Designing an App with Friends

We met Bill because he was looking for a developer to build a bespoke app to help him sell candy in Wilkinsburg PA. William would take his mini van to Costco, fill it up with candy, and then drive around the neighborhood as kids flagged him down for sales. It was such a great business William mentioned he was purchasing a new Sprinter Van. It turns out, William averaged over 60,000 dollars a year in profits. William also talked about all the other small off-the-books cash based businesses in a town of only 13,000 people.

LikeNow began with a simple conversation. Joey Rahimi realized that startup culture, particularly in the realm of "dogfooding," often overlooks lower-income citizens. Meanwhile, I was developing an on-demand service to buy back used electronics, with a customer base primarily from lower-income areas. Our shared observations led us to explore how startups could better serve this often-ignored demographic.

Lower-income citizens are disproportionately excluded from both traditional 9-to-5 jobs and gig economy platforms like Uber and Instacart. This exclusion stems from multiple systemic issues:

• Barriers to Entry: Gig platforms often require background checks, expensive vehicles, or other prerequisites that are unattainable for many.
• Exploitative Models: High platform fees (sometimes exceeding federal tax rates) and low wages reduce the already limited income of gig workers.
• Limited Avenues: Current platforms force workers into hyperspecialized roles, ignoring the broader skillsets many individuals possess.

To ensure LikeNow would truly meet the needs of its intended users, I conducted research and created user personas using a rigorous, qualitative process. This helped us move beyond stereotypes and design a platform grounded in real user needs.

Step 1: Ask Rich Questions, Not Dumb Questions

I conducted in-depth interviews guided by rich questions designed to understand participants’ broader lives, not just their interaction with potential products. This approach uncovered deep insights into their values, motivations, and challenges.

Example Questions:

• What does a good day look like for you?
• What are you most proud of in your work or life?
• How do you typically find opportunities to earn money?
• What barriers make it difficult for you to achieve your goals?

Step 2: Write a Codebook

I analyzed interview transcripts and observation notes by creating a codebook to capture recurring themes and patterns. Each code included a definition, examples, and counterexamples to ensure clarity.

Example Code:

• Code: "Vehicle as a Barrier"

  • Definition: Challenges participants face due to vehicle requirements (e.g., cost of ownership, maintenance, lack of access).
  • Example: "I’d drive for Uber, but my car doesn’t meet their standards, and I can’t afford to upgrade."
  • Non-Example: Complaints about traffic delays.

To build an inclusive platform that provides fair opportunities for workers in lower-income demographics. LikeNow’s mission is twofold:

1. Elevate Worker Skills: Create a platform where individuals can showcase and monetize their diverse skill sets without being restricted to hyperspecialized roles.
2. Promote Fair Earnings: Keep platform fees low and build a lean business model that prioritizes worker income over massive exits or excessive corporate overhead.

• Lower-income workers often excel as "handymen" or "generalists," with valuable, varied skills that don’t fit neatly into the narrow verticals of most gig apps.
• High platform fees destroy potential earnings for workers, perpetuating the poverty cycle.

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The design phase focused on creating a platform that was:

• Accessible: Simplified onboarding with minimal barriers, ensuring inclusivity for workers who might otherwise be excluded.
• Empowering: A user experience that highlights the multifaceted skills of each individual, allowing them to market themselves effectively.
• Transparent: A clear and fair fee structure that avoids the exploitative practices of other gig platforms.

1. Skill Showcasing: LikeNow allows users to list and market their wide range of skills.
2. Fair Fees: Fees are capped at a fraction of the industry standard, ensuring workers retain the majority of their earnings.
3. Streamlined User Flow: Workers can easily find gigs across multiple categories, simplifying their workday by consolidating opportunities in one place.

I worked alongside Joey Rahimi, Mike Darweesh, and Megan Earfly to conceptualize and prototype the platform. As the designer, I translated our vision into a cohesive, user-friendly experience that reflected our principles of fairness and inclusion.

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We’ve developed initial prototypes of the platform, including UI designs and a lean backend structure to keep operational costs low. The app’s early version focuses on a small, testable subset of the gig economy to validate our ideas and ensure worker satisfaction.

• Prototype Development: Early UI/UX designs illustrate how users can seamlessly navigate the platform, list their skills, and connect with job opportunities.
• Community Feedback: Initial feedback from focus groups of lower-income workers has been instrumental in refining the platform’s features and usability.
• Scalability Plan: Our lean approach ensures LikeNow can scale without compromising its core mission of worker empowerment and fair pay.

1. Pilot Launch: Test the platform with a small group of workers and clients to collect further feedback.
2. Iterate on Design: Refine the user experience based on pilot data and feedback.
3. Expand Scope: Gradually roll out the platform to include more job categories and regions while maintaining the core values of inclusivity and fairness.