About
In wake of the security threat caused by a breach of privacy on Facebook, Facebook Re-Design was a project to attempt to promote and reward offline interactions, while also being non-intrusive. This was aimed at allowing the user the freedom to have a comfortable level of anonymity and ambiguity in the virtual space that retains privacy.
Mockup of Concept
Summary
After conducting a vast amount of secondary research, I mapped my findings and created proto-personas. With these, I created a Primary Persona which allowed me to understand my target user group better. I then created a User Journey Map for the existing experience and noted areas I could redesign through my project. Using various ideation methods such as - Crazy 8s, Break the Rules, S.C.A.M.P.E.R, Mashups, I elaborated on the ideas that were contextual to my findings. After combining a few ideas to create my final iteration, I got to creating wireframes and UI for the Facebook Re-Design using Adobe Xd. I then made a prototype for the screens using Adobe Xd and InVision and made an artistic rendition of my proposed idea using Photoshop.
Prototype of Facebook Re-design
Process
Secondary Research
The online world, though feels liberating to some, in reality, is really restricting. With more and more development in technology, people are finding more ways to make use of the common man via technology and tricking them into believing that something is good for them when it isn’t. Behind a screen, one feels they are safe and shielded from the real world, but, this is not the case. Huge amounts of data are being collected as we unknowingly provide it to the ones taking advantage of our innocence and insecurities. Platforms want their users to be engaged because the more time they spend on the platform, the more revenue the platform generates. This reduces the amount and the quality of Physical world interactions that we have as the days go by.
The Facebook - Cambridge Analytica Scandal that took place was proof that the more we engage in the virtual world, the more information we are feeding into people's or companies' servers for them to make use of, without our consent or knowledge.
Through my research, I gained a lot of insights regarding how the social media giant, Facebook, is controlling the identities of the users and how they target specific information, ads, and posts to their audiences. I also found that Facebook causes people's moods to alter, based on content that its background algorithm "thinks" is relevant to post.
To access my research notes, please refer to this link -
Keeping in mind the current scenario, of the privacy breach and the loss of control on the platform, I have designed an alternate Facebook which promotes a healthy level of ambiguity and provides a balance of information and entertainment as well as create a way to engage in the physical world and promote real physical world interactions. My re-imagined Facebook must also give the user some amount of control, privacy and give them a space to be themselves.
I started off by listing down all the problems that I found via my secondary research and also all the problems I found out from my primary research and interviews. I then looked up the different attempts at redesigning Facebook (mainly the UI) and made notes of what they had changed and why. After this, I tried my own hand at coming up with UI redesigns in the form of rough sketches
After this, I started to follow a user experience design process, so, with the help of the quantitative analysis that I had done in the primary research, via the survey, I created Proto personas.
Using these, I made a Primary Persona. This helped me understand what direction I should take for my final product/application.
The next step was to create a User Journey Map of how my Primary Persona would use Facebook. This was done, In order to find out any points of intervention or any gaps or opportunities to create something better.
Ideation
I used various Ideation tools such as - Crazy 8s, Break the Rules, S.C.A.M.P.E.R, Mash ups, and elaborated on the ideas I found were working out.
Crazy 8s
Facebook Card idea from Crazy 8s
FB Smart watch idea from Crazy 8s
Physical Like idea from Crazy 8s
S.C.A.M.P.E.R
Break the Rules
Mash-ups
Pulling out various relevant points from my research and some ideas that I liked, I compiled them, to make a list of items I want for sure in my design.
I then did some rough wireframing and made my style guide and fair screens using Adobe XD.
User Flow
Rough Wireframes
Workspace
My Re-designed Facebook allows the user to sign up using either their email id or their phone number but not both. It then gives the user the ambiguity to be the self they want to portray to the world via an avatar (inspired by Bitmoji) that they can personalize and create when they make an account.
They can then pick the topics that they have interests in, so that they have the control over what they want to see in their timeline. The username of the person need not be his real or "legal" name and thus can have whatever characters they want to identify themselves as.
The Home screen is divided into three parts - based on Interests, based on what is "Popular" and one can "Explore" random posts which refresh each time the person opens the app (inspired by Instagram).
The Title bar has a new feature called Globe Trotter which allows you to locate new places of interest in the physical world, e.g. malls, restaurants, theatres, etc. and one can Add these places into categories e.g. Been there, To Go list, Best Beaches, etc. This will help promote more physical world explorations.
The Notifications has a "Filter" feature which helps you see notifications of a uniform type only.
The Messenger is inbuilt and doesn't give an unfamiliar feeling. One can make categories to group up their contacts based on how we group people mentally , e.g. Family, College friends, etc. Within a chat with a new contact, the user can see the common interests with the new contact as well as some message prompts which encourages a chat to happen with the new contact and have a friend rather than an online "acquaintance."
The Camera icon doesn't depict the previously assigned "Story" (as stories are removed) but it opens a scanner. This is where the Physical World extension of the app is included. Once someone goes to a location in Physical Space, they can scan a QR code there and this lets others know in that location that you are there as well, and also shows you your other friends who are currently in that location. The location is not visible to those who do not scan the code in real time in the Physical world. Thus, when you scan, you are giving consent to show that you are in that space too, and thus can view others who have given the same permission, only for that space. One cannot view others in different physical spaces unless they are present in that space as well and scan the code, e.g. if you are in ABC mall, you cannot view people in XYZ mall unless you go there and scan the code of that mall. This protects the privacy of the user and makes them aware of the consent they are giving the app, as well as encourages real world physical interactions with the people present in that space.
Mockup of the idea, not an actual representation
Image from: https://www.agefotostock.com/age/en/Stock-Images/starbucks-coffee.html
A physical like button is present in the space as well which adds to the likes of the place's Facebook page. This adds as a fun aspect in the physical world during physical world explorations. To turn off your location sharing while still in the space, one can do so on the FaceBook page of the space.
If one doesn't step out or explore new places in the physical world for a long time, Facebook sends you a prompt to go out and explore. Some places can even give you an award in the form of discounts etc, if you go to that physical space.
The personal Profile of the user is simple and has less clutter. There is a View as feature which allows them to see how their profile looks to the world. The Customise feature allows you to organise or de-clutter your profile by ticking only the features you want present on your account.
Apart from all this, there are no advertisements.
To play around and test my Re-Designed Facebook, find the prototype here -