BabaMelki App

Classified ads & E-commerce App

Recognizing the challenges posed by existing apps in Turkey, which lacked user-friendliness and ease of use, BabaMelki emerged as a dynamic startup aiming to disrupt the market. Our mission was clear: to create an online platform tailored for real estate, vehicles, jobs, and community services that not only simplifies the ad-posting process but ensures maximum visibility from day one.

My role

As the lead product designer for BabaMelki, I played a pivotal role in shaping the app's user experience and interface, joining the team during the confidential early stages of the project. Reporting directly to the Project Manager, I spearheaded the app's design from conception to implementation, navigating a dynamic and agile development process.

In the realm of agile development, speed and adaptability are paramount. My role involved translating conceptual ideas into tangible design solutions, ensuring alignment with the product vision while responding flexibly to evolving requirements. Working closely with cross-functional teams, I facilitated communication between design, development, and product management, fostering a collaborative environment conducive to rapid iteration and improvement.

Embracing an iterative design approach, I led the team through multiple rounds of Beta testing, leveraging user feedback to refine and enhance the app's usability and functionality. This iterative process was crucial for uncovering user preferences, pain points, and areas for improvement. Our commitment to continuous improvement culminated in a pilot release to select users, allowing us to validate and fine-tune the app's performance in real-world scenarios.

As a product designer, I brought a holistic perspective to the project, understanding the importance of not only aesthetic appeal but also user engagement and functionality. I championed user-centered design principles, conducting user research to gain insights into the unique needs and preferences of our target audience. This informed every design decision, ensuring the final product seamlessly integrated into users' lives.

In addition to the practical aspects of design, I recognized the significance of maintaining a cohesive and brand-consistent visual identity. I established design systems and guidelines to streamline the development process, fostering consistency across the app and reinforcing the BabaMelki brand.

My role extended beyond creating static designs; I actively participated in usability testing, analyzing user interactions, and refining designs based on real-world usage patterns. This hands-on involvement allowed for a more nuanced understanding of user behavior and preferences, facilitating data-driven design decisions.

UI Spotlight

Easy Navigation | User is able to find the desired ads very easily and fast
Clear and Simple Cards | User is able to read through the ads easily and get the most important information
Posting Ads | Very usable and useful wizard to post the ads very quickly and easily
Ads Detailed Page | Innovative and simple ads detailed page enabling the users to get in touch with the advertiser easily
Simple and Usable Navbar | User is able to learn the app very fast and post the first ads with ease
Simple, Modern & Accessible | Simplicity was key in the team to make everything very simple and highly accessible

Empathising & building Persona

Key insights

Throughout our research, we discovered that our end users are looking for a mobile app and service which is very easy to use, enables them to even message the ads owners, and informs about the ads feature in a clear an concise way. In addition, we found out that those who are looking to buy a new car are really sensitive and fussy about the ads detailed information. So, visualized ads features could definitely satisfy our future end users.

Simplicity

During the competitive analysis we found out that current apps such as Tendyol, Getir and Even Sahebinden who are currently giving services in istanbul are very complex and their users are not truly satisfied with its services.

Ads information

We found out that users prefer to read more about their favorite ads information in a pretty modern and visualized way. Many interviewees believed that some visualization would be definitely much more attractive for them.

Ads posting

It turned out that current users are quite worn out with the complex and long forms to be filled while posting their ads in the current apps. They really wanted a service to post their ads very fast, easy and get the most visitors at the first hours.

Brainstorming & Ideation

Information Architecture

Initial Wireframing

BM main focus

Easily filter your home feed

In BM, searching and feed result is more than a great experience. Users can easily filter their results and even save their search preference for future suggestions

Get the ads Gist in a minute!

Every information is organized, clean and very easy to get. The most important features are visualized for the users comfort. Easily get connected with the owners

Ads posting is fun

From now on, ads posting is not pain in the neck anymore! Our usability test result shows that ads posting average time improved by 60% ending with happier users

Outcome

As a pivotal member of the product design team, I played a key role in successfully launching the first version of BabaMelki mobile app. We had a few rounds of Beta testing, eventually leading to a pilot release to some users. We achieved very good usability and usefulness score after launching the product in Turkey.