being alienated because of the location that they reside in.
The platform will allow an appealing layout for easier navigation, better readability, and engagement. Staying true to the BHC theme the app will offer fun visual elements and a sense of personalized experiences.
Why our concept is important? đź’™
It allows community members to build lasting relationships because the app is built up of people from all works of life, people who come together to share their love for a common goal or interest.
It gives everyone a voice, a space where people can share their opinion on important topics.
How does our concept address the brief of creating space of belonging and countering alienation? đź’™
BHC groups address alienation by supporting pregnable and secluded people. Marginalized individuals can use BHC groups to access a high level of public engagement. This gives a sense of one’s significance and relevance.
BHC groups will allow for building alliances across lines of race, ethnicity, class, and age groups, where people can share accurate information and opinions from and for their respective areas. But most importantly these online groups have allowed for a way to connect and reach out to neighbours.
Why do we decide to create an app? đź’™
Facebook is a phenomenal app, with a great group aspect already in place, but it does have its cons. The move away from Facebook is to take all the great aspects of FB and also address the issues by not having them present in the app, to maximize the user experience.
For example with FB, to be a member of a group you need to request it and the page admin will approve. This requires someone to be active in checking membership requests frequently. Also, with this being an app, for all ages, we wanted to cater to age groups that might not be tech-savvy as younger generations. The more condensed experience of the app will be less overwhelming to use FB as well as other social media platforms are where alienation easily takes place and having the BHC app demolishes the ability of alienation to start or something like that
“The BHC app has a good layout and is informative. The app is interactive and the color choice gives me a relaxed feeling. I feel with this app, I am able to better communicate with people in my community and with the find nearby feature, I can interact with like minded people.” — Cheyenne King
For more info on BHC find link below…
Overview of the project team đź’™
Ashton’s involvement in the project:
- Initial presentation for BHC
- Question 2 of the mindmap (current context of BHC)
- Input on app design
- Tying out of word documents
- 700 word explanation of project
Jessica’s involvement in the project:
- Input and research for presentation for BHC
- Question 1 of the mind map (current context of BHC)
- Input on app design
- Participated in group presentations
Kayla’s involvementin the project:
- Input and research of BHC
- Question 3 of the mindmap
- App design
- App Mock ups
- Participated in group presentations
Loyiso’s involvement in the project:
- Helped in creating of the mind map (question 4)
- Conceptualizing of the app features.
- Contributed in explaining how our concept is important and how it helps counter alienation.
