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The Clubhouse Website
My Role User Experience Designer
Company The Clubhouse
Design Team Lauren Feld (CEO), Gina Lee (Front-End Developer), Nick Foden (Back-End Developer)
Project Type Apprenticeship
Tools Figma, InVision, Canva
Timeline 12 weeks
Framework
Overview
The Clubhouse is a social and educational online platform designed exclusively for retirees. The product is designed for active 55+ adults who are transitioning or already embracing retirement and are looking for meaningful ways to spend their time. The Clubhouse connects users with like-minded neighbors and peers, while helping them find engaging and relevant events and volunteer opportunities, and even provides access to a dedicated specialist to help them navigate through the transition to retirement.
PART 1 - RESEARCH
Summary
How Might We Question
Project Assumptions
Project Hypothesis Statements
Research Plan
Interview Questions
Insights Summary
Hypothesis Statements
Market Research
SUMMARY
CONTEXT
Before the COVID-19 pandemic started, more than one in four adults over 50 reported feeling isolated, and that number has increased by 30% since the COVID outbreak. Social isolation is linked to a 30% increased risk of stroke and heart disease, a 60% increased risk of dementia and functional decline, and a 45% increased risk of death. Lauren Feld, CEO, and Founder of The Clubhouse, and I, saw this first hand on our own families. When Lauren lost her grandmother in 2020, she saw her grandfather struggle to find ways to occupy his time and see friends while his physical community centers were closed. She sat down with him every Sunday trying to help him plan out his week and saw how few options were out there to actually help him meet new people and stay engaged. When the COVID-19 pandemic started in late March of 2020 and my widowed Grandmother lost her job as a Travel Agent and was unable to leave her apartment in fear of contracting the virus, I saw first-hand how a lack of structure, social support, and engagement was, and still is impacting her day-to-day life.
Lauren and I met in the early Fall of 2020 through FLIK, a digital platform connecting female tech leaders and students across the world via meaningful apprenticeships and learning. Lauren had worked in the startup space most of her career - on the corporate side to engage innovative startups (Deloitte), in incubators and accelerators (Techstars, ConsenSys Labs) to support startups at scale, and as a founding team member at an early-stage project, helping to turn a vision into reality. She had recently founded The Clubhouse as a platform to revolutionize the way the elderly community experiences aging. Still, in the stealth-stage preparing to launch an MVP in the Winter, Lauren was looking to onboard a designer who was motivated by her vision and eager to join a mission-driven, fast-growing startup. That was when we connected, and knew that we would make a great team.
OBJECTIVES
Design an engaging digital service to connect older adults to like-minded peers over small group discussions and activity-based events
Create curated interest groups, so that members can build relationships with other like-minded individuals for months at a time, facilitating deeper relationship building
Provide the opportunity for members to create a sense of responsibility and purpose by giving back to the community through hosting their own online events (storytelling, art class, cooking class, etc)
TARGET AUDIENCE
Active 55+ adults who are transitioning or already embracing retirement and are looking for meaningful ways to spend their time.
KEY STAKEHOLDERS
Users / customers
Developers
Designers
Lauren, CEO
REQUIRED TOOLS AND RESOURCES
Primary research data (from user interviews, surveys, questionnaires, etc.)
Secondary research data (from market research, articles, studies, reports, etc.)
Design tools (Figma, Sketch, InVision, Canva, Zeplin)
Website builder (Squarespace)
Web developers - Nick and Gina :)
CONSTRAINTS
Narrow project completion timeline
Tight budget
Pandemic - difficult to recruit interview participants
Technological competency amongst target demographic
SECONDARY RESEARCH
“Social isolation has been associated with an approximately 50% increased risk of developing dementia, a 29% increased risk of incident coronary heart disease, and a 32% increased risk of stroke” (National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine, 2020)
“Social isolation and loneliness are serious yet underestimated public health risks that affect a significant portion of the older adult population. In the U.S., approximately one-quarter of community-dwelling older adults are considered to be socially isolated, and 43% of them report feeling lonely” (National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine, 2020)
“Studies have found that social isolation and loneliness are major risk factors that have been linked with poor physical and mental health status: increased blood pressure, heart disease, obesity, diminished immune system functioning, depression, anxiety, poorer cognitive functioning, increased risk of Alzheimer’s disease, and mortality” (DiNapoli, E. A., Wu, B., & Scogin, F., 2014)
“Seniors who are living alone and socially disconnected are particularly vulnerable to having their mental and physical health decline” (The Lancet Public Health, 2020)
“Self-isolation will disproportionately affect elderly individuals whose only social contact is out of the home, such as at daycare venues, community centers, and places of worship. Those who do not have close family or friends, and rely on the support of voluntary services or social care, could be placed at additional risk, along with those who are already lonely, isolated, or secluded” (Newman, M. Zainal, N., The Lancet Public Health, 2020)
“Online technologies could be harnessed to provide social support networks and a sense of belonging” (Newman, M. Zainal, N., The Lancet Public Health, 2020)
“Findings suggest that access to aging or retirement communities that provide a sense of belonging and security is imperative for delivering high standards of mental health care to older adults” (Lecovich, E., 2014)
HOW MIGHT WE
Make it easier for seniors to maintain and build social connections in their community during the pandemic while providing access to engaging online events catered to their specific interests?
