Cat Park
A mobile, non-judgmental social platform for cat lovers to discover friendship and relaxation through their imagination.
My Role: Product Designer
Project Type: Passion
Timeline: 2 weeks
Tools: Sketch, Figma, Invision, Pen & Paper
Don’t want to read? Watch my 3 minute video summary of this project below or continue scrolling for a more detailed journey!
Oh, you like reading, huh? Me, too. I made it fun, I promise. Well, without further ado…
Introduction & Background:
Man’s First Friend
Although dogs are often referred to as "man's best friend", cats have had a special relationship with humans for over 5,000 years–– according to author James Allen Baldwin.
In his studies, he found that cat cemeteries in Egypt have been around since 1,000 BCE, showing that cats have not only been honored as friends, but considered to be family.
From Bonding to Becoming
For some people, their pet cat has evolved from being a family member to an online alter ego. From magazines dedicated to cat-girl models to twitter/instagram accounts made in the point of view of a house cat, we found that there was no shortage of people living a significant amount of their life as a cat.
According to American usage statistics, the average American spends more than 6 hours of their waking 15 hours online. That's more than half of their day as a cat!
But... Why?
Reasons to be a cat online:
• Find like minded people - On average, cat people more introverted, sedentary, non-conformist, and creative compared to dog people.
• Healing - Cats have many health benefits for their humans, such as reducing stress-level, helping treat depression and post traumatic stress, and they help cope with loss.
• Adorable - Just looking at cute pictures of cats online has been proven to make people feel better emotionally (see right).
• Freedom - You get to be anonymous and you get to be someone that naps for a living instead of whatever you do.
So What’s The Problem?
Not everyone on twitter is a fan of cat twitter and other forms of cat role-play.
85% of Cat Twitter users experience bullying related to posting as cat.
Never fear, Cat Park is here!
A dedicated space…
to be a cat...
and make friends...
with other people...
also pretending to be a cat...
How did we come up with this crazy cat idea? Well, scroll to see our Path to Cat Park…
Research takeaways:
• online cat role-players created these accounts because they wanted to participate on social media without feeling judged.
• 50% were looking for a fun and positive space where they didn’t have to discuss heavy, human-centered issues such as politics or news.
How Might We
allow cat lovers to connect with each other in a dedicated space without judgement or stigma?
Core Epic: connecting with common interests
Chosen User Story: “as a role playing cat, I want to find other role playing cats so that we can connect”
Task: add a new user as a friend
Scratching & Sketching Post
Considering the home-body tendencies of cat people and the space offered on a bigger screen, Cat Park was initially designed for a desktop view.
However, after testing and reviewing with other designers, we concluded that mobile would make Cat Park available in more places and to more people.
Bottom Navigation Considerations:
How Cat Park Was Born:
The Cat Park Spectrum:
9 Lives of Branding
Wordmarking Our Territory & Logo
Color Application & Other Considerations
Hi-Fi
Prototype
Curious as a cat about what’s next?
Have your friends already heard of Cat Park? Well, we did create a Marketing Site… or should I say, a Markitten Site?
Alternate Device
We’re almost at the end–– are you missing us already? Don’t worry, because we are looking into bringing Cat Park to another device near you (or on you).
Can you imagine Daniel forgets his phone at home when he’s hanging out with his people friends? Luckily, he can get those Cat Park notifications right to his Apple Watch!
I see cats in your future...
In order to make the best version of Cat Park possible, we got together with some peers and pulled some cards from The Tarot Cards of Tech by Artefact.
That gave us some cat food for thought.
Potential Wolves in Cats’ Clothing:
• bullying or harassment
• insincere accounts
• animal abuse
• fetish
We Hiss, Claw, and Bite Back:
• add content moderators
• legal issues
• public stance + warnings
We’re Feline Different After Cat Park
Souvenirs:
• Dog people exist, too. So understand that you might have to explain things, (like what Cat Twitter is) so people might be able to understand you.
• The crying baby gets the milk (or in this case, the meowing cat does). Ask for help. Ask for opinions. Ask for feedback.
• You’re only human–– which means you have to work for results and you shouldn’t sleep 15 hours a day. But it’s okay to take cat naps.
• Don’t be a scaredy-cat–– take a leap of faith. You might not always land on your feet, but at least it’ll make a good story (or case study) someday!
Thanks for visiting!
Let’s play at the Cat Park again soon!
