About the project
Octripus is a platform designed for travelers and travel experts, combining the features of a social network and a content creation and monetization platform. Users can create personalized guides, share them openly or with restricted access, and sell them via subscriptions. The project targets content creators who want to share their experiences of unique locations worldwide.
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people in the startup team
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days spent on research
and phased design process
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unique screens for desktop
and smartphones
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UI components
in the design system
Based on research, in-depth interviews, and competitor analysis, we chose a format resembling a social network for Octripus. This approach helps both creators and users focus on the content without being distracted by the process. For travelers purchasing a personalized guide before visiting a new country, it’s essential to receive the content in a convenient and accessible format. Meanwhile, creators need tools that allow them to produce content quickly while maintaining a polished and visually appealing presentation.
The design features a light theme with a combination of contrasting brand colors: green, black, and gray, paired with a modern, rounded font. Interface elements are rounded and smooth, fostering a friendly and informal interaction style with users.
The project includes the development of a web version and a native mobile application. The web version is prioritized for development. The design approach follows a mobile-first strategy, which not only streamlines the workflow for designers and developers but also ensures an optimal user experience for the majority of the audience accessing the platform from mobile devices.
The interface is divided into tabs: Feed, Search, Saved, and Profile. The goal is not to reinvent the wheel but to ensure users intuitively understand where to click. The interface is concise, has its own character, yet remains familiar and recognizable.
Personalization of profiles is crucial for content creators, so traditional profile elements have been given special attention: a banner header, profile pictures, link attachments, and the activation of a CTA button for requesting custom content creation.
The profile editing process is straightforward and convenient. Nothing more is needed.
In UX design, significant attention is also given to user flows related to security.
Currently, two types of content can be created: Guides and Collections (sets consisting of multiple Guides). While browsing the feed, users can quickly assess the scope and content of a Guide and save it for later.
The content search allows filtering by country, city, distance from the user, interest-based tags, and, of course, keywords.
The Saved tab serves as the user's personal "library." It allows them to collect favorite content, as well as store purchased content and items with individual access via a link.
Each Guide is accompanied by a map with marked points. Users can read the Guide in full or view the locations as a list with the map open.
The process of ordering custom content offers a vast area for research and analysis. It is envisioned that users will order content by filling out a brief and simple form, followed by direct communication with the creator.
The guide and collection editor is block-based. After filling out a few required fields, creators can add additional blocks in any order and quantity. These blocks are pre-designed and optimized, striking a balance between flexibility and consistent visual quality.
In Octripus, I created a fully functional, device-friendly editor-builder. For desktop, shortcuts were designed to instantly manage blocks, while for mobile, there is an adaptive toolbar, gestures, and drag-and-drop functionality. There are plenty of tools to create content for any taste. And, of course, AI solutions are being developed.
During the creation process, the author sees the Guide as it will appear when viewed. The Guide can be saved as a draft. Auto-save and other UX scenarios have also been implemented.
A variety of tools are planned to simplify the transfer of previously created content to the platform.
Ongoing research is focused on identifying the ideal path for travel content creators to achieve stable income through their expertise and for travelers, nomads, or casual tourists to have unforgettable experiences in new locations.