PRODUCT ASSUMPTIONS
I believe my customers have a need to:
Build and maintain meaningful connections with others while in isolation
Find a sense of purpose and belonging within their community
Access reliable resources for retirement planning
These needs can be solved by:
Providing an online platform where members of the senior community can access fun and educational online events, and meet others within their community with similar interests
Provide the opportunity for Clubhouse members to host their own events and share knowledge or skills with others
Providing the senior community with access to tools and resources for retirement planning
The #1 value a customer can expect from this product is:
A sense of purpose and meaning as a result of building and maintaining strong, social connections with their community
The customer can also get these additional benefits:
Improved mental and physical health
Technological competency
Improved financial literacy
We will acquire the majority of our users through:
Word of mouth (friends and family)
Facebook advertising
We will make money by:
We charge our members a simple subscription fee, and also monetize through paid content and ads from partners.
We are also working with health plans, who in light of changes to the CMS ratings are now contracting out member experience to win and retain customers and provide additional benefits
Our primary competition in the marketplace is:
Amava
Bloom
Senior Planet
Meetup
We will beat them because:
We’re focusing on the next generation of retirees - active, tech-savvy, and always hungry to learn and experiment. We’re targeting female retirees who come from a professional career, and especially those who live alone as they are most vulnerable to social isolation
Aside from providing entertainment and something to do, our mission is to empower, engage, and enlighten seniors on the transition to retirement, with the added benefit of meeting others in their community
Our biggest risks:
Users developing an emotional dependency on our product/service
Frustration from less technologically-savvy users struggling to navigate the website
We will solve this through:
Providing access to external accredited mental health resources and professional services
Always providing members with the free option to invite an unlimited number of friends and family members to online events for extra social support
Unlimited step-by-step technical support from our team members
Adhering to Web Content Accessibility Guidelines in the design of the website interface
Consistently keeping our end-user in mind throughout the design process, and obtaining real feedback from members of the senior community during user testing
What other assumptions do we have that, if proven false, will cause this project to fail?
There is a lack of social support available online for the senior community to navigate through the pandemic
Seniors are lonely and want to be able to connect with others in their community
Seniors are struggling to find meaningful, engaging activities online that cater to their specific interests
RESEARCH PLAN
Research goals and objectives
Understand and identify the biggest challenges and concerns being faced by 55+ adults who are transitioning to retirement or have recently retired
Identify trends in how 55+ adults are structuring/spending their time on a day-to-day basis
Identify the most common methods/tools seniors are currently using to connect with others virtually
Research methods
Primary methods - surveys and customer discovery calls
Secondary methods - news reports, articles, census data, medical studies
Recruitment methods
Connecting with members of senior Facebook groups
Contacting friends and family
Participant criteria:
Female or Male
50-70 years of age
Most likely living with a partner, potentially alone or co-living
Post-professional, Entering retirement
Online at least 2x/day for 30-60 mins
Social circle is shrinking - still participates in groups
Friends have moved away or they have moved to a new place for retirement
Come from top positions in high paying careers
Outgoing and/or active, or wants to be
Open-minded and growth-oriented
Most likely feels something is lacking from a social engagement perspective and or purpose/meaning perspective
Digitally curious
INTERVIEW QUESTIONS FOR RETIREES
Introduction
Hi, I’m Lauren. I’m doing research for a project to better understand how adults navigate retirement. I’d like to ask you some questions about your experience (planning for retirement/transitioning into retirement). There are no right or wrong answers, and most importantly, please be brutally honest, as that’s the only way this will really be helpful to me! Do you have any questions before we begin?
Retirement Experience Questions
What did you do before you retired?
How did you feel about retiring? Did you make plans for how you would spend your time?
What factors impacted your decision around when and why to retire?
Did you plan for retirement? If so, how?
Who did you talk to or what resources did you use or search for when planning for your retirement?
What were your biggest fears or concerns about retirement?
