Problem: One of the main reasons people start traveling solo is their difficulty finding a suitable travel companion.
Traveling with a company has many benefits. Not only do you have someone to share the experience with, but you also have the opportunity to meet new people and create lasting memories together. Additionally, traveling with others can help minimize the risk of encountering bad experiences, as you can rely on each other for support and guidance.
Solution
CoTravel is a startup app that simplifies the process of finding a travel companion. The objective is to streamline the process of finding travel companions and trips, ensuring that I meet the key criteria for effective searches and delivering desirable outcomes.
Before diving deeper into the discovery process, I started by framing three guiding questions:
Why is finding a travel companion often so difficult?
What expectations and requirements define the “perfect” travel match?
How can these needs be translated into a product experience?
Curious about how people actually search for travel partners, I began exploring existing spaces where these conversations were happening. That’s when I came across Facebook groups dedicated to connecting travel seekers. By analyzing the posts in these communities, I uncovered recurring themes—parameters like destination preferences, travel style, and budget—that shaped people’s decisions when choosing a companion.
These insights gave me a strong foundation. They allowed me to understand the problem space from the ground up and prepared me to conduct more focused research with potential users.
The Value Proposition Canvas
Differential Analysis
The main aim of the analysis was to examine functions available on comparable websites and applications. The analysis aimed to evaluate all websites and applications that feature the specified functions: Personal profile️, packing checklist, travel filter, travel buddy finder, traveller evaluation, and gamification.
In general, 8 applications and 4 websites were analyzed. It was discovered that there is no existing application with the following functions, which makes the idea for the application unique.
After summarizing the data, the next step was user research to understand travel preferences and perspectives on finding a cotraveler. Both qualitative and quantitative methods were used.
Qualitative: Eight in-depth interviews (via Google Meet) revealed detailed insights into participants’ travel habits, needs, and expectations for finding companions.
Quantitative: A survey shared in Facebook groups gathered 39 responses, highlighting patterns and trends in attitudes toward cotraveling.
By combining these methods, we built a comprehensive understanding of the target audience—insights that informed the design and development of the CoTravel app to align with user needs.
Quantitative analysis
🙍 When looking for a travel companion, travelers primarily focus on the style of travel and entertainment options (journey plan).
💬 Before taking a trip with an unknown person, the two most important factors that can make a user feel safe are the person's profile and chatting about the trip beforehand.
💸 Budget planning is essential, but the function of dividing the budget between travellers is not always required.
👥 When deciding whether to travel together in the future, most respondents consider their potential travel partner's preferred activities and travel style.
🧳 The use of mutual travel packages is rare among our potential users. They would rather pack on their own or clarify details via messenger if necessary.
Qualitative analysis
💸 Respondents don't use the app for budget splitting. Usually, each person pays for themselves or splits the cost 50/50.
🧳 Most of them plan what things to take on the trip in their minds. They pack spontaneously.
🔍 Most of them are members of Facebook groups for travellers, and that's where they usually look for a travel mate.
😨 The greatest pain point in searching for a travel companion is fear.
🙅Respondents do not share their travel experience on social media
🗨️ Respondents are mostly guided by the opinions of others, which inspires their trust.
User Persona
Empathy Map
User Journey
Information Architecture
Card Sorting
To gain a deeper understanding of how users categorize the content, I conducted the card sorting research. This research method allowed me to gather valuable insights into the way users organize and classify information. By observing participants as they sorted and grouped various cards representing different content items, I was able to identify patterns and preferences in their categorization process. The findings from this research not only shed light on the users' mental models and thought processes but also provided valuable guidance for the design and organization of the content. Overall, the card sorting research proved to be an effective and informative method in unraveling the intricacies of user categorization behavior.
I created 40+ screens. During the process, I identified the information that would be included in the application and its scope. Also, I designed information blocks and principles for organizing it.