What kinds of things did you do/actions did you take when you first retired? How has that changed over time?
How has Covid-19 affected your retirement experience?
Social Life Questions
How has your social circle, interactions with friends, colleagues, and family, changed since retirement?
Once you retired, did you want to meet new people? Why? If so, how?
How do you typically meet new people? Is this something you actively try to do?
Of these new people you meet, how many do you feel likely to develop a meaningful relationship with? Why/why not?
How do you typically allocate the time in your day?
What types of events, activities or similar have you been doing in retirement?
How do you learn about these opportunities? Do you actively search for them, and if so, where?
Do you engage in any type of volunteering or mentoring? If so, why those specific events?
Conclusion
Overall, how have your expectations around retirement compared to your experience? Where does it fall short?
Looking ahead, what are your goals for the rest of retirement?
Is there anything else we have not asked about that you think is important for us to know about retirement?
Would you recommend any other retirees that we could speak with?
Could you introduce us to 2-3 other people who have gone through a similar experience/who you think might have some good ideas around what we’re working on?
Thank you for your time, this was super valuable. Would it be ok if we follow up in the future? Would you know someone else with a similar profile you would recommend that we speak to? It’s hard to find the right people and this was really helpful.
INTERVIEW QUESTIONS FOR EMPLOYED OLDER ADULTS
What concerns do you have a plan and what are you excited about?
Do you have an anticipated timeline for retirement? Are you planning to phase out of work/work part-time for a while?
Do you have a transition plan? If so, what does it entail?
What factors impact your decision around when and why to retire?
What resources have you used (materials, websites, friends) when considering your retirement?
What are your biggest fears or concerns about retirement?
What plans do you have in mind for your retirement? What types of things would you like to do/accomplish?
How do your friends who are currently retired enjoy their experience?
PART 2 - SYNTHESIS
Pain Points
Motivations
Behaviours
Secondary Research Findings
Patterns and Themes
Identifying Opportunities for Intervention
Value Proposition Canvas
Empathy Map
Persona
Experience Map - Current State
User Stories
Task Flows
Experience Map - Future State
Research Synthesis
Pain Points
Motivations
Behaviors
Secondary Research Findings
1 in 4
Adults over 50 feel lonely
+30%
Since the pandemic started
13.8 million
Older adults in the US live alone
Patterns
Themes
Opportunities for Intervention
Value Proposition Canvas
Empathy Map
Persona
After synthesizing the findings from the primary and secondary research into pain points, motivations, behaviours, patterns, themes, a value proposition canvas, and an empathy map, I was able to use the insight gained from that experience to map out a persona for our ideal customer, Joyce.
Experience Map - Current State
Creating the persona of Joyce allowed me to develop an understanding of the needs, motivations, behaviours, and overall personality of our target customer. The next step was to pick one core task and sketch an experience map to illustrate the current state of the user (Joyce) trying to complete that task.
User Stories
Following the user experience map which helped identify areas for improvement in the customer’s journey, I started to create user stories to articulate our customer’s perspective once our design solution has been introduced. As seen below, the stories are short, simple descriptions of a product/service feature told from the perspective of our customer. The template that I followed to create my user stories is:
As a <type of user>, I want <some goal>, so that <some reason>
User Task Flow - Signing Up for an Event
Once I had created user stories to better understand some of the core tasks that a user would be completing with our product, I was able to identify the primary task to be completed with our MVP.
Service Blueprint
After identifying scenarios through creating user stories and mapping out the core flow of a user signing up for an event and creating an account on our website, I created a service blueprint to not only document the customer experience but rather using the customer experience as a starting point to unpack how the different parts of the company would support the completion of the task (s). The service blueprint below creates a picture of how the experience is delivered, end-to-end and surface-to-core.
STEP 3 - IDEATION
Low-fidelity Sketches
Visual Identity Development
High-fidelity Wireframes
Low-fidelity Sketches
Home Page
About Page
Services Page
Events Page
Contact Us Page
The Clubhouse Website
My Role UX Designer/Digital Strategist/SEO Manager
Client Lauren Feld, CEO and Founder, The Clubhouse
Project Type Freelance
Tools Figma, Squarespace
Timeline 12 weeks
The Clubhouse is a social and educational online platform designed exclusively for retirees.
It is a community for the glass half full type of individual, for those with an enthusiasm for life and an intense curiosity about the world around them.
The product is designed for active 55+ adults who are transitioning or already embracing retirement and are looking for meaningful ways to spend their time. The Clubhouse connects users with like-minded neighbors and peers, while helping them find engaging and relevant events and volunteer opportunities, and even provides access to a dedicated specialist to help them navigate through the transition to retirement.